Mostly about Utah
In October 2008 I visited all thirteen Utah temples. It was then that almost all of the photographs were taken that appear in this series of posts. To download a photograph click on the image to obtain the full resolution of 3264 x 2448 pixels with a file size of 3 to 4Mb.
The Bountiful Temple in August 2008
Last Saturday my nephew Byron attended the Bountiful temple to receive his endowment. He had several members of his family and extended family there with him. Byron will soon be leaving for the MTC. He will then serve in the Argentina Salta Mission. His father also served his mission in Argentina. After taking some photographs at the temple we went to eat at IHOP.
For my readers who are not familiar with the term endowment the following may help:
An endowment is a sacred ordinance. Endowments take place in a dedicated House of the Lord, or temple. Temples were centers of religious worship anciently and Mormons build temples today to administer the ancient ordinances of salvation that have been restored to the earth.
The dictionary defines an endowment as a gift given by a higher power. The temple endowment is a gift of knowledge that helps Mormons understand who they are, where they came from, and where they are going. It helps members understand what they should do to prepare to meet God, and how Jesus Christ offers salvation to each of us.
The temple endowment conveys information in a highly symbolic manner. Symbols used in the temple endowment and the meanings of those symbols are sacred to Mormons. Mormons don’t talk about the details of what goes on in the temple—it is too sacred to be discussed, except in the most holy of places.
Today Jill, Sarah, Paul, and I stopped by the Dallas Texas Temple. In the collage of photographs below, click on the individual picture to see a larger version.
This is the first time for us at the Dallas Temple. We came to take photographs and also went inside to participate in an endowment ceremony. For my readers that are unfamiliar with the temple endowment ceremony I will present a short overview.
An endowment is a sacred ordinance. Endowments take place in a dedicated House of the Lord, or temple just like the Dallas temple. Temples were centers of religious worship anciently and Mormons build temples today to administer the ancient ordinances of salvation that have been restored to the earth.
The dictionary defines an endowment as a gift given by a higher power. The temple endowment is a gift of knowledge that helps Mormons understand who they are, where they came from, and where they are going. It helps members like us understand what they should do to prepare to meet God, and how Jesus Christ offers salvation to each of us.
The temple endowment conveys information in a highly symbolic manner. Symbols used in the temple endowment and the meanings of those symbols are sacred to Mormons. Mormons don’t talk about the details of what goes on in the temple—it is too sacred to be discussed, except in the most holy of places.
When presenting the endowment, Church members are required to make very specific covenants with God. A covenant is a two-way promise. In religious terms, a covenant is a sacred promise made between an individual and the Lord:
The ordinances of the endowment embody certain obligations on the part of the individual, such as covenant and promise to observe the law of strict virtue and chastity, to be charitable, benevolent, tolerant and pure; to devote both talent and material means to the spread of truth and the uplifting of the race; to maintain devotion to the cause of truth; and to seek in every way to contribute to the great preparation that the earth may be made ready to receive her King, the Lord Jesus Christ. With the taking of each covenant and the assuming of each obligation a promised blessing is pronounced, contingent upon the faithful observance of the conditions. (James E. Talmage, The House of the Lord, p. 84)
Also be sure to view Why Mormons Build Temples.
Announced: 1 April 1981.
Number: 30.
First President: Ivan L. Hobson.
Location: 6363 Willow Lane, Dallas
Site: 6 acres.
Exterior finish: Faced with light-colored marble tiles and topped with a dark gray slate roof.
Rooms: Baptistry, celestial room, five ordinance rooms, four sealing rooms.
Total floor area: 18,000 square feet. After remodeling: 46,956 square feet.
Height: 95 feet.
District: 50,000 members in North Texas, and parts of Louisiana.
Groundbreaking: 22 January 1983 by Gordon B. Hinckley.
Open house: 7-26 September 1984. 88,000 visitors of which approximately 56% were non-members.
Dedication: 19-24 October 1984 by Gordon B. Hinckley. Rededication: 5 March 1989 by Gordon B. Hinckley.
Major source: 2008 Church Almanac
According to Matt Martinich, one of the next temples to be announced will probably be built in Layton, Utah.
Matt has developed a quantitative method for identifying cities which are likely to have a new temple announced. His method considers these factors:
Each potential temple is given a score called a Temple Likelihood Value (TLV). If the score is greater than 20, a future temple is likely. If the score is over 40, a future temple is almost certain. The Layton temple scores a TLV of 47. The Price Utah Temple is almost tied with a TLV of 46. But both are way behind the first place Kinshasa Democratic Republic of Congo Temple with a TLV of 60.5.
The Layton temple would be approximately six miles away from where I live in Kaysville, thus saving me a whole seven miles off the thirteen mile drive to the Bountiful temple. Now if we could just get a Kaysville Utah Temple…
15 Mar 2009 Matt has updated his Temple Likelihood Value with a fifth element. Out of the 76 temples outside of the United States, only six exist in cities which do not have a mission based in them. The presence of a mission of the Church in a city increases the likelihood of a temple being announced in that city. He has not yet factored this in to his temple scale.
Manti Temple
Manti Temple tower
Leaving Manti we drove to St. George and took some photographs in the temple grounds before attending the 4pm session. The temple is the first completed by the Church after the Nauvoo exodus and is similar in its design to the Nauvoo Temple. It is the oldest LDS temple still actively used by the members of the Church. There are three ordinance rooms and 18 sealing rooms, and a total floor area of 110,000 feet. In the 1970s the temple was closed and underwent extensive remodeling. The temple has an all white exterior and quiet grounds with some very old trees. When we left we ate at Subway before leaving St. George and arriving home at 10:45pm.
On this tour I have enjoyed seeing the interior of eleven Utah temples and working for the dead in all of them. Eight of those temples I have never entered before. Jake and Daniel saw nine new temples. Paul seven new temples. Spencer six new temples. And of course we also visited the construction sites of two temples. But most importantly we have helped to provide saving ordinances for the dead.
A thank you to Andrew for joining us for a day and kisses to Jill for providing the snacks and participating with us at the Ogden temple. What I will remember most is the time spent traveling and being in the temples with three of my sons.
St. George Temple
Vernal Temple
After a successful Day 1 and Day 2, Day 3 of the Utah Temples Tour began at the usual 4am. Some of us are a little rickety at this hour but we had roads to drive and temples to see.
Daniel outside the Vernal Temple
We left Kaysville at 5:15am arriving in Vernal in time for the 8:30am session. Like the Logan temple we moved to a terrestrial room half way through the session. The celestial room was beautiful. It was quite large, bigger than Ogden. It had a high ceiling and a large painting of Jesus Christ — what one would expect in a celestial room. There was a comfortable feeling about the temple. Beautiful brown woods communicated warmth and added to the “You’re at home” effect. Originally, the building served as the Uintah Stake Tabernacle for eastern Utah. The building was built with donated labor and was dedicated on August 24, 1907 by LDS Church President Joseph F. Smith. Smith reportedly said he would not be surprised if a temple was built there some day.
In Vernal we ate at Subway before leaving for Monticello. We arrived in time to take all our photographs and then attended the 5pm session. As with Vernal, half way through the session we relocated to a terrestrial room. The celestial room was smaller than the one at Vernal but still very beautiful and peaceful. A temple worker showed us one of the sealing rooms. It was about the same size as the Bountiful sealing rooms that I have attended for weddings. She said there was another sealing room and just one endowment room if you don’t count the terrestrial room. The temple has few buildings around it and a local told us that a herd of deer will sometimes come through on the land across the street from the temple. This was a very friendly temple with the temple workers shaking our hands, asking where we were from, and insisting that we come back again.
Tomorrow will bring Day 4 of the tour and the remaining temples: St. George and Manti.
Monticello Temple
Jordan River Temple
The Jordan River temple is so close to the Oquirrh Mountain temple that I got them crossed in Google Maps. After we figured out that a darkened, half built temple with scaffolding was not the Jordan River temple we looked around for a lit temple. Spencer texted Google and we got the address. We were in time for the 6:40am session. The inside of the temple seemed to me to be a super-sized Ogden temple. The celestial room was smaller compared to the cathedral-like Bountiful celestial room. Spencer ran into his aunt who was working on the temple grounds pulling out flowers that were hit with the frost.
Oquirrh Mountain Temple
Upon leaving the Jordan River temple we went back to the Oquirrh Mountain temple for some photographs in daylight. The temple sits prominently on a hill and will been seen across the countryside when it opens. Being right off an exit of Bangerter Highway will give patrons easy access.
We headed over to the Draper temple for some more photographs. The Draper temple is half way up the mountain so it too will be visible for miles. This temple is closer to completion and will be dedicated Friday, March 20, 2009.
After one session at the Jordan River temple the boys were hungry so we ate in the Mount Timpanogos temple cafeteria before catching the 11:30am session. This temple is almost a carbon copy of the Bountiful temple. Only the patron entrances were different with Bountiful facing north and Timpanogos facing west. There are some second floor differences and the Timpanogos cafeteria didn’t allow substitutions. :)
A short drive took us to a 3pm session at the Provo temple. Another carbon copy, this time of the Ogden temple. We knew where this temple was with three returned missionaries in the vehicle (it is by the MTC). The temple really looks majestic with the mountains as a backdrop. A great photo taking opportunity. It was time to feed at the fast food trough so we stopped by Wendys. Once the bellies were topped up we drove for home.
Tomorrow will find us at Vernal and Monticello for Day 3 of the Utah Temples Tour.
Provo Temple: Spencer, Dan, Rick, Andrew, Paul, Jake
Spencer, Jake, and Daniel relaxing on the way to the Ogden Temple
After a lot of talk and a little bit of planning the Utah Temples Tour actually got underway today. I rose at 4am, showered, and then awoke Paul, Jake, and Daniel. We stopped by to get Spencer a few minutes after 5am and headed for the Logan Temple. Now the neat thing about an early morning session is that you can’t miss the temple in the dark. It is on a hill and well lit. Which is just as well because we went past our turn. But no worries, we knew right away. We entered the waiting room just as the 6:30am session was due to start. When we left the temple I took photographs around the temple grounds. There was a cold wind blowing as a storm moved in. The boys are hungry after a session — this is a really curious phenomenon — even though they are sitting 98% of the time. We were going to eat at Burger King but Paul complained, “They don’t have sausage egg McMuffins!” We ended up at McDonald’s.
The angel Moroni atop the Ogden Temple
We headed out to the Ogden Temple to catch the 10:40am session. Jill called to say she would meet us there. Jill being with me at the temple reminded me of over 28 years ago when we were married for time and eternity in the Ogden Temple. The ceremony was short and simple but the result was very powerful. Knowing that you are bound to each other forever makes you try a little harder in your marriage. You are also more likely to be open to be guided by correct principles. Anyway, back to today. Either our session started early or the session that we ran into started late. As we neared the end of our session we had to wait ten minutes for another session to finish. That must have really made the boys hungry.
Next it was the Bountiful Temple for the five of us. Jill left to take care of the grocery shopping — it is nice to have someone responsible in the family. We hoped to get some photographs but by the time of our 2pm session it was snowing. After the session of course it was time to eat. We ate at the temple cafeteria and finalized our plan to push on to the Salt Lake Temple.
We took our photographs of the Salt Lake Temple before going into the 6pm session. Fortunately there was a lull in the storm though it was quite cold. This session made four in all which is a record for me for one day. When I used to travel overnight to the London Temple the members of the stake I was with used to do three sessions in a row. Over the years since then all I ever did was one session. That was because the temple was just down the road so I could go more often. Today we got home at 8:30pm after a successful start to our Utah Temples Tour. By taking in the Salt Lake Temple we jumped one temple ahead so that on Tuesday we will go straight to to the Jordan River Temple.
The Salt Lake Temple at night
The Utah Temples Tour continues on Tuesday.
I am finalizing the Utah Temples Tour. We begin on Saturday 11th. October. I will be blogging via Rickety for each of the four days if you care to follow the tour online. Those definitely going are my sons Paul, Jake, and Dan, Dan’s friend Spencer, and myself. That makes five so we have room for two more in the minivan. My wife is staying behind to help Sarah with Bryson. I have the gas budgeted and two rooms in Monticello taken care of. So there you go, most of the cost is taken care of but you will be expected to buy your own souvenirs. :)
You can get an idea of the tour by reading the posts from August and September. However there are changes that are reflected in the table below. We will visit 13 temples in 4 days, completing sessions in 11, and traveling 1,526 miles. As a bonus the Sullivan family have requested we take some of their family names with us. On checking the session times it was interesting to find that Provo and Vernal have Monday sessions. Monticello I had to call and they have sessions during the week at 10am, 12 noon, 5pm, and 7pm. What’s the deal here, do they take really long lunches? They also have no clothing rental or cafeteria so it can’t be that they are doing the laundry or cooking the food. I’m getting spoiled living by all these large temples. Anyway, it prompted Jake to go and acquire temple clothes of his own.
| Utah Temples Tour | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Temples | Start | Finish | Miles | Map | Notes |
| Oct 11 | 3 | Kaysville | Kaysville | 154 | Map | |
| Oct 14 | 5 | Kaysville | Kaysville | 125 | Map | |
| Oct 15 | 3 | Kaysville | Monticello | 499 | Map | Stay over |
| Oct 16 | 2 | Monticello | Kaysville | 748 | Map | |