President Russell M. Nelson has announced 100 temples total over 10 occasions — all but one in the past nine general conferences, and all with prophetic invitations and promises regarding temple attendance, ordinances and covenants.
Following are the times, the temples and the highlighted counsel given by President Nelson.
April 2018 general conference
The seven temple locations: Salta, Argentina; Bengaluru, India; Managua, Nicaragua; Cagayan de Oro, Philippines; Layton, Utah; Richmond, Virginia; and a major city yet to be determined in Russia.
The counsel: “Eventual exaltation requires our complete fidelity now to covenants we make and ordinances we receive in the house of the Lord. At this time, we have 159 functioning temples, and more are under construction. We want to bring temples closer to the expanding membership of the Church. …
“My dear brothers and sisters, construction of these temples may not change your life, but your time in the temple surely will. In that spirit, I bless you to identify those things you can set aside so you can spend more time in the temple. I bless you with greater harmony and love in your homes and a deeper desire to care for your eternal family relationships. I bless you with increased faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and a greater ability to follow Him as true disciples.”
October 2018 general conference
The 12 temple locations: Mendoza, Argentina; Salvador, Brazil; Yuba City, California (the Feather River California Temple); Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Praia, Cape Verde; Yigo, Guam; Puebla, Mexico; Auckland, New Zealand; Lagos, Nigeria; Davao, Philippines; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Washington County, Utah (the Red Cliffs Utah Temple).
Restorations of pioneer-era temples: “Plans are now being made to renovate and update the Salt Lake Temple and other pioneer-generation temples.”
The counsel: “After we receive our own temple ordinances and make sacred covenants with God, each one of us needs the ongoing spiritual strengthening and tutoring that is possible only in the house of the Lord. And our ancestors need us to serve as proxy for them. …
“My dear brothers and sisters, the assaults of the adversary are increasing exponentially, in intensity and in variety. Our need to be in the temple on a regular basis has never been greater. I plead with you to take a prayerful look at how you spend your time. Invest time in your future and in that of your family. … I promise you that the Lord will bring the miracles He knows you need as you make sacrifices to serve and worship in His temples.”
April 2019 general conference
The eight temple locations: Pago Pago, American Samoa; Okinawa City, Japan; Neiafu, Tonga; Tooele Valley, Utah (the Deseret Peak Utah Temple); Moses Lake, Washington; San Pedro Sula, Honduras; Antofagasta, Chile; and Budapest, Hungary.
The counsel: “God’s objective should be our objective. He wants His children to choose to return to Him, prepared, qualified, endowed, sealed and faithful to covenants made in holy temples. …
“As we speak of our temples old and new, may each of us signify by our actions that we are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. May we renovate our lives through our faith and trust in Him. May we access the power of His Atonement by our repentance each day. And may we dedicate and rededicate our lives to serving God and His children — on both sides of the veil.”
October 2019 general conference
In a change of pattern from announcing temples at the conclusion of the Sunday afternoon session, President Nelson identified during the Saturday evening women’s session — and used time the next day to announce revised temple recommend interview questions.
The eight temple locations: Freetown, Sierra Leone; Orem, Utah; Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; Bentonville, Arkansas; Bacolod, Philippines; McAllen, Texas; Cobán, Guatemala; and Taylorsville, Utah.
The counsel: “Individual worthiness to enter the Lord’s house requires much individual spiritual preparation. But with the Lord’s help, nothing is impossible. In some respects, it is easier to build a temple than it is to build a people prepared for a temple. Individual worthiness requires a total conversion of mind and heart to be more like the Lord, to be an honest citizen, to be a better example and to be a holier person” (Sunday afternoon session).
“In the holy temple you are authorized to perform and officiate in priesthood ordinances every time you attend. Your temple endowment prepares you to do so … You may not have a priesthood bearer in your home, but you have received and made sacred covenants with God in His temple. From those covenants flows an endowment of His priesthood power upon you” (women’s session).
April 2020 general conference
In the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Nelson admitted “it may seem odd to announce new temples when all our temples are closed for a while.”
The eight temple locations: Bahía Blanca, Argentina; Tallahassee, Florida; Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Benin City, Nigeria; Syracuse, Utah; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; and Shanghai, People’s Republic of China.
The counsel: “Brothers and sisters, during times of our distress when temples are closed, you can still draw upon the power of your temple covenants and endowment as you honor your covenants. Please use this time when temples are closed to continue to live a temple-worthy life or to become temple worthy.
“Talk about the temple with your family and friends. Because Jesus Christ is at the center of everything we do in the temple, as you think more about the temple you will be thinking more about Him. Study and pray to learn more about the power and knowledge with which you have been endowed — or with which you will be endowed.”
October 2020 general conference
The six temple locations: Tarawa, Kiribati; Port Vila, Vanuatu; Lindon, Utah; Greater Guatemala City, Guatemala; São Paulo East, Brazil; and Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
The counsel: “Embrace your new normal by repenting daily. Seek to be increasingly pure in thought, word and deed. Minister to others. Keep an eternal perspective. Magnify your callings. And whatever your challenges, my dear brothers and sisters, live each day so that you are more prepared to meet your Maker.
“That is why we have temples. The Lord’s ordinances and covenants prepare us for eternal life, the greatest of all of God’s blessings. … As we build and maintain these temples, we pray that each of you will build and maintain yourself so you can be worthy to enter the holy temple.”
April 2021 general conference
President Nelson’s announcement of 20 new temples made for the most ever in a single setting.
The 20 temple locations: Oslo, Norway; Brussels, Belgium; Vienna, Austria; Kumasi, Ghana; Beira, Mozambique; Cape Town, South Africa; Singapore, Republic of Singapore; Belo Horizonte, Brazil; Cali, Colombia; Querétaro, Mexico; Torreón, Mexico; Helena, Montana; Casper, Wyoming; Grand Junction, Colorado; Farmington, New Mexico; Burley, Idaho; Eugene, Oregon; Elko, Nevada; Yorba Linda, California; and Smithfield, Utah.
The counsel: “We are grateful for your patience and devoted service during this changing and challenging [pandemic] period. I pray that your desire to worship and serve in the temple burns more brightly now than ever. … Meanwhile, keep your temple covenants and blessings foremost in your minds and hearts. Stay true to the covenants you have made. …
“Temples are a vital part of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullness. Ordinances of the temple fill our lives with power and strength available in no other way. We thank God for those blessings.”
May 1, 2021
The same day he announced plans to preserve and renovate the Manti Utah Temple, President Nelson also announced a second temple in the area.
The temple location: Ephraim, Utah.
The decision to build a second temple in central Utah came “after much study and prayer, and with our deep gratitude for the Lord’s responding to our pleadings,” he said, adding that leaders had looked forward with “prayerful foresight” to the growing number of Latter-day Saints who now or will live in central Utah and to the thousands of students who will study at Snow College. “We care about their well-being and their future.”
October 2021 general conference
President Nelson used his Sunday morning session message — titled “The Temple and Your Spiritual Foundation” — to liken the ongoing renovations of the Salt Lake Temple to his invitation for Latter-day Saints to strengthen their personal foundations.
The 13 temple locations: Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Tacloban, Philippines; Monrovia, Liberia; Kananga, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Antananarivo, Madagascar; Culiacán, Mexico; Vitória, Brazil; La Paz, Bolivia; Santiago West, Chile; Fort Worth, Texas; Cody, Wyoming; Rexburg North, Idaho; and Heber Valley, Utah.
A future reconstruction: President Nelson added “reconstruction of the Provo Utah Temple after the Orem Utah Temple is dedicated.”
The counsel: “It is now time that we each implement extraordinary measures — perhaps measures we have never taken before — to strengthen our personal spiritual foundations. Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures” (Sunday morning session).
“As we keep our covenants, He endows us with His healing, strengthening power. And oh, how we need His power in the days ahead. … Please believe me when I say that when your spiritual foundation is built solidly upon Jesus Christ, you have no need to fear” (Sunday morning session).
“As I emphasized this morning, please make time for the Lord in His holy house. Nothing will strengthen your spiritual foundation like temple service and temple worship” (Sunday afternoon session).
April 2022 general conference
The 17 temple locations: Wellington, New Zealand; Brazzaville, Republic of Congo; Barcelona, Spain; Birmingham, United Kingdom; Cusco, Peru; Maceió, Brazil; Santos, Brazil; San Luis Potosí, Mexico; Mexico City Benemérito, Mexico; Tampa, Florida; Knoxville, Tennessee; Cleveland, Ohio; Wichita, Kansas; Austin, Texas; Missoula, Montana; Montpelier, Idaho; and Modesto, California.
The counsel: “The adversary never sleeps. There will always be opposition to the truth. I repeat my urging from this morning to do those things that will increase your positive spiritual momentum, to keep you moving forward through whatever challenges and opportunities come.
“Positive spiritual momentum comes as we worship in the temple and grow in our understanding of the magnificent breadth and depth of blessings we receive there. I plead with you to counter worldly ways by focusing on the eternal blessings of the temple. Your time there brings blessings for eternity.”
