FARMINGTON, New Mexico — Just 50 miles southeast of the Four Corners Monument, the only part of the United States where four states intersect, now stands a monument where heaven and earth intersect: the Farmington New Mexico Temple.
“This sacred house of the Lord testifies more than any other place of the immortality of the soul and that life continues beyond the veil,” said Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who dedicated the temple on Sunday, Aug. 17.
The “wonderful link” that binds families together eternally is Jesus Christ, he said. “Only through the incomparable gift of the Savior do we have power to bind in heaven what is bound on earth.”
Elder Andersen added that “every ordinance in this holy house turns our hearts toward our Savior, Jesus Christ, and His atoning gift, and what that gift means for eternal marriage, our family and our posterity.”
Accompanying Elder Andersen at the dedication were his wife, Sister Kathy Andersen; Elder Jose L. Alonso, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Church’s United States Southwest Area, and his wife, Sister Rebeca Alonso; Elder Steven R. Bangerter, a General Authority Seventy and executive director of the Temple Department, and his wife, Sister Susan Bangerter; and Presiding Bishop Gérald Caussé and his wife, Sister Valérie Caussé.
After arriving at the site on an enchanting, sunny morning, Elder Andersen walked down a line of about 200 to shake hands and express his love for their attendance.
“I love these people. They have been dedicated and devoted,” he said of Farmington Latter-day Saints. “It is an unbelievable blessing to think that here in the beauty of the desert, suddenly you see this sacred house of the Lord.”
In his dedicatory prayer on the Farmington temple, Elder Andersen said: “Let this, Thy house, be a sanctuary of peace, a refuge from the distractions of the world. We pray that here in this holy temple the incomparable value of each individual, each son or daughter of God, will be counted greater than all the treasures of the world, allowing the goodness of each disciple to shine in splendor beyond any consideration of cultural identity, personal prosperity or worldly notoriety.”
The new temple in Farmington is the Church’s 208th temple in operation. It’s also the second in the state, with the Albuquerque New Mexico Temple being dedicated in March 2000.
Preparing for the Savior to return
“We all know that evil is increasing in the world around us,” said Elder Andersen. “Spiritual dangers can pull us from our spiritual moorings.”
Yet, “amid this world in commotion, the Lord has said that He will prepare a righteous people.” Those who consecrate their lives to Him by attending His house, he said, “will receive the blessings and the power to become the person you desire to become.”
Elder Andersen pointed to blessings that President Russell M. Nelson promised from attending the temple, including help to prepare for the Second Coming of the Lord.
“Nothing will help you more to hold fast to the iron rod than worshipping in the temple as regularly as your circumstances permit,” the Prophet said in April 2024 general conference.
Elder Andersen testified that “in this holy house, we will make ourselves ready” for the Lord to return. “As you have faith in Him and do your very best, He will lift you from your burdens, your difficulties and your weaknesses and prepare you for His return and the eternal life that awaits you.”
‘A spiritual anchor’
Elder Alonso said the city of Farmington has been incredibly welcoming and supportive of the Farmington temple. “In an era when many temple projects face delays or resistance, the experience in Farmington has been a remarkable expression of unity, goodwill and shared purpose.”
The kindness and goodness of the people here, he said, is a testament to the Lord’s preparation of hearts in the area. “Their faith is not merely spoken — it is lived, often in quiet, humble ways. And when they worship, they do so with reverence and love that invites the presence of the Lord.”
This house of the Lord in Farmington stands as a radiant symbol of God’s love and remembrance, said Elder Alonso.
“The temple will be a beacon of hope and unity for the entire community — a spiritual anchor that invites all to feel the love of the Savior. In a time when the world is increasingly divided and troubled, the house of the Lord will offer peace, connection and divine purpose.”
Elder Bangerter referred to Farmington as a place the Lord has grown deeply rooted families in the gospel.
“These beautiful people with their testimonies of the gospel came to establish themselves here in the midst of a desert, but an oasis in a desert, and to build their lives with an eternal perspective.”
The Lord’s house is “a place of convergence,” Elder Bangerter said, where people bring their values and traditions — like Native American members of the Church in the area — and are met with ordinances and covenants. “We see oneness in a most beautiful way here.”
Bishop Caussé first came to know the area while presiding at a stake conference in nearby Kirtland, New Mexico. He was struck by the quiet majesty of the desert landscape, he said, but even more so by the faith and devotion of Latter-day Saints in the region.
“Your community is beautifully diverse, shaped by a rich and layered history. This region has long been a gathering place,” he said. “The blend of origins and cultures has created a strong, resilient foundation upon which The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has taken root and flourished.”
At the invitation of Elder Andersen, Romero Brown from St. Michaels, Arizona, bore his testimony in Navajo. The former Chinle Arizona Stake president greeted the congregation with a heartfelt “yáʼátʼééh” — a Navajo term meaning both “hello” and “all is well” — and several in attendance agreed back with an audible “yáʼátʼééh.”
How the temple site came to be
Local Church members’ devotion for the temple site began decades ago. In the 1970s, a local stake president, President Marlo Webb, was tasked to select a lot for a stake center to be built.
He decided on a 7-acre plot of land. Although it was twice as large as it needed to be, and despite discussion about selling off a portion, President Webb felt strongly impressed to keep the entire parcel.
Fast-forward five decades, the site comfortably holds both a house of the Lord and an adjacent stake center.
“The Lord had marked this land for His house long before the Saints knew why,” said Elder Alonso. “It is a powerful reminder that God prepares the way in advance and that our faith today often opens the path for blessings tomorrow.”
Perry Webb, Marlo Webb’s son, remembers poignant moments in the old stake center — the Fourth of July picnics, the funeral of his nephew, ward members comforting one another in difficult times. “The location has a lot of sacred meaning to us,” he said.
At the time the old meetinghouse was demolished, current Farmington New Mexico Stake President Grant Allred had been serving as bishop in the building.
“There was a tiny, tiny part of me that was sad to see it torn down,” he said. “It was a very sacred place for me. But in the same breath, the thought of now having a temple sit in that same space is a beautiful progression.”
He added that where his old bishop’s office used to be is not far from where the celestial room now sits. “Those sacred moments are not gone; they will only be built upon.”
President Allred is inspired by what Latter-day Saints in the area have sacrificed to attend the temple in the past. “And they’ll be so much more enriched by actually performing the ordinances and not just wearing out tires back and forth to Albuquerque.”
Seeing it as ‘their’ temple
About 30,000 people were expected to visit the temple’s open house, held from July 17 to Aug. 2. A total of 48,456 attended — more than the entire population of Farmington, which was calculated at around 46,000 people last year.
“Member response has been impressive, just with how many people brought people through,” said George Payne. He and his wife, Joanne Payne, served as the open house and dedication committee co-chairs for the Farmington temple. “We saw multiple people coming back a third and fourth time with different friends or neighbors, teaching people about what temples were.”
In addition to the positive response from Latter-day Saints, he said, “the response from the community was overwhelming as well.” The mayor went through three times in one day, and “every time he’d come out, he’d have something more positive to say about the experience.”
Joanne Payne added that religious and civic leaders who attended, including dignitaries from the state legislature, “all communicated about how great it was going to be for the community.”
The second week of the open house, Farmington held its 2025 Connie Mack World Series, a national baseball tournament for high school teams.
“The community hosts the players in their homes, and a lot of the members of the Church host players,” said Joanne Payne. “And so the word got out to the players and their families that this was going on, and they had downtime, and so they came.”
The biggest miracle George Payne saw from the open house was the willingness of Church members to volunteer. Some even took work off for a week to help. “We had over 4,000 spots for volunteers to come and serve, and we filled those to 96% capacity.”
Members who visited the open house — several who are in the process of coming back to Church — are seeing this as “their” temple. “I think that will translate to more attendance,” George Payne said. “I have no doubt that having a temple in this area will increase that focus on the Savior.”
Elder Alonso said: “We are deeply grateful to our Heavenly Father and to His Son, Jesus Christ, for allowing so many to feel Their love and peace within these sacred walls.”
‘Untold’ blessings of temple worship
For years, Greg Kempton would travel around seven hours round trip every Tuesday and Saturday to work in the Albuquerque New Mexico Temple. Making each trek in a single day, Kempton often wouldn’t get back home until midnight.
Yet, “I’ve never once felt that it was a sacrifice to do that,” said Kempton, of the Farmington 7th Ward, Farmington New Mexico Stake. All he sees are the “untold amount of blessings” — the faith-building experiences, the cherished bonds with dear temple patrons, the long drives to reflect and listen to the Spirit — gained through temple service.
While he made these long trips, his wife, Kathie Kempton, would care for their daughter with special needs. “She’s always allowed me to go and serve in the house of the Lord with never a complaint and always encouragement,” he said of his wife.
And although opportunities to worship together in the Albuquerque temple were limited, the Farmington temple now stands just 12 minutes away. The ability to now serve weekly as ordinance workers is “a dream come true” for Kathie Kempton, who will serve on Fridays, while her husband attends on Saturdays.
She said: “Our setting-apart blessings will always be a sacred memory for me. I know our children and grandchildren will be doubly blessed because of our opportunity to serve.”
In fact, all of the Kemptons’ 20 grandchildren went through the open house, said Greg Kempton. “When you look down that line and you’re looking across each other in the celestial room, that’s when you realize how important the blessings are that come from a temple.”
‘Don’t forget about the temple’
Angie McDaniel — of the Rio Vista Branch (Spanish), Bloomfield New Mexico Stake — has seen enthusiasm for the temple throughout her entire community, member and nonmember alike.
A first grade teacher, McDaniel works at a school just a short walk from the temple. One day during a morning routine, a boy waved his arm and called out, “Señora McDaniel, don’t forget about the temple.”
She recounted: “I was so surprised that I asked him, ‘Which temple?’ He replied, ‘The one up the street — before it opens, everyone can go in.’ It was a blessing to be able to attend the open house with this little boy and his grandmother.”
Attending the temple as a branch has been difficult in the past, said McDaniel. “Going to Albuquerque was difficult and expensive. It was especially difficult to drive new members to baptisms or to support those who were doing so for the first time. Having a temple here allows us to attend whenever we want without worrying about money.”
McDaniel was especially proud of youth during the open house. After one young woman toured the temple, she told a young man in the branch that she still didn’t understand the importance of proxy baptisms. “The young man replied that she first needed to understand the importance of baptism,” McDaniel explained. “He then proceeded to share with her his love for gospel principles.”
Sujey Mexia Soto, also from the Rio Vista Branch, has felt “enormous joy” knowing the Lord’s house will be so close. “We will have the opportunity to be instructed and receive direct revelation to apply in our lives and become increasingly pure and holy.”
She and other branch members are eager to do more temple work for their ancestors and help newer members understand the significance and sacredness of the building. “Through our behavior and devotion to the love of the temple, many souls will go to our Heavenly Father,” she said.
Connecting with Zuni heritage in the temple
Michelle Kanesta of the Zuni Branch, Gallup New Mexico Stake, was comforted by her Heavenly Father’s love in the celestial room. “I am going through a difficult time in my life where I lost my mother,” she said. “And just being at the temple, I felt comfort and love, almost like a hug and a whisper of ‘Everything will be OK.’”
She noted her admiration for the Farmington temple’s design details, from the flower patterns throughout the rooms to the artwork on the walls. “I am able to connect with my Savior and my heritage at the same time.”
Mike Nieto, also a member of the Zuni Branch, found solace by attending the open house with branch and family members. “We had a spiritual moment and enthusiasm when we entered the new temple,” he said. “We had a sense of peace and tranquility.”
Having a second house of the Lord in New Mexico allows a stronger connection to God, said Nieto. “I love being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Zuni, New Mexico. It brings me closer to our Heavenly Father, our Savior and the Holy Ghost.”
Farmington New Mexico Temple
Address: 4400 College Boulevard, Farmington, New Mexico 87402
Announced: April 4, 2021, by President Russell M. Nelson
Groundbreaking: April 30, 2022, presided over by Elder Anthony D. Perkins, a General Authority Seventy
Public open house: July 17 through Aug. 2, 2025, excluding Sundays
Dedicated: Aug. 17, 2025, by Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
Property size: 6.63 acres
Building size: 29,066 square feet
Building height: 126 feet, 6 inches
