Montevideo Uruguay Temple Wiki
Quick Facts
ANNOUNCED
2 November 1998
ANNOUNCED BY
First Presidency
GROUNDBREAKING
27 April 1999
GROUNDBREAKING PRESIDED BY
Elder Richard G. Scott
DEDICATED
18 March 2001
DEDICATED BY
Elder Gordon B. Hinckley
Description
History
The first branch, a small congregation of the Church, was organized in 1944. In the 1940s, Argentine Latter-day Saint basketball star and former missionary Rolf Larson came to Montevideo to play a South American championship game and sparked the public’s interest in the Church.
In 1948, Uruguay became the third South American nation to host a Latter-day Saint mission, an organization that assigns volunteer missionaries to geographical areas for teaching the gospel and providing service to local citizens. (The first two South American missions in specific countries were established in Argentina and Brazil.) More recently, Church membership in Uruguay blossomed, growing at a rate of 80 percent over a period of five years — indicating the need and support for a Latter-day Saint temple. Church membership in Uruguay continues to grow, and as of 2014, membership exceeded 100,000.
Announcement
A temple for Montevideo, Uruguay, was announced on 2 November 1998, by the First Presidency of the Church to local leaders. [1]Church News Archives. “3 More Temples Announced, Total Now 98.” Church News, 11 Jan. 2024, www.thechurchnews.com/1998/11/7/23249910/3-more-temples-announced-total-now-98.
At the time, the First Presidency consisted of Church President Gordon B. Hinckley and his counselors, President Thomas S. Monson and President James E. Faust.
At the time the Temple was announced members in Uruguay had been traveling to the Buenos Aires Argentina Temple to participate in temple worship.
ANNOUNCED ORDER
97
| Date | 1992 11 02 |
| By | First Presidency |
| Role | # |
| Via | Local Letter |
⮜Preceded by Villahermosa Mexico
Followed by Fresno California⮞
Groundbreaking
The Montevideo Uruguay Temple’s groundbreaking occurred on April 27, 1999, on land that had been known locally as “Mormon grounds.” Owned by the Church since the 1960s.
Church apostle Richard G. Scott presided at the groundbreaking ceremony, mentioning that 48 years before, he had begun volunteer missionary service in Uruguay, a time which he recalled as a treasured era in his life.
“When the House of the Lord is completed, it will have an impact on all the nation. I have seen it in other nations, where members have eagerly attended the temple. The Spirit that comes affects not just the members, but all of the nation. This is a day of tremendous importance for Uruguay,” said Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve who presided at the temple’s groundbreaking ceremony.
GROUNDBREAKING ORDER
95
| Date | 1999 04 27 |
| By | Richard G. Scott |
| Role | Apostle |
| Attendees | # |
⮜Preceded by San José Costa Rica
Followed by Baton Rouge Louisiana⮞
As a former missionary in Uruguay, Elder Scott remembered his missionary experiences during his remarks. “Forty-eight years ago, I stepped down from a boat in Montevideo and began a stage in my life that I have treasured.” He expressed appreciation to those in attendance for their faithful lives, and noted that “you represent a much larger number of members. Where I once served as president of the Montevideo District, now I see many worthy families, many missionaries, many stakes in the blossoming of the work. I am grateful to the Lord for what was done; it is as leaven for the entire country. I pray that the Lord will be with you in your preparations to enjoy the blessings of the temple.”
Elder Carlos H. Amado of the Seventy and president of the South America South Area, who offered the site’s prayer, said, “For the adults, this is the completion of a dream, but for the children it is a start of a new era. Those who are pioneers have seen much, but the most fantastic things the pioneers have seen will not be anything compared with that which the children here will see. They will see much more, and they will do much more than the pioneer members. The temple will be constructed for you to serve your many ancestors. Filled with faith, they came to this land and founded this nation with the desire to know God and worship Him in liberty. Many of these immigrants were guided by the Spirit of the Lord to come to this land; many of them do not have the gospel, but their names exist, and the work for their redemption is accelerating.”[2]Church News, 15 May 19
Construction on the Montevideo Uruguay Temple commenced the day after the groundbreaking ceremony
Open House
From 28 February–10 March 2001, the completed building welcomed visitors for tours, including Uruguay’s president, Jorge Batlle. After, touring the temple, he said that the temple was “a place where moral values are evident.”
During the open house nearly 25,000 people visited the Montevideo Uruguay Temple. Many visitors of other faiths commented that, “They felt like they had left this world when they entered the temple, that they’d left their cares and worries behind. Others said it is the most beautiful building in the country.” [3]“News of the Church,” Ensign, May 2001, 109
OPEN HOUSE
| Start Date | 2001 02 28 |
| End Date | 2001 03 10 |
| Days | 10 |
| Attendees | 25,000 |
| Per day | 2,500 |
Dedication
Dedication
On 18 March 2001, Church President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the sacred edifice in four sessions, allowing over 7,000 attendees to participate. In his dedicatory prayer he said of the temple: “May it grace this land. May the nation of Uruguay be blessed because of its presence on this soil. May it stand as a testimony to the world of the knowledge of Thy people concerning the eternal things of God.” [4] Montevideo Uruguay Temple dedicatory prayer, in Church News, Mar. 24, 2001, http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/39528/MONTEVIDEO-URUGUAY-Here-we-will-carry-forward-a-great-work.html.
DEDICATION ORDER
103
| Date | 2001 03 18 |
| By | Gordon B. Hinckley |
| Role | President |
| Sessions | 4 |
| Attendees | 7,655 |
⮜Proceeded by Porto Alegre Brazil
Followed by Winter Quarters Nebraska⮞
Construction Duration
| Span | Duration |
|---|---|
| Announced to Groundbreaking | – y, – m, – d |
| Groundbreaking to Dedication | – y, – m, – d |
| Announced to Dedication | – y, – m, – d |
Dedicatory Order
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The Montevideo Uruguay Temple was the first temple built in Uruguay and the 11th in South America, making Uruguay the second-to-last nation on the continent to have a temple within its borders, just before Paraguay. The Montevideo Uruguay Temple is the 103rd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Announced
Under Construction
Under Renovation
Firsts
- The Montevideo Uruguay Temple was the first temple of the LDS Church to be dedicated in the 21st century.
Presidents and Matrons
| Temple President | Temple Matron | Years Served |
|---|---|---|
| Juan Carlos Pera Maidana | María Lydia Dominga Fiorina De Cunto | 2024– |
| Raul Antonio Orlando | Rosario Maria Bandinelli Orlando | 2021–2024 |
| Antonio Rodríguez Cappi | Graciela María Franzia de Cappi | 2018–2021 |
| Alberto Exequiel Hernández Martínez | María Angélica Casas Rosano de Hernández | 2015–2018 |
| Jorge Washington Ventura Brignoli | Lilian Fernandez O. Ventura | 2012–2015 |
| Lynn Richard Shurtleff | Alma Don McArthur Shurtleff | 2009–2012 |
| Nephi Gaylon Hopkins | Margaret Ann Childers Hopkins | 2006–2009 |
| James Robert Driggs | Carmen Carolyn Gay Peters Driggs | 2003–2006 |
| Joseph Kay Brooks | Ida Jean Lewis Taylor Brooks | 2000–2003 |
Details
Location
Standing east of the nation’s capital, and occupying one end of a Church-owned city block in Montevideo’s most exclusive neighborhood, Carrasco, the Montevideo Uruguay Temple adds to the wide range of architectural styles found along the city’s southeast coast. The Montevideo Uruguay Temple site is on property acquired by the Church in the 1960s. It also houses two mission headquarters, a distribution center a meetinghouse, a patron housing facility, and a regional service center. The lush temple grounds are filled with palm trees, shrubs, and brightly colored flowers.
LOCATION
Address
| Latitude | # |
| Longitude | # |
Phone
Elevation
| Feet | Meters |
|---|---|
| # | # |
Site
| Acres | Hectares |
|---|---|
| # | # |
Exterior
Exterior
Cladding
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Windows
The Montevideo Uruguay Temple is covered in elegant granite and decorated with circle designs above the windows. A steeple rises from the roof and supports a gold-leafed statue of Moroni, a Book of Mormon prophet; the statue’s trumpet symbolizes the gospel message sounding throughout the world. Uruguay’s first temple was constructed according to a relatively small, streamlined, contemporary design similar to several temples built in the late 1990s and early 2000s. At that time, Church leaders intensified efforts to build temples closer to Latter-day Saints living across the globe.
EXTERIOR
Exterior Finish
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Architectural Features
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Specifications
| Feet | Meters | |
|---|---|---|
| Height | # | # |
| To Shoulder | # | # |
| Width | # | # |
| Length | # | # |
| Footprint | # | # |
Interior
Interior
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Entry
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GENERAL INTERIOR
| Area | 32,240 f2 (2,995.19 m2) |
| Floors above grade | |
| Floors below Grade | |
| Baptistries | |
| Initiatories | |
| Endowment Rooms | |
| Sealing Rooms |
Baptistry
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BAPTISTRY
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Initiatory Spaces
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INITIATORY
| Style | detached, attached, combined |
| Type | stationary, progressive |
| Rooms | # |
Instruction Rooms
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Creation Room
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Garden Room
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World Room
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Terrestrial Room
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INSTRUCTION ROOM
| Rooms | # |
| Type | # |
| Capacity | # |
| Murals | y/n |
| Total Muraled Rooms | # |
| Mural Type |
Celestial Room
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Sealing Room
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SEALING ROOM
| Sealing Rooms | |
| Largest Capacity |
With 10,700 square feet, the temple has sealing rooms, where marriages are performed; instruction rooms, where patrons learn more about the gospel of Jesus Christ and make promises to follow His teachings; a celestial room, or a room representing God’s presence where patrons can quietly pray and contemplate; and a baptistry.
Region
TEMPLES IN SOUTH AMERICA by country
| Argentina | 7 | Bahía Blanca · Buenos Aires Argentina · Buenos Aires City Center · Córdoba · Mendoza · Rosario · Salta |
| Bolivia | 3 | Cochabamba · La Paz · Santa Cruz |
| Brazil | 24 | Belém · Belo Horizonte · Brasília · Campinas · Campo Grande · Curitiba · Florianópolis · Fortaleza · Goiânia · João Pessoa · Londrina · Maceió · Manaus · Natal · Porto Alegre · Recife · Ribeirão Preto · Rio de Janeiro · Salvador · Santos · São Paulo · São Paulo East · Teresina · Vitória |
| Chile | 6 | Antofagasta · Concepción · Puerto Montt · Santiago · Santiago West · Viña del Mar |
| Colombia | 4 | Barranquilla · Bogotá · Cali · Medellín |
| Ecuador | 2 | Guayaquil · Quito |
| Paraguay | 1 | Asunción |
| Peru | 10 | Arequipa · Chiclayo · Chorrillos · Cusco · Huancayo · Iquitos · Lima · Lima Los Olivos · Piura · Trujillo |
| Uruguay | 2 | Montevideo · Rivera |
| Venezuela | 2 | Caracas · Maricaibo |
Total: 61
Sources and Citations
References
| ↑1 | Church News Archives. “3 More Temples Announced, Total Now 98.” Church News, 11 Jan. 2024, www.thechurchnews.com/1998/11/7/23249910/3-more-temples-announced-total-now-98. |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | Church News, 15 May 19 |
| ↑3 | “News of the Church,” Ensign, May 2001, 109 |
| ↑4 | Montevideo Uruguay Temple dedicatory prayer, in Church News, Mar. 24, 2001, http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/39528/MONTEVIDEO-URUGUAY-Here-we-will-carry-forward-a-great-work.html. |
Last updated on: 25 January 2026