This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Church’s official beginning in South America. To celebrate, members and friends from in and around Montevideo, Uruguay, gathered Saturday, Oct. 11, at the Antel Arena for a day of art, music and faith-based reflection.
The event featured musical performances, art exhibits and opportunities for spiritual reflection on Jesus Christ and the centurylong legacy of the Church in South America.
In late 1925, Elder Melvin J. Ballard offered a prayer in Buenos Aires, Argentina, blessing the continent for the preaching of the gospel.
The Church first reached Uruguay in 1940 during the South American basketball championship in Montevideo, when Rolf Larson, an Argentine basketball star, helped bring publicity to the Church as a player for Argentina’s team.
Uruguay’s first congregation was organized in 1944. By the end of 1948, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had grown to 14 congregations and one operating mission. The Church continues to grow today in Uruguay and the rest of the continent.
Today, Uruguay is home to the Montevideo Uruguay Temple with the Rivera Uruguay Temple announced; two missions, with a third effective July 1, 2026; and more than 160 congregations.
Elder Eduardo Gavarret, General Authority Seventy and second counselor in the South America South Area presidency, said in an Oct. 20 news release on the Church’s Spanish-language Newsroom that the event was “a true celebration of hope and unity.”
Featured performances, including traditional songs and dances, highlighted Uruguay’s cultural and spiritual richness.
According to the news release, Cardinal Daniel Sturla, archbishop of Montevideo, attended and shared his feelings about the atmosphere of fraternity and openness he experienced throughout the day.
“Everything was very beautiful, very well organized,” said Cardinal Sturla. “I especially liked the art exhibit and the FamilySearch displays; they reflect the value the Church places on family and history.”
Leaders of various religious denominations — along with political, academic and community representatives — also attended the celebration.
Enrique Remuñán, from ORT University in Uruguay, highlighted the collaboration between the two institutions.
“We’ve had cultural and educational work agreements for many years,” said Remuñán. “It is always a joy to reunite with friends from the Church and participate in such a positive environment.”
Elder Gavarret highlighted the various exhibition spaces dedicated to education, family history and humanitarian projects of the Church in Uruguay that reflect “the Church’s ongoing commitment to the spiritual and social development of communities.”
Added Elder Gavettet, a native of of Uruguay: “Seeing the participation of members and friends of the Church, along with representatives of other religious communities, demonstrates that we can work together for the common good. This commemoration strengthens our sense of belonging and invites us to serve others, following the example of Jesus Christ.”
More coverage of the centennial celebrations:
- Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra’s concert in Argentina celebrates 100 years of the Church in South America
- ‘As an oak grows slowly from an acorn’: Graphic shows 100 years of growth in South America
- Celebrating a century: Latter-day Saints in Chile commemorate 100 years in South America
- Pioneers of Argentina: Saints recall huge growth in the Church and know ‘wonderful times are coming’
- Pioneers of Uruguay: Stories of faith and perseverance from Latter-day Saints who have watched the Church grow
- Pioneers of Chile: Early Latter-day Saints tell stories of faith and reflect on Church growth over decades
- Builders and blessings: How early Latter-day Saint pioneers shaped the growth of the Church in Chile
- A prayer and a prophecy: A look at Church growth in South America over 100 years
