NATAL, Brazil — On Saturday, May 17, 2025, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints broke ground for the Natal Brazil Temple, marking a historic milestone as the first temple in the state of Rio Grande do Norte and the 15th dedicated in Brazil. The temple is among 24 currently operating, under construction, or announced throughout the country.
Elder Mark D. Eddy, a General Authority Seventy and second counselor in the Brazil Area presidency, presided over the ceremony and dedicated the site for construction. Elder Luciano Sankari, an Area Seventy from Curitiba, also participated in the event, which drew approximately 500 invited guests and was broadcast online.
In his address, Elder Eddy attributed the realization of the Natal temple to the leadership and faith of local Church leaders, along with the dedication of members and missionaries. During the dedicatory prayer, he emphasized the spiritual preparation needed to enter the temple, stating, “We humbly plead with Thee to increase our desire to be personally prepared to receive this temple.”
Among the speakers was Antonio Carlos Bastos Ferreira, a pioneer member and patriarch of the Natal Brazil Stake. He reflected on the early days of the Church in the region, recalling a small 1978 gathering in his father’s home when the area was first dedicated for gospel preaching by then-mission president Max L. Shirts. “Here today begins the greatest spiritual transformation this city has ever seen,” Ferreira said.
President Russell M. Nelson announced the Natal temple on April 2, 2023, during the Church’s general conference. The temple will be a single-story structure of approximately 19,800 square feet, situated on a 5.53-acre site along Av. Senador Salgado Filho (BR-101) in the Nova Parnamirim neighborhood of Parnamirim, a suburb of Natal.
The most recent temple dedicated in Brazil prior to Natal was the Salvador Brazil Temple, which opened on October 20, 2024. Other operational temples are located in Belém, Brasília, Campinas, Curitiba, Fortaleza, Manaus, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo.
Three additional temples — in Belo Horizonte, Londrina, and Ribeirão Preto — are currently under construction. Nine more are in the planning and design phase, including temples in Campo Grande, Florianópolis, Goiânia, João Pessoa, Maceió, Santos, São Paulo East, Teresina, and Vitória.
Latter-day Saint missionary efforts in Brazil began in the south in 1928. By 1978, when the São Paulo Brazil Temple became the first temple in South America, Church membership in the country had grown to 54,000. Today, Brazil is home to more than 1.5 million members across nearly 2,100 congregations and is served by 37 missions nationwide.
