The Draper Utah Temple is the 129th

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

. It was dedicated in sessions from March 20–22, 2009. Prior to the dedication, the temple was open to the public from January 15, 2009 through March 14, 2009. Draper1

History

The intent to construct the temple was announced by church president

Gordon B. Hinckley Gordon Bitner Hinckley (June 23, 1910 – January 27, 2008) was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from March 1995 until his death in January 200 ...

during the opening session of the October 2004 general conference. Hinckley said the new building was needed to relieve overcrowding in other temples in the valley. The temple is the fourth temple in the Salt Lake Valley in addition to the

Salt Lake A salt lake or saline lake is a landlocked body of water that has a concentration of salts (typically sodium chloride) and other dissolved minerals significantly higher than most lakes (often defined as at least three grams of salt per litre). ...

Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...

, and Oquirrh Mountain temples.

Location and structure

The Draper Utah Temple sits on at 2000 East and 14000 South in

Draper, Utah Draper is a city in Salt Lake and Utah counties in the U.S. state of Utah, about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. As of the 2020 census, the population is 51,017, up from 7,143 in 1990. Draper is part of two metropolitan areas; ...

. The temple is high from the main level to the top of the structure's spire, which includes the

Angel Moroni The Angel Moroni () is an angel whom Joseph Smith reported as having visited him on numerous occasions, beginning on September 21, 1823. According to Smith, the angel was the guardian of the golden plates, buried in the hill Cumorah near Smith's ...

statue that sits atop most Latter-day Saint temples. The location near the mouth of Draper's Corner Canyon includes an Latter-day Saint meetinghouse. The temple towers over of pristine open space in the canyon below that the city approved in fall of 2005. Many varieties of trees surround the temple and line the 492 parking spots.

Groundbreaking

The groundbreaking for the temple occurred during an invitation only ceremony at the site which was broadcast on the church's satellite system to nearby stake centers. The ceremony was conducted by

Russell M. Nelson Russell Marion Nelson Sr. (born September 9, 1924) is an American religious leader and retired surgeon who is the 17th and current president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Nelson was a member of the LDS Church ...

of the church's

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...

, with all members of the

First Presidency Among many churches in the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency (also known as the Quorum of the Presidency of the Church) is the highest presiding or governing body. Present-day denominations of the movement led by a First Presidency ...

in attendance.

Open house

The church announced on November 29, 2008, that the temple would be open to the public for tours beginning January 15, 2009. Reservations for tours were available until March 14, 2009. In 2020, like all the church's other temples, the Draper Utah Temple was closed in response to the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

.Stack, Peggy Fletcher
"All Latter-day Saint temples to close due to coronavirus"
''

The Salt Lake Tribune ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871." History ...

'', 26 March 2020. Retrieved on 28 March 2020.

References

External links