Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints offers tours of its 1st Western Pa. temple
The first temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Western Pennsylvania is set to be dedicated on Sept. 15.
Located in Cranberry, it encompasses 32,240 square feet and sits on 5.8 acres. It is 125 feet high, including the spire.
Media were invited to tour the building Monday.
In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, temples are different from meetinghouses or chapels, where members gather for Sunday worship services. A temple is where events such as marriage, baptism and other sacred agreements happen. Funerals are not held in temples because of space constrictions, and children must be 11 years old to enter.
Each building is unique, but they all have gold details, paintings, stained-glass windows, sparkling chandeliers and stone and tile from across the world.
Called the House of the Lord, the steel-frame structure in Cranberry has granite cladding, a process that applies one material over another. The design detail includes mountain laurel, Pennsylvania’s official state flower. The art glass features a dogwood tree and flower motif in gold, pink and green.
It will serve more than 29,000 members from more than 80 congregations.
While the new temple is the first in Western Pennsylvania, the church’s first in the state opened in Philadelphia in 2016. A third will be built in Harrisburg.
“Every temple is constructed to the highest standard and we do that because we believe we are building The House of the Lord,” said James Rasband, assistant executive director in the temple department for the church, who traveled from Salt Lake City for Monday’s tour. “You’ll see that the design reflects some of the beauty in the surrounding areas and it is so beautifully represented there, but truthfully much more than its physical beauty is for us to share how temples fit into our religious doctrine.”
The Bride’s Room — where brides get ready for their weddings — features custom wall-to-wall nylon rugs using the dogwood motif and mirrors trimmed in gold. The Sealing Room is where the bride and groom seal their marriage. There are mirrors where the couple can see a reflection of what’s behind them and look forward to their future.
Cranberry resident Linda Johnson, president of the women’s organization the Relief Society in the Pittsburgh North congregations, said the temple “feels like home.”
Emily Belle Freeman, general president of the Young Women organization within the church, said various cultures bring something different.
“There is one thing that is similar everywhere I go and it is that we have a House of the Lord in each of those countries that those girls can worship in,” Freeman said, who travels the world on behalf of the church. “These are houses of prayer, learning and houses where faith is strengthened.”
She goes to the temple to find comfort, which she especially needed when her husband was diagnosed with cancer. The Celestial Room is a place of silence, prayer and deep reflection.
“I find myself looking for peace, but not just peace,” Freeman said. “We’re looking for answers to overwhelming decisions such as what doctors will we go to, what treatments will we choose and how do we find the strength to endure what we will endure the next several months? This is a place where in times of great sickness or hardship we can pray.”
One of the rooms has a marble baptismal font with a brass railing and glass panels held up by 12 oxen fiberglass figurines. The temple’s original artwork includes “God Doth Provide” by Kenneth Corbett and “October Dawn” by Adair Payne. There is an instruction room for learning and making promises to God and dressing rooms to change into white outfits to symbolize that everyone is the same.
Jessica McCombie of Monroeville said changing into white allows her to focus on why she is there. She said she feels “God’s love” when she walks into the temple and an “overwhelming sense of peace.”
There is an overwhelming sense of warmth and beauty inside, said member Yeth Phetsomphou of North Huntingdon.
“I felt that God loves all of us equally,” Phetsompou said.
Chris Hoke, former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman, is president of the Pittsburgh North congregations.
He compared the excitement for the temple to when he joined the Steelers.
”The excitement of the players and the excitement of Steeler nation to go to the (then Heinz Field) stadium and to play in that stadium for the first time — that feeling, that excitement is palpable,” Hoke said. “That is the excitement that we feel as members of the church. We have prayed for for many, many years. It is a place where his people who are striving to keep his commandments and do his will can go and participate in religious ceremonies that will connect them today, tomorrow and for eternity. “
Take a video tour here.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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