Seminar for Temple Presidents Gives Instruction, Inspiration

A spirited rendition of “High on the Mountain Top” provided a fitting opening for the first seminar to be held for Latter-day Saint temple presidents and matrons. The seminar, attended by all twenty-seven temple presidents and their wives, was conducted September 28–30 under the direction of the First Presidency. Sessions were held at Church headquarters and at the Jordan River Temple.

“In the past,” said Elder W. Grant Bangerter, Executive Director of the Temple Department, “we’ve generally oriented and trained new temple presidents on an individual basis. But with the addition of so many new temples recently, the First Presidency has felt it advisable to conduct a seminar for all temple presidents.” There are forty-one temples either operating, under construction, or in various stages of planning.

At the seminar’s opening session were Presidents N. Eldon Tanner and Gordon B. Hinckley of the First Presidency, all members of the Quorum of the Twelve except Elder LeGrand Richards (who was ill), and members of the First Quorum of the Seventy and the Presiding Bishopric.

President Hinckley complimented participants on their willingness to serve. “I recognize in you,” he said, “men and women who are working with an eye single to the glory of God.” He counseled presidents and matrons to have order in their work, to encourage harmony among temple personnel, and to carefully maintain their own physical health. He also expressed his hope that temple work will increase “now that our greater number of temples can bring the ordinances to the people.”

Elder Howard W. Hunter reminded the presidents and matrons that temples are sacred structures, built for holy purposes. They are necessary, he said, “for the Lord to reveal to his children the ordinances of his house, the glories of the kingdom, and the principles of eternal life and salvation.”

It is the calling of temple presidents and matrons, said Elder Marvin J. Ashton of the Quorum of the Twelve, to make of the temple a house of blessing to the Saints. The temple, he counseled, should be a house of courtesy (“Your welcome and personality sets the tone”); a house of reverence (“more than silence—it must be a blending of respect and adoration for the Lord and for his holy place”); a house of comfort (“Those who come often seek comfort and security as they bear life’s crosses”); a house of contemplation (“to gain a better understanding of our relationships to God, family, and eternity”); and a house of joy (“Where else is greater joy witnessed than in the temple with family and friends?”).

Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke of the efficient operation of temples through effective cooperation between the Temple Department and priesthood councils. “We want to maximize our efforts for both the living and the dead,” he reflected, “and the solution is government through councils under the operation of the Spirit.”

Specific functions of a temple presidency were outlined by Elder Bangerter, who cited such responsibilities as administering ordinances for the living and the dead. (“They are not just names; we should feel that the dead are present to receive their ordinances”); properly recording the ordinances; supervising temple workers; and preparing and administering the temple budget. “An attitude sometimes arises,” he added, “that temple activity is optional. But temple activity and genealogy are of vital importance in the perfection of the Saints and the salvation of the dead. They are hand-in-hand activities in our preaching of the gospel.”

President Ezra Taft Benson of the Quorum of the Twelve concluded the session by reminding presidents that “the Lord has favored you with a calling of great trust and responsibility. My heart is full and my feelings tender as I contemplate the magnitude and importance of this sacred work.” He counseled presidents and their wives to have complete love and unity at all times, nurturing a spirit of peace and a love of the Savior in their homes. “Temple patrons will feel of that spirit, and your example will greatly influence others.” It is in the temple, he said, that the Saints “obtain God’s greatest blessings pertaining to eternal life. Temples are really the gateways to heaven. In the peace of these lovely temples, sometimes the serious problems of life find their solutions. Under the influence of the Spirit, sometimes pure knowledge flows to us there. Visitors seen and unseen from the world beyond are often close to us. I know this to be true. There is no veil to the Lord.”

Other sessions during the three-day seminar featured instructions pertaining to the organization and management of temples; personnel; budget; temple maintenance; historical reports; translation of ceremonies; the missionary program; temple audiovisual systems; and an introduction to the temple computer recording system. A highlight of the seminar was the gathering of temple presidents and matrons with members of the First Presidency, members of the Quorum of the Twelve, and other General Authorities for a special testimony meeting held in the chapel of the Jordan River Temple.

Status of Temples as of November 1982

Temple Location	Status	President
1. St. George, Utah	Operating	John M. Russon
2. Logan, Utah	Operating	Reed Bullen
3. Manti, Utah	Closed for renovation	Wilbur W. Cox
4. Salt Lake City, Utah	Closed for renovation	Elder Marion D. Hanks
5. Laie, Oahu, Hawaii	Operating	Robert D. Finlayson
6. Cardston, Alberta, Canada	Operating	Harold E. Bennett
7. Mesa, Arizona	Operating	L. Harold Wright
8. Idaho Falls, Idaho	Operating	Devere Harris
9. Los Angeles, California	Operating	Allen C. Rozsa
10. Zollikofen, Switzerland	Operating	Stanley D. Rees
11. Hamilton, New Zealand	Operating	Hugh A. Daysh
12. London, England	Operating	Joseph Hamstead, Jr.
13. Oakland, California	Operating	R. Don Smith
14. Ogden, Utah	Operating	Keith W. Wilcox
15. Provo, Utah	Operating	Leland F. Priday
16. Washington, D.C.	Operating	Wendell G. Eames
17. Sao Paulo, Brazil	Operating	José B. Puerta
18. Tokyo, Japan	Operating	Elder Adney Y. Komatsu
19. Seattle, Washington	Operating	F. Arthur Kay
20. South Jordan, Utah	Operating	Donovan H. Van Dam
21. Mexico City, Mexico	Under construction	Harold Brown
22. Apia, Western Samoa	Under construction	Charles I. Sampson
23. Atlanta, Georgia	Under construction	Robert M. Winston
24. Buenos Aires, Argentina	In design	Elder Angel Abrea
25. Chicago, Illinois	In design	*
26. Dallas, Texas	In design	*
27. Frankfurt, Germany	In design	*
28. Guatemala City, Guatemala	Ground has been broken	*
29. Johannesburg, South Africa	Groundbreaking scheduled	*
30. Lima, Peru	Ground has been broken	*
31. Manila, Philippines	Ground has been broken	*
32. Nuku‘alofa, Tonga	Under construction	Tonga Toutai Paletu‘a
33. Papeete, Tahiti	Under construction	Joseph E. Childers
34. Santiago, Chile	Under construction	Eugene Olsen
35. Seoul, Korea	In design	*
36. Stockholm, Sweden	In design	*
37. Sydney, Australia	Ground has been broken	*
38. Boise, Idaho	In design	*
39. Denver, Colorado	In design	*
40. Guayaquil, Ecuador	In design	*
41. Taipei, Taiwan	Ground has been broken	*
42. Freiberg, German Democratic Republic	In design	*
* Presidents have not yet been called for temples scheduled for completion after 1983.