Crowning a prominent hillside in San Antonio, Texas, the Church's 120th temple can be seen from 30 miles away. Still, thousands gathered during a public open house that began April 16 to see the newly completed temple up close.
"It is a day people have waited for — some all their lives," said Gary Gomm, director of public affairs for the San Antonio Texas Temple committee.
An estimated 2,700 people visited the temple the first day of the public open house. Most, "almost without exception," were impressed by the sacred building, said Brother Gomm.
More than 1,300 community leaders, government officials, prominent business leaders, neighbors, construction workers and media in Texas — a state with 245,000 Latter-day Saints — also viewed the new temple during special tours that started April 13.
"The religious leaders of the community have come through in great numbers and seemed to be impressed, not only by the beauty of the building, but also by what they felt," Brother Gomm said.
Even those members of four protest groups that have picketed the temple were invited on a special tour of the temple, said Ray Otte, the temple committee chairman who will serve as temple president. The protesters, he added, stayed on street corners and did not take away from the spirit of the open house.
Local media — including the San Antonio Express News and the Dallas Morning News — covered the open house, dedicating large amounts of space to the story, added Brother Gomm.
The San Antonio Texas Temple is the fourth operating temple of the Church in Texas and will serve nearly 50,000 Latter-day Saints, attending 11 stakes and one district. The temple district, said President Otte, is almost as large as the state of Utah, covering 72,000 square miles throughout central and south Texas.
Throughout the years, members in the area have shown a dedication to temple work, traveling to Mesa, Ariz., then Dallas and Houston, Texas, to attend the temple. In speaking to members throughout the temple district in recent months, President Otte has stressed that with a temple so close, members will now need to "raise the bar" on their spirituality. "They have never had a temple in their backyard," he said. "They need to make that temple part of their daily lives."
President Otte saw the dedication of members again as the temple committee asked every member of the temple district to hand deliver information on the temple and the open house. In response, members distributed 570,000 circulars in their own neighborhoods, personally inviting neighbors to see the temple.
Many Latter-day Saints have invited neighbors to attend the temple jubilee celebration to be held in the Alamo Dome the night before the dedication. The temple committee hopes 35,000 people will attend the event, said President Otte.
"I don't think I can give you the right adjectives to describe how happy people are to have a temple," he said.
A smaller temple, the building is 16,800 square feet and includes a granite exterior. A Church Distribution Center and Beehive Clothing building is also located on the 20-acre temple grounds.
The grounds are landscaped with native oaks and mountain laurels, including 950 feet of retaining walls (some 15 feet high) and have pavers left over from the construction of the Nauvoo Illinois Temple, said Michael Judson of Church Public Affairs.
Unique features inside the temple include art glass windows by Utah artist Tom Holdman, and a mural of the Texas hill country, painted by local artist Keith Bond. A "water feature," located on a wall just outside the baptistry, allows visitors to hear the sound of trickling water as they enter the temple, Brother Judson added.
The public open house for the temple will continue through May 7, excluding Sundays. Following the open house, the temple will be formally dedicated on May 22 in four sessions.
E-mail to: sarah@desnews.com