Groundbreakings set for temples in Ephraim, Utah, Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo

Groundbreaking plans are scheduled for the Ephraim Utah and Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temples, the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced Tuesday.

Elder Walter F. Gonzalez, a General Authority Seventy and counselor in the church’s Utah Area presidency, will preside at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Ephraim Utah Temple on Saturday, Aug. 27.

Elder Matthew L. Carpenter, a General Authority Seventy and president of the church’s Africa Central Area, will preside at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple on Saturday, Aug. 20.

A temple site and exterior rendering for the Lubumbashi temple were also released Tuesday.

Attendance at both events will be by invitation only.

Ephraim Utah Temple

• The Ephraim Utah Temple was announced by President Russell M. Nelson on May 1, 2021.
• The temple’s location was released on Oct. 22, 2021.
• An exterior rendering was released on March 4, 2022.
• The three-story temple of approximately 39,000 square feet will be built on a 9.16-acre site located at the intersection of 200 North and 400 East in Ephraim, Utah. The temple site is located northeast of Snow College and less than eight miles from the Manti Utah Temple.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• The Ephraim temple will serve more than 31,000 Latter-day Saints in the central Utah area.
• There are more than 2.1 million Latter-day Saints attending over 5,300 congregations, according to the church’s newsroom.
• Utah has 28 temples that are operating, under renovation, under construction or in the planning phase.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple

• The Lubumbashi temple was one of eight new temple sites announced by President Nelson during the church’s October 2020 general conference.

• The Lubumbashi temple will be the second temple in the central African nation, joining the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple which was dedicated in 2019.
• Before the Kinshasa temple was dedicated, the nearest temple was in Johannesburg, South Africa. But traveling to Kinshasa is still a difficult journey of more than 1,000 miles from Lubumbashi, a mining town of almost 1.8 million people.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• The Lubumbashi temple will be 19,300 square feet in size and will be constructed on 2.57 acres. It will include two endowment rooms of 30 seats each. Ancillary buildings of 31,000 square feet will be built on the site, which will include a distribution center and patron and missionary housing.
• There are nearly 90,000 Latter-day Saints attending 250 congregations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to the church’s newsroom.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints