News Release

Kinshasa DRC Temple open house begins with media and VIP tours

Open house concludes March 30th. Dedication set for April 14th.

The city of Kinshasa and the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are preparing for a historic day, the official start on Monday of the public Open House events ahead of the planned dedication, or the official opening, of the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple.

The Area Presidency of the Africa Southeast Area, one of the two administrative regions of the Church in Africa, is presiding over the Kinshasa events which will kick off with a Media and VIP tours on Monday, March 11, 2019.

More than 300 VIPs have been invited, along with some 50 members of the media, including local and international television channels.

Elder S. Mark Palmer and his counsellors Elder Joseph W. Sitati and Elder Joni L. Koch are scheduled to address a media conference on Monday morning at which they will share their thoughts and feelings about the blessings of the temple. Thereafter they will lead the visiting dignitaries on a special guided tour of the facility.

 

Preparations for the Open House activities have involved plans to assist motorists by working with traffic authorities to minimize traffic jams outside the Kinshasa temple precinct.

Plans are also in place to facilitate the tours of the temple by thousands of Church members belonging to the 11 stakes of Kinshasa. Each stake comprises at least five or six contiguous wards or branches of the Church similarly to a diocese.

On Saturday, March 9, 2019 there was a special tour of the temple for the construction team and their families.

Elder Palmer thanked those that have worked so hard to prepare for the Open House events.

“Thank you for all that you have done,” said Elder Palmer at a meeting with the planning committee. “We love and appreciate you.” He added that the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ will be felt as the people appreciated the beauty and the importance of the temple in their lives.

When the Kinshasa temple is dedicated on Easter Sunday, April 14, 2019, it will become the 4th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Five others are in various stages of either being planned or constructed for the following locations: Harare, Zimbabwe; Durban, South Africa; Abidjan, Ivory Coast; Lagos, Nigeria and Nairobi, Kenya.

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