Ground broken for Naga Philippines Temple, to be ‘a place of peace and sacredness’

‘As we make and keep temple covenants, there flows into our lives a godly power that helps us to change trials and tribulations into triumphs,’ says Elder Steven D. Shumway

Published: Aug 10, 2026, 5:25 p.m. MDT

Elder Steven D. Shumway — a General Authority Seventy and member of the Philippines Area presidency, fourth from left — and his wife, Sister Heidi Shumway, third from left, are joined by Naga City Mayor Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo, fifth from left, and other guests to break ground for the Naga Philippines Temple on Aug. 8, 2026, in Naga City, Philippines. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

At the Aug. 8 groundbreaking ceremony of the Naga Philippines Temple, Elder Steven D. Shumway said this house of the Lord will be “a place of peace and sacredness, a place that will forever divide the light from the darkness of this world.”

Elder Shumway is a General Authority Seventy and member of the Philippines Area presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In his dedicatory prayer on the site, he pleaded that “as this temple expands Thy light and knowledge upon the earth, may all who live in this land and who come to this site open their hearts and minds to receive the truths and the joy of living the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.”

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