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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Announcement of the Tarawa Kiribati Temple
On Oct. 4, 2020, President Russell M. Nelson announced a temple for Tarawa, an Oceanian atoll in the island chain of Kiribati. The nation of Kiribati is a collection of 33 Micronesian islands in the mid-Pacific, and it spans over where the equator and international dateline meet.When the temple was announced, Tarawa had around 21,000 Latter-day Saints in two stakes and 37 congregations. The country is currently in the Suva Fiji Temple district, meaning members have to travel 2,168 kilometers (1,171 nautical miles) southeast of Kiribati to attend the house of the Lord.
Fiji resident Adolf J. Johannsson, who presided over the Kiribati units for six years as an Area Seventy, said the Saints in the country wept with joy at the announcement. “This is a realization of the prophecy that the Lord will gather his people from all the ends of the earth. ... When the future temple is ultimately dedicated in Tarawa, it will stand as a beacon of the fullness of the gospel for all to see.”
Timeline of the Tarawa Kiribati Temple
October
04
2020
Announced
President Russell M. Nelson announced a temple for Tarawa, Kiribati, on Oct. 4, 2020, during October 2020 general conference. This was the first among six temples announced in the conference and came during the last talk of the Sunday afternoon session.
The Tarawa temple was announced Oct. 4, 2020, by President Russell M. Nelson.
The temple, along with a new meetinghouse and patron housing facility, will stand on a 0.8-acre site. The temple grounds will be adjacent to the Kiribati Parliament building. Green, red and purple bushes as well as some palm trees will decorate the site. An additional ancillary facility will also be located 450 meters west of the temple site.
Architecture and Design of the Tarawa Kiribati Temple
The Tarawa Kiribati Temple will be a single-story building of approximately 10,000 square feet. According to an exterior rendering released May 19, 2021, the temple will be surrounded by square windows with brown frames and an arched entryway above the main doors. Atop the temple, above the entrance, will be a tower on a square base and an arched window on each of the four sides.The temple, along with a new meetinghouse and patron housing facility, will stand on a 0.8-acre site. The temple grounds will be adjacent to the Kiribati Parliament building. Green, red and purple bushes as well as some palm trees will decorate the site. An additional ancillary facility will also be located 450 meters west of the temple site.
Quick Facts
Additional Facts
Fact #1
This will be the first Latter-day Saint temple in the Oceanian country of Kiribati, which comprises 33 islands.
Fact #2
In the same talk this first temple in Kiribati was announced, President Russell M. Nelson announced the first temple for the Oceanian country of Vanuatu. Missionary work in Kiribati started in 1975, the same year it started in Port Vila, Vanuatu.
Fact #3
The closest temple to [city] at the time of its announcement was the Suva Fiji Temple, a distance of approximately 1,171 nautical miles away.
Additional Facts
Fact #1
This will be the first Latter-day Saint temple in the Oceanian country of Kiribati, which comprises 33 islands.
Fact #2
In the same talk this first temple in Kiribati was announced, President Russell M. Nelson announced the first temple for the Oceanian country of Vanuatu. Missionary work in Kiribati started in 1975, the same year it started in Port Vila, Vanuatu.
Fact #3
The closest temple to [city] at the time of its announcement was the Suva Fiji Temple, a distance of approximately 1,171 nautical miles away.