Church Leaders Dedicate Second Temple In South Africa
Feb 16, 2020, 8:26 PM | Updated: 8:27 pm
Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Newsroom
DURBAN, South Africa – The second temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South Africa has been dedicated.
The temple was built in Durban, a coastal city near the Indian Ocean. Elder Ronald A. Rasaband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the building,
It was his first opportunity to dedicate a temple, according to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Newsroom.
“I don’t think there’s anything greater that I could be asked in my ministry to do than to be assigned by the prophet of God to dedicate a temple,” Elder Rasaband said.
Prior to their tour of the temple, Elder and Sister Rasband and Elder and Sister Cook hosted members of the Zulu royal family in a reception on Friday, February 14.
“We will be a wonderful partner for you in caring for matters that are important to you, caring for the poor and the needy, helping to relieve human suffering,” Rasaband said.
An open house was held in January for the public to visit the temple. Church officials said people representing 20 countries attended the open house.
The temple was built about 365 miles from the Johannesburg South Africa Temple, which was dedicated in 1985 and dedicated by President Gordon B. Hinckley, then a counselor in the First Presidency.
Additional temples in use in Africa include the Aba Nigeria Temple, Accra Ghana Temple and Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple.
Five more temples have been announced or are under construction. They include the Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple, Harare Zimbabwe Temple, Freetown Sierra Leone Temple, Lagos Nigeria Temple and Nairobi Kenya Temple, according to Church officials.
