President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, dedicated the Paris France Temple on Sunday, May 21, 2017.
- Paris France temple cultural celebration
- Paris France temple cultural celebration
- Paris France temple cultural celebration
- Paris France temple dedication
- Paris France temple dedication
- Paris France temple cornerstone ceremony
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
Accompanying President Eyring were Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Bishop Gerald Caussé, of the Presiding Bishopric, Elder Larry Y. Wilson of the Seventy and Elder Paul V. Johnson, of the Europe Area Presidency. Members of the Church gathered in the temple, adjacent buildings and at many locations in France, Belgium and Switzerland to participate via satellite transmission in the dedicatory sessions.
President Eyring explained that the significance of the Paris Temple ‘will be to raise a generation of French-speaking people deeply devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ and prepared to carry the gospel to the world’.
A day before the dedication, Church leaders enjoyed a performance by more than a 1,000 young Latter-day Saints who presented through song and dance the history of the Church in France and paid tribute to its pioneers. The cultural celebration, entitled Let Your Light So Shine was held at the France National Velodrome, in the nearby town of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines.
During a three-week open house in April and May, almost 50,000 visitors watched a short video about temples and then walked through the temple and gardens. Several invited leaders in government, clergy and education from all over the world also toured the temple in April. Members of the city council and local ecclesiastical leaders toured the temple as well.
Approximately 38,000 members of the Church in France and Belgium will be served by the new temple. The temple, originally announced by President Thomas S. Monson on October 1, 2011, had been under construction since its groundbreaking in August 2012. It will be the 156th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the first in France.
Latter-day Saint temples differ from churches where members meet for Sunday worship services. Temples are considered “houses of the Lord” where the teachings of Jesus Christ are reaffirmed through baptism, marriage and other ceremonies that unite families for eternity.