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‘Waiting for the Day’: How Members Prepared for the DRC Temple
The outgoing temple president of the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple looks back on the excitement and preparation of the saints as the temple opened.
The spire of the house of Lord reaches towards the heavens in the evening sky in Kinshasa, DRC. It brings a moment of peace and calm to all who pass by and look upon the beautiful temple grounds. To members it is a reminder to come often, to make and renew their covenants with the Lord, and to feel the Lord’s presence and counsel in their lives.
On 1 October 2011, President Thomas S. Monson (1927-2018) announced that the 163rd temple in the world would be built in Kinshasa, DRC. President Brent Jameson, Kinshasa mission president at the time, shares this recollection:
“Every six weeks, we traveled to outlying units of the church. In Pointe Noire we were greeted by the branch president who indicated there were a few members who needed temple recommends and that they were all lined up in the hall. There were 16 people waiting to renew or obtain recommends! This same experience was replicated everywhere we visited. At great sacrifice financially, with hours of travel, and for no other reason than to renew or obtain recommends, they had come. These members understood the importance of having a current recommend. They knew it showed the Lord how serious they were about living the gospel and how important their covenants were to them. They knew that they may or may not ever get to the temple, but they wanted to be ready to enter and make their covenants whenever the opportunity arrived. Their recommends meant something important to them and to the Lord.”
Later, in 2018, President Jameson shared this emotional experience:
“We were called as the Kinshasa temple president and matron. We came early for the express purpose of conducting recommend interviews so as many as possible would be ready to enter the temple. We asked for volunteers to serve as workers in the temple. There were immediately 250 volunteers and every single one of them had a valid temple recommend! They were just waiting for the day! Most had only attended the temple once for their endowments—many were bishops and stake presidents—but they had not had the opportunity to attend again. The day had come for regular temple attendance!”
Today, August 2021, the Lord has called a new temple presidency from among the Congolese members: President M. Francois Mukubu, First Counselor Kabua K. Tshimungu, Second Counselor Jules Bofanga. The day has come.