San José Costa Rica Temple

The San José Costa Rica Temple is the 87th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).

San José Costa Rica Temple
Number 87
Dedicated 4 June 2000 (4 June 2000) by
James E. Faust
Site 1.93 acres (0.8 hectares)
Floor area 10,700 sq ft (990 m2)
Height 71 ft (22 m)
Preceded by Montréal Québec Temple
Followed by Fukuoka Japan Temple
Official website • News & images

The church's First Presidency announced on March 17, 1999 that a temple would be built in San José, Costa Rica. The announcement of the San José Costa Rica Temple made it the first temple in Costa Rica and the second temple in Central America.[1]

History

The LDS Church is relatively new in Costa Rica. A U.S. ambassador who was LDS ran the first church meetings from his home between 1943 and 1946. The first Mormon missionaries arrived in 1946, and temporarily left during Costa Rica's 1948 Civil War.[2] By 1974 church membership had grown enough that Costa Rica became its own mission. In 1977 the first stake was created in Costa Rica.[2] In 1992, Boyd K. Packer, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, dedicated the land of Costa Rica for missionary work and membership grew even faster. In 1960 there had only been 214 members in Costa Rica, by 1970 there were 1,700 members. Today there are 23,000 members in Costa Rica.[3] Before the building of the temple in Costa Rica, members had to travel to the Guatemala City Guatemala Temple. The trip was expensive, costing many families twice their monthly income.

On April 24, 1999 a groundbreaking ceremony and site dedication were held. Lynn G. Robbins, a member of the Seventy and first counselor in the presidency of the Central America Area, presided at the ceremony. Construction began soon after the groundbreaking and progress was quick to reach a deadline of finishing the temple in one year. The deadline was met and the temple was dedicated in June, fourteen months after the announcement to build the temple.

The temple was open for tours May 20–27, 2000. The temple plot is 1.93 acres (7,800 m2). The exterior finish of the temple is made of Blanco Guardiano white marble from the northern Mexican city of Torreón. More than 20,000 people attended the open house and toured the temple. James E. Faust, a member of the First Presidency, dedicated the San José Costa Rica Temple on June 4, 2000.[4] The San José Temple serves over 35,000 church members in twelve stakes and fourteen districts.

The San José Costa Rica Temple has a total of 10,700 square feet (990 m2), two ordinance rooms, and two sealing rooms.[5]

In 2020, the San José Costa Rica Temple was closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.[6]

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See also

References
  1. "Six more temples announced; total now 108", Church News, March 27, 1999
  2. "Country information: Costa Rica", Church News, Jan 28, 2010
  3. "Statistics by Country: Facts and Statistics", Newsroom, LDS Church |contribution= ignored (help)
  4. "San Jose Costa Rica: 'Imbue them with a knowledge... of this work'", Church News, June 10, 2000
  5. "Facts and figures: San Jose Costa Rica Temple", Church News, June 10, 2000
  6. Stack, Peggy Fletcher. "All Latter-day Saint temples to close due to coronavirus", The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 March 2020. Retrieved on 28 March 2020.

Additional reading
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