The visit last month of two Spanish government officials to Madrid's Temple Square capped the Church's celebration of the 40th anniversary of Spain being dedicated to the preaching of the gospel.
Nearly 40 years to the day after Elder Marion G. Romney -- then of the Quorum of the Twelve -- dedicated Spain to the preaching of the gospel, the Church hosted Jose Maria Contreras and Jose Manuel Lopez from the Spanish Ministry of Justice on May 19 during a tour of Madrid's Temple Square. The visits of Mr. Contreras, Director of Relations with Religious Organizations, and Mr. Lopez, Director of the Foundation for Pluralism and Diversity, punctuated several months of activities commemorating the anniversary of Elder Romney's historic actions on May 20, 1969.
Mr. Contreras and Mr. Lopez toured the grounds of the Madrid Spain Temple, the Madrid Spain Missionary Training Center, a stake center, an employment resource center, an Institute of Religion and a family history library. A choir of missionaries serenaded the dignitaries during their visit to the MTC. Several hundred Church members attended a meeting in the adjacent stake center at which Mr. Contreras and Mr. Lopez both spoke and a choir comprised of members from nearby stakes sang. Among the Church leaders in attendance were Elder Faustino Lopez, an Area Seventy; President Garry K. Moore of the Madrid Spain Temple; President C. Eugene Hill of the MTC; President Brad Farnsworth of the Spain Madrid Mission; and the presidents of the two Madrid stakes.
"I congratulate the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for its 40th birthday in Spain," Mr. Contreras said. "Given that I am about to turn 40, I know from personal experience that arriving at that age isn't easy."
The Church presented Mr. Contreras and Mr. Lopez each with his own ceramic figurine celebrating the family.
Events marking Spain's special 40th anniversary officially came to a close May 24 at a testimony meeting including a 15-minute movie with images and music culled from the Church's four decades in Spain.
Since January Elder Lopez has given a series of eight special firesides, each touching upon a different aspect of the Church's history in Spain. In the coming months, Elder Lopez will continue travelling throughout Spain to present a discussion summarizing the eight firesides he has given in Madrid.
