The House of the Lord: A Study of Holy Sanctuaries Ancient and Modern

by James E. Talmage

THE KIRTLAND TEMPLE

The building of a temple in Missouri was regarded, even by the prophet and those who assisted him in dedicating the site, as an event of the future, perhaps even of the far distant future. The center of activity, the seat of the Church for the time being, was in Ohio, and Kirtland was the place of temporary gathering. In Kirtland too was to be erected the first temple of modern times.

In a revelation given December 27, 1832, the Lord commanded the establishment of a holy house.^[[7]] Perhaps because their eyes were directed too steadily toward the "center place," and because the people were prone to contemplate too absorbedly the glory of the future to the neglect of then present duties, compliance with the requirement to proceed at once with the erection of a temple was not prompt; and the Lord rebuked the people for their tardiness and neglect, declaring again His will that a house be reared to His name and promising success on condition of faithful effort.^[[8]]

The Saints were aroused to great activity in the matter of erecting a temple for immediate use. A building committee was organized, and a call issued to all branches of the Church.^[[9]] On the second day of August, 1833, the voice of the Lord was heard again respecting the matter of temple building, and while the specific requirement appears to directly apply to the temple of the future in Jackson County, Missouri, nevertheless the revelation had immediate effect in inspiring greater effort in the building of a temple at Kirtland.^[[10]]

The Kirtland Temple was built as projected and designed, though the work was marked by an unbroken course of supreme sacrifice on the part of a poverty-laden people. Consider the words of one who was present and saw, one who helped and suffered, one who spoke from personal knowledge and keen remembrance. Eliza R. Snow, a gifted poetess and historian of modern-day Israel, has written:

"It [the Temple] was commenced in June, 1833, under the immediate direction of the Almighty, through his servant, Joseph Smith, whom he had called in his boyhood, like Samuel of old, to introduce the fulness of the everlasting gospel.

"At that time the Saints were few in number, and most of them very poor; and had it not been for the assurance that God had spoken, and had commanded that a house should be built to His name, of which He not only revealed the form, but also designated the dimensions, an attempt towards building that Temple, under the then existing circumstances, would have been, by all concerned, pronounced preposterous.

* * * * * *

"Its dimensions are eighty by fifty-nine feet; the walls fifty feet high, and the tower one hundred and ten feet. The two main halls are fifty-five by sixty-five feet in the inner court. The building has four vestries in front, and five rooms in the attic, which were devoted to literature and for meetings of the various quorums of the Priesthood.

"There was a peculiarity in the arrangement of the inner court which made it more than ordinarily impressive—so much so that a sense of sacred awe seemed to rest upon all who entered. Not only the Saints, but strangers also, manifested a high degree of reverential feeling. Four pulpits stood, one above another, in the center of the building, from north to south, both on the east and west ends. * * * In front of each of these two rows of pulpits was a sacrament table, for the administration of that sacred ordinance. In each corner of the court was an elevated pew for the singers—the choir being distributed into four compartments. In addition to the pulpit-curtains were others, intersecting at right angles, which divided the main ground-floor hall into four equal sections, giving to each one half of one set of pulpits.

"From the day the ground was broken for laying the foundation of the Temple, until its dedication on the 27th of March, 1836, the work was vigorously prosecuted.

"With very little capital except brain, bone, and sinew, combined with unwavering trust in God, men, women, and even children, worked with their might. While the brethren labored in their departments, the sisters were actively engaged in boarding and clothing workmen not otherwise provided for—all living as abstemiously as possible, so that every cent might be appropriated to the grand object, while their energies were stimulated by the prospect of participating in the blessing of a house built by the direction of the Most High, and accepted by Him."^[[11]]

The corner stones had been laid July 23, 1833—just when opposition and persecution were most rife in the western branches of the Church, the very day, in fact, on which a lawless mob served notice of expulsion on the Saints in Missouri.^[[12]] Nevertheless work on the Kirtland Temple continued without interruption, though to the eager Saints progress was all too slow. On the 7th of March, 1835, a solemn convocation was held in Kirtland,—"called for the purpose of blessing in the name of the Lord, those who have heretofore assisted in building, by their labor and other means, the House of the Lord in this place." The record gives names of those who had consecrated their time, effort and means to the work.^[[13]] Long before the Temple was completed, parts of the structure were used for council meetings and other gatherings of the Priesthood. In January, 1836, a code of rules was adopted "to be observed in the House of the Lord in Kirtland."^[[14]] On the 21st of the month last named a gathering of the Priesthood was held in the unfinished Temple, on which occasion the Presiding Patriarch and the three High Priests who composed the First Presidency of the Church, assembled in a room by themselves and engaged in solemn prayer. The Patriarch, Father Joseph Smith, was anointed and blessed by the members of the First Presidency in turn, after which he, by virtue of his office, anointed and blessed them. Of the glorious manifestation that followed, the prophet thus writes:

"The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell. I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire; also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son. I saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with gold. * * * I saw the Twelve Apostles of the Lamb, who are now upon the earth, who hold the keys of this last ministry, in foreign lands, standing together in a circle, much fatigued, with their clothes tattered and feet swollen, with their eyes cast downward, and Jesus standing in their midst, and they did not behold Him. The Savior looked upon them and wept.

* * * * * * *

"Many of my brethren who received the ordinance with me saw glorious visions also. Angels ministered unto them as well as to myself, and the power of the Highest rested upon us; the house was filled with the glory of God, and we shouted 'Hosanna to God and the Lamb.' My scribe also received his anointing with us, and saw, in a vision, the armies of heaven protecting the Saints in their return to Zion, and many things which I saw.

"The Bishop of Kirtland with his counselors, and the Bishop of Zion with his counselors, were present with us, and received their anointings under the hands of Father Smith, and this was confirmed by the Presidency, and the glories of heaven were unfolded to them also.

"We then invited the High Councilors of Kirtland and Zion into our room. * * *

"The visions of heaven were opened to them also. Some of them saw the face of the Savior, and others were ministered unto by holy angels, and the spirit of prophecy and revelation was poured out in mighty power; and loud hosannas, and glory to God in the highest, saluted the heavens, for we all communed with the heavenly host."^[[15]]

The dedication of the Kirtland Temple occurred on Sunday, March 27, 1836. The early hour of 8 a.m. had been set as the time for opening the doors; but so intense was the interest and so eager the expectation, that long before the time hundreds had gathered about the doors. Between nine hundred and a thousand people attended the services. The congregation was seated in solemn assembly, each of the organized bodies of Priesthood with its presiding officers being in its appointed place. Singing, scripture reading, and supplication for Divine grace, were followed by brief addresses; after which the authorities of the Church as then constituted were presented to the people for acceptance or rejection, and a rising vote pledged unanimous support in every instance. The authorities of the Priesthood so sustained comprised all presiding officers from the First Presidency down to the presidency of the deacons. The dedicatory prayer was then offered by Joseph Smith, who affirms that the prayer was given to him by revelation.^[[16]]

The question as to whether the House of the Lord was accepted as duly dedicated was put to the quorums of the Priesthood separately and to the congregation as a whole; the vote in the affirmative was unanimous. The Lord's Supper was then administered, and many of the elders bore solemn testimony to the divinity of the Gospel as restored. The prophet's journal continues:

"President Frederick G. Williams arose and testified that while President Rigdon was making his first prayer, an angel entered the window and took his seat between Father Smith and himself, and remained there during the prayer. President David Whitmer also saw angels in the house. President Hyrum Smith made some appropriate remarks congratulating those who had endured so many toils and privations to build the house. President Rigdon then made a few appropriate closing remarks, and a short prayer, at the close of which we sealed the proceedings of the day by shouting 'Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to God and the Lamb,' three times, sealing it each time with 'Amen, Amen, and Amen.'"^[[17]]

In the evening of the day of dedication another meeting was held; this, however, was attended by officers of the Church only. The record as written by the prophet reads:

"I met the quorums in the evening and instructed them respecting the ordinance of washing of feet, which they were to attend to on Wednesday following; and gave them instructions in relation to the spirit of prophecy. * * *

"Brother George A. Smith arose and began to prophesy, when a noise was heard like the sound of a rushing, mighty wind, which filled the Temple, and all the congregation simultaneously arose, being moved upon by an invisible power; many began to speak in tongues and prophesy; others saw glorious visions; and I beheld the Temple was filled with angels, which fact I declared to the congregation. The people of the neighborhood came running together (hearing an unusual sound within, and seeing a bright light like a pillar of fire resting upon the Temple), and were astonished at what was taking place. This continued until the meeting closed at 11 p.m."^[[18]]

On the Thursday following that eventful Sabbath, another solemn assembly convened in the Temple, including as before the general authorities of the Church, and in addition such members as had not been able to secure admission on the earlier day. The services were in a measure a repetition of the proceedings on the first occasion; the dedicatory prayer was read, appropriate music was rendered and addresses were delivered.

That the building was in truth a Temple, a holy structure accepted by Him to whose name it had been reared, that it was veritably a House of the Lord, had been attested by the visitation of heavenly beings, and by Divine manifestations surpassing all expectation, as witnessed on the evening of the dedication day. On the next Sabbath, April 3, 1836, visitations and manifestations of yet greater import were received. At the afternoon service the Lord's Supper was administered, after which, the prophet and his counselor, Oliver Cowdery, retired to the stand reserved for the presiding officers of the Melchisedek Priesthood,—which was enclosed by the curtains or veils lowered for the occasion. They solemnly testify that then and there did the Lord Jesus Christ reveal Himself. Afterward, other heavenly personages ministered unto them, each delivering or bestowing the particular authority with which he was specially invested. The testimony of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery is as follows:

"The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened.

"We saw the Lord standing upon the breast-work of the pulpit, before us, and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold in color like amber.

"His eyes were as a flame of fire, the hair of his head was white like the pure snow, his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun, and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying—

"I am the first and the last, I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain, I am your advocate with the Father.

"Behold, your sins are forgiven you, you are clean before me, therefore lift up your heads and rejoice,

"Let the hearts of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name,

"For behold, I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here, and I will manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house,

"Yea, I will appear unto my servants, and speak unto them with mine own voice, if my people will keep my commandments, and do not pollute this holy house.

"Yea, the hearts of thousands and tens of thousands shall greatly rejoice in consequence of the blessings which shall be poured out, and the endowment with which my servants have been endowed in this house;

"And the fame of this house shall spread to foreign lands, and this is the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of my people. Even so. Amen.

"After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us, and Moses appeared before us, and committed unto us the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north.

"After this, Elias appeared, and committed the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham, saying, that in us, and our seed, all generations after us should be blessed.

"After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us, for Elijah the prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said—

"Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi, testifying that he (Elijah) should be sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come,

"To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse.

"Therefore the keys of this dispensation are committed into your hands, and by this ye may know that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the doors."^[[19]]

The erection of the Temple at Kirtland seemed to increase the hostile opposition to which the Church had been subjected since its organization; and persecution soon became so violent that all of the Saints who could dispose of their property and leave did so and joined their fellow religionists in Missouri. Within two years following the dedication, a general exodus of the Saints had taken place, and the Temple soon fell into the hands of the persecutors. The building is yet standing, and serves the purposes of an ordinary meeting-house for an obscure sect that manifests no visible activity in temple building, nor apparent belief in the sacred ordinances for which temples are erected. The people whose sacrifice and suffering reared the structure no longer assert claims of ownership. What was once the Temple of God, in which the Lord Jesus appeared in person, has become but a house,—a building whose sole claim to distinction among the innumerable structures built by man, lies in its wondrous past.