Two Temples to Open in 2006

Two new temples will be dedicated by the end of 2006—the Sacramento California Temple on September 3 and the Helsinki Finland Temple on October 22—bringing the number of operating temples to 124. Additionally, ground has been broken for the Twin Falls Idaho Temple, and the Papeete Tahiti and Los Angeles California Temples are currently being renovated.

New Temples

A statue of the angel Moroni is already atop the Sacramento California Temple, a sign of its pending completion.

“We have faith-promoting experiences every day working on the temple,” says Jacob Jensen, the project superintendent for the Sacramento temple. To him, it is evidence of Heavenly Father’s hand in the work.

The dedication of the Sacramento temple is set for Sunday, September 3, with the open house scheduled from July 29 through August 26. It will be the Church’s seventh temple in California.

The new Helsinki Finland Temple is scheduled for dedication in October. “Finnish members feel the temple is a great blessing for such a small nation,” says Ville-Matti Karumo, Church public affairs director in Finland.

But it will bless more than just members in Finland, as it will be the closest temple for members in Eastern European countries, including Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and northwestern Russia. The dedication will include four dedicatory sessions on October 22. The open house is scheduled from September 23 through October 7, culminating with a cultural celebration on October 21. Until then, stake presidents have asked all the members to visit the Stockholm Sweden Temple as often as they can to show appreciation to the Lord for blessing Finland with a temple.

Renovations

In November 2005 the Los Angeles California Temple closed to undergo renovations, including a seismic overhaul.

“If there’s a big quake, the building will be fine,” explains John Dietrich, a temple recorder at the Los Angeles Temple. He explains that a crossbeam in the 115-foot (35-m) tower on the temple was bent by a 1994 earthquake, which reached a magnitude of 6.7.

Meanwhile, members in Tahiti await the time when they can perform ordinances and receive blessings again in the Papeete temple, one of four temples in the Pacific Islands. The temple was closed for renovations in August 2005.

As of May 1, no rededication dates had been announced for either temple.

Ground Broken

While work on these temples nears completion, work on another has just begun. On April 15, 2006, Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Presidency of the Seventy broke ground for the Twin Falls Idaho Temple, the second temple in Idaho to undergo construction during the past year. It will be the fourth temple in Idaho, serving 40,000 Church members from 14 stakes.

An artist’s rendering shows the Twin Falls Idaho Temple, which is now under construction.