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Tokyo Japan Temple

The Tokyo Japan Temple is the 18th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

On 9 August 1975, the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that a temple would be built in Tokyo, Japan. Spencer W. Kimball, then President of the Church, said at a conference in Tokyo:

And now we bring to you a matter of grave importance to all of the people of the Asian countries and the world. Yesterday, we held a meeting of the stake presidents and other leaders to consider this very serious matter. Brother Matthew Cowley, one of the Twelve Apostles, made a prediction that there would be temples in Asia and in Japan. And many of us have been almost holding our breath until the time could come when we could build a temple in this land. We, therefore, propose to you assembled here that we establish a temple in Tokyo, Japan, for all of Asia.^[1]

With this announcement, the audience broke out clapping and crying. With its completion, the Tokyo Japan Temple became the first temple built in Asia. A second Japanese temple was later built in Fukuoka, Japan. At the time of the announcement of the Tokyo Japan Temple, the Laie Hawaii Temple, which was more than 3,800 miles away, was the Church’s closest temple.

Early Missionary Work in Japan

The Church’s first introduction to Japanese individuals came in 1871, by way of the then-new Meiji government. Traveling to the United States to investigate its financial system, government envoy Hirobumi Ito met Angus M. Cannon while traveling on the recently completed transcontinental railroad — the two discussed the Church’s restoration and history for more than two days.

Later that year, the government’s Iwakura Mission — comprised of more than 100 people, including Ito, traveling throughout the United States and Europe — was stranded in Salt Lake City for 19 days because of heavy snow. During the extended stay, mission members visited the Church’s businesses, schools, museums, theaters, and the homes of church leaders and members, becoming the first Japanese to participate in Church meetings.

The first missionaries were sent to Japan in 1901, by President Lorenzo Snow. The Asia Mission was headquartered in Tokyo, and the first missionaries included future Church President Heber J. Grant and Alma O. Taylor, who later translated the Book of Mormon into Japanese in 1909.

Special leather-bound editions of the Book of Mormon in Japanese were then given to His Majesty the Emperor (Emperor Meiji), His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince (later Emperor Taisho), and other government officials.

Baptized on 8 March 1902, off of Tokyo’s Omori Coast, Hajime Nakazawa became the Church’s first convert in Japan.

For twenty years missionaries taught in Japan, but the work was slow, and there were still less than 200 members. With the beginning of World War I, the mission in Japan was closed and remained closed until after World War II. Many of the LDS military men stationed in Japan were some of the best missionaries in Japan following the war. They along with the newly returned missionaries found members who had remained strong since the 1920s and others who were ready to accept the gospel. The Church in Japan grew slowly at first, but then began to grow more rapidly, and by the year 2000, there were 114,000 members in Japan.

Today, more than 130,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — comprising about 260 congregations — reside in Japan. Besides the Tokyo Japan Temple, Japan is home to two additional operating temples — in Fukuoka and Sapporo — and one under construction in Okinawa.

The Temple Site

The temple site is .46 acres in a beautiful residential area across from the historical Arisugawa Memorial Park. The site works well because it is near the embassy and is only a five-minute walk from the subway station. The site had previously been used by the Church as a mission headquarters, but it was demolished to make room for the temple. The temple was designed to go up instead of out because land is scarce in the area. A parking garage is underneath the temple and an apartment for the temple president and matron is above the temple.

The temple has a total floor area of 52,590 square feet, two ordinance rooms, five sealing rooms, a baptismal font, Celestial room, and facilities for offices, laundry, and other necessities of the temple. The exterior of the temple is reinforced concrete covered with 289 pre-made panels of stone, which looks like light gray granite.

Public Open House and Temple Dedication

An open house was held from 15 September through 18 October 1980, to allow the public to see the interior of the new Latter-day Saint temple. Spencer W. Kimball dedicated the Tokyo Japan Temple on 27-29 October 1980. On 10 December 2004, a ceremony was held in which an Angel Moroni statue was added to the spire of the temple. The Tokyo Japan Temple serves members in Northern Japan and Vladivostok, Russia.

Temple Closure for Renovations

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the closure of the Tokyo Japan Temple for extensive renovations. The temple will close in October 2017. The renovations will help maintain functionality, efficiency, and beauty. The temple would receive mechanical upgrades along with updates in finishes and furnishings. The renovations was expected to be completed in 2020.

Annex Building Next to Tokyo Japan Temple Is Dedicated

On Sunday, 10 January 2021, the annex building next to the Tokyo Japan Temple was dedicated for use by the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Japan. The immense facility is equipped for transmitting broadcasts and houses a full meetinghouse with two stake suites and five ward suites, area offices, two mission offices, a visitors' center, patron housing, a family history center, and an underground parking facility with space for about 100 vehicles. The re-dedication of the temple was delayed until large public gatherings were deemed safe in accordance with COVID-19 restrictions.

Open House and Rededication Dates Announced for the Tokyo Japan Temple

The First Presidency has released dates for the rededication of the Tokyo Japan Temple and its open house.

The public open house will run from Friday, 3 June 2022, through Saturday, 18 June 2022, except for the two Sundays during that period — June 5 and June 12.

A youth devotional is planned for Saturday, 2 July 2022, the evening prior to the rededication.

President Henry B. Eyring, second counselor in the First Presidency, will preside at the rededication, with three sessions scheduled for Sunday, 3 July 2022, at 9 a.m., noon, and 3 p.m.

The rededication services and youth devotional will be broadcast to all units in the Tokyo temple district.

Tokyo Japan Temple Begins Public-Facing Phase with Tours, Photos, and Video

The Tokyo Japan Temple was originally dedicated more than 40 years ago as the 18th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The start of the temple’s media and special-guest tours began at 11 a.m. Monday, 30 May 2022, in Tokyo (8 p.m. Mountain Time on Sunday, 29 May 2022), with Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles presiding.

Coinciding with the start, the Church released interior and exterior photos of the Tokyo Japan Temple as well as a YouTube video on the renovated temple’s public events.

In a ChurchofJesusChrist.org report, Elder Stevenson said, "This is a special opportunity to come and see the temple in the great city of Tokyo. It is a sacred place for us because we consider it 'the house of the Lord'."

The public open house ran from Friday, 3 June 2022, through Saturday, June 18, excluding Sundays, 5 June 2022, and 12 June 202212.

As a young man, Elder Stevenson served in the Japan Fukuoka Mission, and from 2004 to 2007, he and his wife, Sister Lesa Stevenson, were mission leaders in the Japan Nagoya Mission.

He further commented:

Temples are such an important part of the culture in Japan. I have admired how Japanese people are temple-going people. Important days in their lives are celebrated by visiting a temple or shrine. It has a striking similarity to what we as Latter-day Saints hold as one of our sacred rites and customs as being able to go to the temple.

The Tokyo temple district comprises nearly 93,000 Latter-day Saints in 20 stakes in the Tokyo area. Japan is home to more than 130,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in approximately 260 congregations.[1] Additional temples in the country are the Fukuoka Japan Temple (dedicated in 2000) and the Sapporo Japan Temple (dedicated in 2016), with a fourth temple currently under construction in Okinawa.

Tokyo Japan Temple Is Rededicated

President Henry B. Eyring, second counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, rededicated the Tokyo Japan Temple Sunday, on July 3, 2022.

A four-story annex added to the temple houses a visitors’ center, chapel, area and mission offices and a Family History Center. Improvements were also made at the temple to meet current seismic standards.

The refurbished 53,779-square-foot Tokyo Japan Temple is distinctly Japanese. Several exterior features and much of the foliage encircling the temple are indigenous to the region — including landscaping improvements that include Japanese maples and bamboo. Two Japanese-style shallow ponds and a waterfall round out the exterior highlights.

Interior patterns used in the art glass, carpets and fabrics were inspired by traditional Japanese patterns seen in kimono fabric, shoij screens, and other historic Japanese art.

References

Temples in Japan

• Fukuoka Japan Temple

• Okinawa Japan Temple

• Osaka Japan Temple

• Sapporo Japan Temple

• Tokyo Japan Temple

See also

• Inside Mormon Temples
• Mormon Temples
• The Temple Endowment
• Mormon Undergarments
• LDS Weddings

External Links

• Official Tokyo Japan Temple page
• Tokyo Japan Temple page
• Tokyo Japan Temple dedicatory prayer, 1980
• Tokyo Japan Temple dedicatory prayer, 2022
• The Miraculous Translation of the Book of Mormon into Japanese
• Read The Book of Mormon and other scriptures in Japanese online

Videos of the Tokyo Japan Temple