An Illustrated Look at the LDS Temples Around the World

image by wikipedia

There are 128 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) temples operating today. There are another 10 under construction and another 8 announced to be built. 76 of the temples are outside of the Untied States.

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An LDS temple differs from a church. A temple is a building that is reserved for special ceremonies like: marriage endowment, baptism for the dead, etc.. Because of the sacred nature of the ceremonies, the inner rooms of the temple are not open to the public. There is much public scrutiny about this church rule. We will look at the scrutiny closer in a moment.

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The Salt Lake City Utah temple took 40 years to build. It is rich in symbolism that may be overlooked by passers. The Angel Moroni is symbolic of the restoration of the gospel. The three East side towers are symbolic of the Church’s first presidency and Melchizedek Priesthood. The twelve pinnacles rising from the towers are symbolic of the 12 Apostles. On the West side, the three towers are symbolic of the Bishopric and the Aaronic Priesthood. The High Council is represented by those twelve pinnacles. The battlements are symbolic of a protection of the holy ceremonies practiced inside. Earthstones are symbolic of the footstool of God. The moonstones above the earthstones represent the stages of human progression from birth to resurrection. The sunstones above the moonstones represent the glory of heaven. The two clouds with rays of light are symbolic of the passages in the Old Testament of the Bible where the “Cloud of the Lord” filled the dedicated temples in ancient Israel. Six stars symbolize the stars of heaven. There is also a depiction of the Big Dipper on the west tower. It symbolizes patrons finding their direction home. The center two towers have a clasped pair of hands representative of Galatians 2:9 and Jeremiah 31:32. An all seeing eye is located at the top of each center tower which represents God’s ability to see everything.

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The picture above is of one of my favorite temples. It is 72,000 sq feet San Diego California Temple. It is even more beautifull during the day when the marble chips in the plaster illuminate the building. It seems like a glowing pearl amid a tropical garden. Almost 50,000 people attended the dedication of this temple. I find it very commendable that the LDS church never builds a temple that isn’t paid for in advance. In other words, the church does not borrow money to build a temple. 

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Curious how the LDS Church builds the temples? The LDS faith does not have any paid clergy positions. In other words, the LDS Bishop (which is equivalent to a Baptist preacher or Catholic priest), the LDS Prophet (which is equivalent to the Catholic Pope) and other church officials do not get paid anything for their service. Instead, they have everyday monetary jobs that are not affiliated with the church. The LDS church asks it’s members to pay a 10% tithe. So, the money that church members pay is spent to upkeep and run the church….rather than to pay clergy for their service to God.

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Antagonist of the LDS church often site “temple secrecy” as one reason that they call the LDS church a cult. However, directly after a temple is first completed they are open to all of the public for an “open house.” During this time anyone can tour the temple and each and every room. Afterwards, it is considered a sacred place of worship. Even LDS church members must undergo an interview with the bishop of their ward (church site) before a temple recommend is granted. I find it very sad that visitors of the LDS temples will find picketers lining the gates or outer grounds of the temple. The protest topics range from gay rights to those protesting polygamy. It is a common misconception that the LDS Mormons practice polygamy. Sects that have broken off from the LDS (Mormon) church still practice it, but polygamy is not permitted and is actually grounds for excommunication in the LDS church. This protest was about prop 8 legislation.

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The Seoul, South Korea Temple is 28,057 sq feet. It was open to the public from November 26, 1985 to December 7, 1985. It was then Dedicated on December 15, 1985 as the first temple on mainland Asia. The temple architecture is Asian inspired. The walls are constructed from local granite and the roof is a traditional hundred year tiled roof.

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The Washington DC temple is located on 52 acres. It is over 160,000 sq feet, and was the 16th temple built. A reflection pool and spouting water feature can not be seen in the picture. The Salt Lake City temple inspired the design of this temple, but the six golden spires of this temple soar to a height of 288 feet; making the Washington DC temple the tallest temple built to date. Over 758,328 people attended the open house of this temple. President Gerald Fords wife, Betty Ford was a special guest.

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The Temple Hill, Manti, Utah temple was the third operating temple. It is situated atop a broad hill, and has over 100,000 sq feet. The exterior has a French and colonial inspired architecture. Cream colored oolite limestone extracted from the very hill it sits atop was used as the exterior finish. However, at night, it is one of the most vibrant temples of all. Maybe that is because the 27 acres it sits upon is almost bare. Travelers can actually see the spires from miles and miles away. This temple is host to the popular Mormon Miracle Pageant every summer.

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The Panamá City, Panamá Temple is one of the most recent temples built. It was just dedicated in 2008. The temple grounds are beautiful with palm trees and water features. It also overlooks the Panama Canal. The 18,943 sq foot building was constructed using China stone. It is the third temple built in Central America. Over 33,000 non- LDS members toured the temple during the open house. The day before the dedication, Panamanian President Martin Torrijos thanked the LDS church for their humanitarian efforts, vaccine donations, and advancement of literary in the area.

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The Fukuoka, Japan temple was built into the hillside and is surrounded by lush green foliage. This temple is somewhat unique as the exterior is made from two materials. The upper story is composed of white granite. The lower story is composed of darker grey granite. The remoteness of the site may explain why it is only 10,000 sq feet. There was only one dirt road accessing the site when it was being built.

I hope that you have enjoyed this tour of just a handful of the LDS temples around the world. Whether you agree with the LDS doctrine or not, I hope that all can appreciate the beauty of these temples.