Here’s Your First Look Inside the Managua Nicaragua Temple

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will welcome the public inside the Managua Nicaragua Temple during an open house from Thursday, September 10, through Saturday, September 26, 2026, excluding Sundays. According to a Church Newsroom release, the new house of the Lord is the Church’s first temple in Nicaragua.

Journalists received an early look inside the temple during a media day on Monday, September 7. Elder Patricio M. Giuffra, President of the Central America Area, presided over the event alongside Elder Taylor G. Godoy of the Temple Department Executive Committee.

A Temple for Nicaraguan Church Members

Elder Giuffra described what the completion of a temple in Nicaragua means to local Latter-day Saints. The country has nearly 107,000 Church members who worship in 109 congregations.

“For thousands of Nicaraguans who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the completion of this temple represents much more than a historic event,” Elder Giuffra said. “It means having, in their own country, a house of the Lord, a sacred place where they can strengthen their faith and more frequently partake of the blessings received in the temple.”

Elder Godoy also spoke to journalists and invited guests about the sacred role temples hold in the faith and worship of Church members. He later led those attending the media day on a tour through the new building.

“Temples are the most sacred places on earth,” Elder Godoy said. “They are literally the house of the Lord Jesus Christ, where we can make covenants to be closer to God and Jesus Christ.”

Local Church member María Isabel Jirón also participated in the media event and shared her testimony of temples. She explained that temple worship has consistently inspired her as she has sought direction for decisions involving her family, profession and faith in Jesus Christ.

The public open house will give visitors an opportunity to see the temple before Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicates it. Elder Rasband will offer the dedicatory prayer on Sunday, October 18.

From Announcement to Open House

Then-Church President Russell M. Nelson announced plans for the Managua Nicaragua Temple in April 2018. The Church later held a groundbreaking ceremony before construction began on the country’s first temple.

The completed temple now opens to the public more than eight years after President Nelson’s announcement. After the open house concludes on September 26, the Church will prepare the building for its October dedication.

The open house provides people who do not regularly enter Latter-day Saint temples with an opportunity to tour the building and learn about its religious purpose. Once Elder Rasband dedicates the temple, eligible Church members will use it for sacred worship and religious ordinances.

The Managua Nicaragua Temple differs in purpose from the meetinghouses where Latter-day Saints gather each Sunday. Meetinghouses host weekly worship services, classes and other congregational activities, while temples provide a setting dedicated specifically to ordinances, covenants and worship centered on Jesus Christ.

Inside Latter-day Saint Temple Worship

Church members regard temples as houses of the Lord and enter them to make sacred covenants with God. They also participate in ordinances that the Church teaches form an essential part of following Jesus Christ and preparing to return to God.

Temple worship includes ordinances connected to the Church’s teachings about salvation and eternal families. Latter-day Saints believe that husbands and wives who participate in a temple marriage, often called a sealing, can remain united after death when they remain faithful to their covenants.

The Church also teaches that the sealing ordinance can unite children with their parents as an eternal family. These beliefs make temples recurring places of worship for individuals and families rather than buildings reserved for a single religious ceremony.

Church members also perform ordinances on behalf of deceased ancestors who did not receive them during their lives. Latter-day Saints believe those ancestors retain the choice to accept or reject the ordinances performed for them.

Eligible members return to temples throughout their lives to pray, worship, learn and remember the commitments they have made to God. The Church teaches that regular temple worship helps them focus on Jesus Christ, seek spiritual guidance and strengthen their relationships with God.

For Nicaraguan Latter-day Saints, the Managua temple places that worship within their own country. As Elder Giuffra explained during the media day, the new temple will allow Church members to participate in temple ordinances more frequently while seeking strength for their faith and families.

Holly Wallace

Holly Wallace is a writer and storyteller drawn to meaningful questions and overlooked details. Her work explores Latter-day Saint life and culture through faithful inquiry, inviting readers to pause, consider, and engage more deeply with what matters most.