Taipei, Taiwan - Mormon Temple
The Taipei Taiwan Temple is the 31st operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The country of Taiwan was first introduced to the Mormon Church in the mid 1950s. At first, United States servicemen would hold church meetings there. Then in 1956 missionaries from the Southern Far East Mission arrived. The printing of the Book of Mormon in Chinese in 1965 was a great blessing to local church members, who had waited for years to have the book available in their own language. It was the announcement and building of the Taipei Taiwan Temple, however, that the Taiwanese Saints had waited for and it proved to be the greatest development in the history of the church in that land.
After the announcement of the temple in 1981, Church leaders decided to build on the site of the mission home in the center of Taipei. Church leaders hoped that the beauty of the temple would attract the attention of those who passed by and that they would notice the drastic difference between the surrounding buildings and the temple. In years to come, the temple has been acknowledged as one of the most beautiful buildings in Taiwan.
On November 17, 1984, President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the Taipei Taiwan Temple. The temple is built on one-half of an acre and has over 16,000 square feet with an exterior of white ceramic tile. There are four ordinance rooms and three sealing rooms.