On Saturday, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon Church, brought together members and leaders to lay the foundation stone for a new monumental Temple to be located on the Road of Frères, which will be the second in the Caribbean after that of Santo Domingo in DR. This opening of construction follows the announcement of this temple in Haiti by the current President of the Mormon Church, on April 5, 2015.

A religious ceremony led by Elder Walter F. González, from the College of 70, and a choir of local Mormons in Haiti preceded the official opening of the site. During his religious service, Gonzalez urged Haitian Mormons to be role models and affirmed, "This Temple will be like a light for the city, a light for the nation [...] Every block, every brick for the construction of this temple will be like our faith so that many may be brought to the gospel [...] When I think about this day, I can only think about everlasting joy and gratitude for all what the temple means in our lives [...]"

According to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the district of Haiti has more than 17,000 Mormon worshipers in seven chapels. Note that, unlike Mormon chapels, Mormon Temples are sacred places where access is restricted to "Mormon worthy ones." The sacraments administered in these temples are the baptism for the dead or the celestial marriage. It is also a high place of meditation and recollection.

A team of experts in the construction of Mormon Temples has been dispatched to Haiti, for the construction of this monumental Temple, whose work will last about 1 year and a half. After the completion of the temple, it will be temporarily open to the public for visits, before its inauguration.

Learn more :

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830 in the United States. It is a Restorative Christian Church (which claims to have restored original Christianity) and considers itself a revealed religion. Its global headquarters are in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Mormon Church was introduced to Haiti by a Haitian businessman of Jewish origin, Alexandre Moura in 1977. The Mormon Church was officially recognized in Haiti in 1983. 147 Mormon Temples exist throughout the world and 23 are under construction, including that of Haiti.

S/ HaitiLibre