Santiago Philippines Temple

President Russell M. Nelson announced the construction of two more temples for the Philippines during his closing remarks at the Sunday Afternoon Session of General Conference on October 2, 20122, making the Santiago Philippines Temple the tenth temple in the Philippines. The other temple announced will be located in Naga.

The Republic of the Philippines is an archipelagic country that consists of around 7,641 islands that are broadly categorized under three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

Santiago is located about 225 miles northeast of Manila in Luzon.

Kendrick Navarro, who lives in North Salt Lake, was thrilled to hear the news about the Naga City and Santiago Philippines Temples.

“These locations have a special meaning to me,” he wrote. “My dad grew up in Legaspi City, which is almost 60 miles away from Naga City, way closer than the Manila Temple. His family is one of the pioneers in Legaspi City, and seeing the temple being built close to home is such an amazing blessing.”

Navarro was born in Laoag City, Philippines, and the closest operating temple now is the Manila Temple. Ward temple trips constituted a 12-hour bus ride or an expensive flight.

“Having the Santiago Temple and the Urdaneta Temple (currently being constructed) will cut the travel time to almost half. I’m so excited for my people who will have the opportunity to go to the temple more often,” he said. “I can’t wait for the day for these temples to be dedicated and do ordinances in Ilokano in Ilokano regions. Truly, the Lord is mindful of all of His children wherever they are.””[1]

The Philippines is home to more than 833,000 members of the Church meeting in 1,256 congregations. A few Filipinos joined the Church in the 1940s and 1950s, but missionary work did not begin in earnest until 1961. After that point, it accelerated quickly. By the end of the decade, the Church had a presence on eight major islands. In 1973 the first stake in the Philippines was organized.

Location

The Santiago Philippines Temple is currently in the planning stages. No location has been announced by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Temples in the Philippines

• Alabang Philippines Temple
• Bacolod Philippines Temple
• Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple
• Cebu City Philippines Temple
• Davao Philippines Temple
• Iloilo Philippines Temple
• Laoag Philippines Temple
• Manila Philippines Temple
• Naga Philippines Temple
• Santiago Philippines Temple
• Tacloban City Philippines Temple
• Tuguegarao City Philippines Temple
• Urdaneta Philippines Temple