Colonia Jurez Chihuahua Mexico Temple
Dedication of the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple
At a centennial celebration for Church-owned Juárez Academy in Colonia Juárez, Mexico, Church President Gordon B. Hinckley lamented that the closest temple was an eight-hour drive to Mesa, Arizona. “I would like to see the time come when all of our people throughout the world could get to a temple without too much inconvenience,” he told those in attendance in June 1997. “I think you are about as far away as anybody.”
Afterward, while heading to the El Paso International Airport, President Hinckley “reflected on what we could do to help these people in the Church colonies of Mexico. ... They’ve been the very epitome of faithfulness.”
On the subsequent plane ride, and with spiritual guidance, the Prophet sketched a floor plan with only the essentials of a house of the Lord. The laundry facility, the cafeteria and other areas of the temple not necessary for temple ordinances were omitted from the plan, allowing the temples to be smaller and constructed more quickly.
The second of the smaller temples using this plan was announced for Colonia Juárez, Mexico — with a temple site adjacent to Juárez Academy.
Church President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the Ciudad Juárez Mexico Temple in four sessions March 6-7, 1999. He was joined by President Boyd K. Packer, acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; and Elder Eran A. Call, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Mexico North Area.
President Meredith I. Romney — former stake president and the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua temple’s first president — observed: “When we went on a temple excursion to the Arizona Temple in Mesa, we could just feel the unity of the people for several months after they came back. ... Now that we have a temple here, we can do that as often as we’d like.”
S. Keith Bowman, a 78-year-old patriarch in the area, noted that even before the temple was announced, many patriarchal blessings he gave mentioned the house of the Lord. Some were told their ancestors were waiting anxiously to receive the blessings of the temple, and other members were told they would be called to work in the temple. “Now,” said Bowman, “they will have that opportunity that they couldn’t have had before.”
Also at the dedication was President Lester Johnson, who had started service as president of the Colonia Juárez Mexico Stake only a week prior. “We are going to have to put in our total effort to move the work along,” he said. “That is the only way we can express our appreciation.”
Dedicatory prayer excerpt: “It was here in Northern Mexico that Thou didst reveal the idea and the plan of a smaller temple, complete in every necessary detail, but suited in size to the needs and circumstances of the Church membership in this area of Thy vineyard. That revelation came of a desire and a prayer to help Thy people of these colonies who have been true and loyal during the century and more that they have lived here. They are deserving of this sacred edifice in which to labor for themselves and their forebears.”
Read the dedicatory prayer of the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple here.
Timeline of the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple
October
04
1997
March
07
1998
Groundbreaking
Ground was broken for the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple on March 7, 1998, with some 800 attendees at the event. Elder Eran A. Call — a General Authority Seventy and president of the Mexico North Area — dedicated the site. Elder Joe J. Christensen of the Presidency of the Seventy, who was in the area to reorganize a stake, also attended the ceremony.
February
25
1999
Open house
The public was invited to tour the house of the Lord from Feb. 25 to Feb. 27, 1999. Approximately 10,870 visitors attended the open house during this time, including 150 religious, civic and business leaders who attended VIP tours.
March
06
1999
Dedication
The Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple was dedicated in four sessions from March 6 to March 7, 1999, by Church President Gordon B. Hinckley. A total of 4,932 Latter-day Saints attended a session.
SEE ALL Timeline of the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple
The Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple was announced Oct. 4, 1997, by President Gordon B. Hinckley. A groundbreaking ceremony was held March 7, 1998, with Elder Eran A. Call dedicating the site.
After a public open house from Feb. 25 to Feb. 27, 1999, President Hinckley dedicated the temple March 6-7, 1999.
Architecture and Design of the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple
The Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple is a 6,800-square-foot building with an exterior finish of white marble. Atop the single-story building is a center spire with a statue of the angel Moroni. In addition to the baptistry and celestial room, the temple has one instruction room and one sealing room.
This house of the Lord overlooks Church-owned Juárez Academy, which celebrated its centennial the same year the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua temple was announced.
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