Tears streamed down faces and smiles filled the room as Latter-day Saints who had once crossed oceans for temple blessings now entered a house of the Lord in their own homeland. Juliet Toro, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Fiji, remembers that day she had long hoped for, when the Suva Fiji Temple was dedicated in the early summer of 2000, becoming the Church’s 91st dedicated house of the Lord in operation. For Toro, eternity felt closer to her family.
Oct. 1, 2025, marks the 25th anniversary of a significant milestone reflecting prophetic vision, sacrifice and the joy of covenant belonging. On that day, less than four months after the dedication in Fiji, the Boston Massachusetts Temple became the Church’s 100th operating house of the Lord since the Restoration of the gospel — gathering hearts, nations and generations in sacred ordinances. Their legacy continues today as temples bring God’s children closer to Him, to family and to Zion.
Sacrifice and covenant belonging
Similar to Toro’s experience, before temples were built in their homelands, many Latter-day Saints endured long and costly journeys for temple blessings. Their faith exemplified President Thomas S. Monson’s words in the April 2011 general conference that “no sacrifice is too great” for the priceless blessings of the temple. Houses of the Lord, he said, “are filled with faith and fasting. They are built of trials and testimonies. They are sanctified by sacrifice and service.”
Some families sold crops, heirlooms or other possessions to make the once-in-a-lifetime trip. With a temple in their own nation, everything changed. Covenants became accessible for not only individuals but entire families.
For Toro, entering the temple in her homeland was more than convenient — it was fulfillment. That same joy echoed across the world as Saints sacrificed to see temples rise. When the first 100 temples opened, families entered their doors with reverence and relief. Gathering was no longer only an idea but a lived covenant reality — a daily witness that God honors sacrifice with strength, joy and eternal promises.
Prophetic visions of gathering
When the Prophet Joseph Smith declared in May 1844, “We need the temple more than anything else” (History of the Church 6:230), he set in motion a prophetic priority carried forward by every generation of Latter-day Saints.
Temples are more than buildings of stone, mortar and glass. They are the heart of the gathering of Israel. Within their walls, individuals and families bind themselves to God and one another. Through proxy ordinances for ancestors, whole generations are gathered on the other side of the veil.
The story of the first 100 temples is a story of gathering: Saints gathering closer to home, nations gathering into Zion and families gathering across time. It is also a story of acceleration. What took the Church 150 years to accomplish — 50 dedicated temples — doubled within a few short years. Between 1999 and 2000 alone, 49 temples were dedicated, helping the Church reach the prophetic goal of 100 operating temples by October of 2000.
Milestones in temple worship
The dedication of the St. George Utah Temple in 1877 marked a turning point. At President Brigham Young’s direction, sacred ordinances — previously transmitted by memory — were written down for the first time. This ensured accuracy, consistency and preservation for generations.
Nearly a century later, as the restored gospel expanded across nations and languages, another milestone came. Prior to the 1955 dedication of the Bern Switzerland Temple — the first temple in Europe and the first where English was not the primary language — President David O. McKay assigned a young Gordon B. Hinckley to find a way for Latter-day Saints to receive ordinances in their own tongues. His inspired solution — presenting ordinances on film — made it possible for worshippers from diverse cultures and languages to participate fully in temple worship.
Smaller temples, global reach
By the 1990s, prophetic vision again advanced temple building. President Hinckley, then leading the Church, introduced a smaller temple design that could be built more quickly and in more places. In 1998, he set the bold goal of 100 operating temples by the end of 2000. That vision, fulfilled, represented not only construction progress but also the gathering of God’s people into sacred covenants worldwide.
Continuing acceleration
Twenty-five years after the dedication of the Church’s 100th temple, the pace of temple building has only increased. Today, 208 temples are operating, and with those under construction or announced, the number will soon surpass 400. The vision that began with the first 100 has become a global reality. From Ghana to Guatemala, from the Philippines to Peru, Saints gather in holy places, and millions of ancestors are gathered on the other side of the veil.
The late President Russell M. Nelson taught in 2018 that the gathering of Israel on both sides of the veil “is the most important thing taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude, nothing else compares in importance, nothing else compares in majesty” (see “Hope of Israel,” Worldwide Youth Devotional, June 3, 2018). Temples — past, present and future — are at the heart of that gathering.
The great work of the gathering
The 25th anniversary of the first 100 temples is not only a reminder of what has been achieved but also a witness of what still lies ahead. The sacrifices of the past testify that the Lord magnifies every offering. The joy of those first temple dedications points toward the spiritual momentum President Nelson described.
“Positive spiritual momentum increases as we worship in the temple and grow in our understanding of the magnificent breadth and depth of the blessings we receive there,” he said in the April 2022 general conference.
Twenty-five years after the 100th dedicated temple, 208 dedicated temples dot the earth, with 174 others under construction or announced. With the promise of more to come, the great work of gathering continues — bringing God’s children home to Him.
