The Campinas Brazil Temple, in

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian municipality in São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's population is 1,213,792, making it the fourteenth most populous Brazilian ...

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

, is the 111th operating

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

(LDS Church). The temple was the fourth to be built in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

History

The first

Mormon missionaries Missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—widely known as Mormon missionaries—are volunteer representatives of the church who engage variously in proselytizing, church service, humanitarian aid, and commu ...

arrived in Brazil in the 1920s. Most of the early converts in Brazil were German immigrants coming to Brazil after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In 1931, the 80 members of the small

branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term ''twig'' usually ...

near

built the first LDS meetinghouse in Brazil. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Mormon missionaries were removed from Brazil, but when missionaries returned after the war Brazilian natives began joining the church by the hundreds. Church membership in Brazil continues to grow quickly. The Campinas Temple serves more than 117,000 members from 36 stakes in the area. Brazil is home to more Latter-day Saints than any other country in the world, except the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Plans to build the Campinas Brazil Temple were announced on April 3, 1997. A groundbreaking ceremony and site dedication were held on May 1, 1998. It was presided over by James E. Faust a member of the

First Presidency Among many churches in the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency (also known as the Quorum of the Presidency of the Church) is the highest presiding or governing body. Present-day denominations of the movement led by a First Presidency ...

, who had served as a missionary in Brazil in the 1940s. The temple site has . The site is on a hill overlooking the 1 million-population city of

and can easily be seen from all around. The temple has a total area of , which includes four ordinance rooms and three sealing rooms. Hundreds of people came for the groundbreaking ceremony and site dedication. The temple was open to the public April 20, 2002 through May 11, 2002. Tens of thousands of people were able to take a tour through the temple and learn more about its sacred importance. LDS Church president

Gordon B. Hinckley Gordon Bitner Hinckley (June 23, 1910 – January 27, 2008) was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from March 1995 until his death in January 200 ...

dedicated the Campinas Brazil Temple on May 17, 2002. Four sessions were held which allowed thousands to attend the dedication. Before the dedication, Hinckley met with a large group outside and the final

cornerstone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over tim ...

was placed in the temple. The construction was then officially completed. In 2020, the Campinas Brazil Temple was closed temporarily during the year in response to the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identifie ...

.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.

References

External links

Official Campinas Brazil Temple page

Campinas Brazil Temple
at ChurchofJesusChristTemples.org {{LDS-South-America, state=expanded 21st-century Latter Day Saint temples Religious buildings and structures in São Paulo (state) Buildings and structures in Campinas Temples (LDS Church) completed in 2002 Temples (LDS Church) in Brazil 2002 establishments in Brazil

History

See also

References

External links