The Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints presided over the dedication of the Ephraim Utah Temple on Saturday, August 27, 2022.
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“We pray that the building of this temple may be accomplished to meet your divine purposes,” President Russell M. Nelson said in the dedicatory prayer during the service at the Ephraim community in central Utah. Utah.
President Nelson continued, “We are deeply grateful to our ancestors. They laid a foundation of faith that underpins our spiritual strength. May we learn who they are, find their qualifying information, and bless their lives with sacred rites offered vicariously in this holy house.
The first Latter-day Saints entered the Sanpete Valley in 1849. President Nelson’s family helped settle the valley.
“The history of this area includes my own family,” President Nelson said at the event, which was attended by guests. “My dear mother was born in Ephraim, not far from this very temple site. My father was born in Manti. Three of my four grandparents were born here in Ephraim. My eight great-grandparents all lived in Ephraim.
President Nelson was accompanied by his wife, Wendy, Walter F. González, General Authority Seventy, and Kevin R. Duncan, executive director of the Church’s Temple Department, and their wives. Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox, a native of Fairview, Utah, located 20 miles north of Ephraim, and other government leaders also attended the temple groundbreaking.
The Temple of Ephraim will be built on a 9.16-acre site located at the intersection of 200 North and 400 East in Ephraim, Utah. Plans call for a three-story temple of approximately 39,000 square feet.
The Ephraim Utah Temple was announced in May 2021 by President Nelson.
Ephraim has the largest population in Sanpete County and is home to Snow College. Brigham Young first sent settlers to Sanpete County in November 1849, and they settled what is now Manti. Ephraim was first settled in 1854, mainly by settlers who immigrated from Scandinavian countries.
President Nelson’s great-grandparents were all converts to The Church of Jesus Christ in their home countries of England, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.
Temples
President Nelson has announced 100 new temples since becoming the Church’s prophet in 2018. Worldwide, the Church now has a total of 282 temples in operation, under construction or renovation, or announced, including 28 temples in Utah.
The Ephraim Temple will be located near the Manti Utah Temple, which is currently undergoing renovations. The Manti Temple was first completed in 1888. The pioneer-era temple is expected to be rededicated in 2023.
The Ephraim Utah Temple will serve more than 31,000 Latter-day Saints in Sanpete, Carbon, and Emery counties. This includes Latter-day Saint students who attend nearby Snow College. An existing place of worship for young single adults will be adjacent to the temple.
In addition to the Temple of Ephraim, other temples in Utah are Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Deseret Peak, Draper, Heber Valley, Jordan River, Layton, Lindon, Logan, Manti, Monticello, Mount Timpanogos, Ogden, Oquirrh Mountain, Orem, Payson, Provo City Center, Provo, Red Cliffs, Salt Lake, Saratoga Springs, Smithfield, St. George, Syracuse, Taylorsville, and Vernal Utah Temples.
Latter-day Saints regard temples as the house of the Lord and the holiest places of worship on earth. The temples differ from the churches (chapels) of the Church. All are welcome to attend Sunday services and other weekday activities at local churches. The primary purpose of temples is to enable faithful members of The Church of Jesus Christ to participate in such sacred ceremonies as marriages, which unite families forever, and proxy baptisms in the name of deceased ancestors who do not did not have the opportunity to be baptized during their lifetime.
