Alerts Sign-up
The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced significant developments for temples in Madagascar and Brazil. The Antananarivo Madagascar Temple will have its groundbreaking ceremony on March 15, 2025. Elder Denelson Silva, First Counselor in the Africa South Area Presidency, will oversee the event.
The temple will be constructed on a 9.8-acre site at Fokontany Andranoro, Ambohibao, Antehiroka, Andranomena, Madagascar. It is planned to be a single-story building covering approximately 10,000 square feet and will include patron housing and arrival facilities. President Russell M. Nelson first announced this temple during the October 2021 general conference.
"Everything taught in the temple, through instruction and through the Spirit, increases our understanding of Jesus Christ," President Nelson said during that conference.
Madagascar is an island nation off Africa's southeastern coast and ranks as the world's fourth-largest island. This temple will be the first in Madagascar, serving over 15,000 Latter-day Saints across more than 40 congregations. The Church's presence began formally in 1998 with the establishment of the Madagascar Antananarivo Mission. By September 2000, the Antananarivo Madagascar Stake was organized.
In Brazil, plans for the Florianópolis Temple have been unveiled. It will be built on a 5.5-acre site at Rua Cassol, 1120, Kobrasol, São José, Santa Catarina. This marks Florianópolis' first temple.
Detailed designs are still being developed for this temple with exterior renderings to be released later. President Nelson announced this project during the April 2024 general conference.
The Portuguese translation of the Book of Mormon was published in 1940 and marked a new era for missionary work in Brazil. Since then, Brazil has seen rapid growth within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints compared to other South American countries.
Currently hosting approximately 1.5 million Latter-day Saints within nearly 2,200 congregations nationwide, Brazil will see its 23rd temple established with this addition in Florianópolis. There are also eight more temples planned for various cities including Goiânia and João Pessoa among others while eleven are operational throughout Brazil today.
Temples differ from local meetinghouses where all can attend services; their primary purpose is to conduct sacred ceremonies uniting families eternally for faithful members only.
