Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) consider temples to be a very sacred and special building. As members of our faith live in many different countries it is a desire to build temples for them to attend. Anyone can attend an LDS meetinghouse for Sunday worship, but to attend the temple an individual needs to be a member of our faith and have a current LDS temple recommend. Right now there are over 140 temples worldwide either in operation, under construction, or have been recently announced.After temple construction is completed and before the temple is dedicated there is a period where they are open for all of the public to visit. This provides people who have questions or are just curious the opportunity to walk through and see for themselves what goes on inside of the temple. I have attended open houses for temples in Utah and Costa Rica and most recently the Oquirrh Mountain Temple in South Jordan, Utah.
The Oquirrh Mountain Temple will be open for touring until August 1, 2009. To attend the open house you need a ticket (free) and they can be obtained from the website http://www.lds.org/ When you arrive you will be shown a short video about the temples. Once inside you can go at your own pace. There are ushers all over the place directing you from room to room so you don't get lost. There are signs giving brief explanations of what occurs in that room. At the end there is a large reception tent set up with people available to answer any additional questions, or you can grab a cookie and go.
Jeff and I recently attended the open house with our children. They are too young to receive a recommend for regular temple attendance, and I loved being able to be inside as a family. Great care goes into the building of each of the temples and the detail inside. The Oquirrh Mountain Temple is no different and is simply beautiful. I really do love the temple. For me it is a place of peace and for further instruction to learn more about God. It strengthens my own faith that God is very aware of me and has a plan for me...as he does for everyone.
