The Provo City Center Temple. is a

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 nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

(LDS Church) on the same site as the former

Provo Tabernacle The Provo Tabernacle was a Tabernacle (LDS Church), tabernacle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1898 to 2010 in downtown Provo, Utah, Provo, Utah, United States. It was a historic icon of Provo and had been ho ...

in Provo, Utah. Completed in 2016, the temple utilizes much of the external shell of the tabernacle, all that remained of the original building after a fire in December 2010.

Announcement

The intent to construct the temple was announced by church president

Thomas S. Monson Thomas Spencer Monson (August 21, 1927 – January 2, 2018) was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). As president, he was considered by adherents of the re ...

on October 1, 2011, during the church's semi-annual general conference.. The temple was announced concurrently with those to be built in

Barranquilla, Colombia Barranquilla () is the capital district of Atlántico Department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean Coast region; as of 2018 it had a population of 1,206,319, making it Col ...

;

Durban, South Africa Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

; Kinshasa, DR Congo; and Star Valley, Wyoming, along with the temple in

Paris, France Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

which had been previously announced. At the time, this brought the total number of temples worldwide (either completed, under construction or announced) to 166 and the number of temples in Utah to 16. Provo became the second city in the LDS Church to have two temples, the first being

South Jordan, Utah South Jordan is a city in south central Salt Lake County, Utah, United States, south of Salt Lake City. Part of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, the city lies in the Salt Lake Valley along the banks of the Jordan River between the Oquirrh ...

, with the Jordan River and Oquirrh Mountain temples. It is the second tabernacle in Utah to be converted to a temple, the first being the Vernal Utah Temple, and the fourth Latter-day Saint temple converted from an existing building. (The three previous being the Vernal Utah, Copenhagen Denmark, and Manhattan New York temples.) It is one of only two Latter-day Saint temples not to include the name of the state/province or country in which the temple is located (the other being the

Salt Lake Temple The Salt Lake Temple is a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. At , it is the largest Latter-day Saint temple by floor area. Dedicated in 1893, it is the sixth templ ...

Site and development

The temple is located on the property where the Provo Tabernacle once stood. Historically, the tabernacle was used for church meetings and cultural events. In the early morning of December 17, 2010, a fire was reported at the tabernacle where firefighters found smoke coming from the building. At first firefighters thought that there might be a chance to save the roof and thus the outward structural integrity of the building, but at around 6:00 AM the roof collapsed. The Provo City Fire Department concluded that " e most probable proximate cause of the fire ... is a heat source, specifically an energized 300-watt lamp, which was placed too close to combustible materials, specifically a wooden speaker enclosure." In the fire, a copy of Harry Anderson's "The Second Coming" was entirely burned except for the outline of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. The painting was preserved for the LDS Church's archives. Provo Tabernacle Renovation

Monson stated that the temple will "include a complete restoration of the original exterior," and the artist's rendition in the press release includes the central tower from the original building..

Jeffrey R. Holland Jeffrey Roy Holland (born December 3, 1940) is an American educator and religious leader. He served as the List of presidents of Brigham Young University, ninth President of Brigham Young University (BYU) and is a member of the Quorum of the Twe ...

presided at the groundbreaking on May 12, 2012. During construction, the remaining tabernacle structure was fortified with six to 10 inches of reinforced concrete, combined with three rows of brick. It was supported on a structure of steel and concrete piles set at the planned altitude for the final building. Space for two below-grade stories was excavated before beginning work on the above-ground portions of the temple. The excavation went down 40 feet. With the water level between 15 and 20 feet, a large amount of water was removed in the process. Consistent with construction of most Latter-day Saint temples, on March 31, 2014, a statue of the angel Moroni was installed on top of the temple.

Open house and dedication

A public open house was held from January 15 through March 5, 2016, excluding Sundays. The temple was dedicated on March 20, 2016, by

Dallin H. Oaks Dallin Harris Oaks (born August 12, 1932) is an American religious leader and former jurist and academic who since 2018 has been the first counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was ...

of the

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 ...

. Russell M. Nelson, the

President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles President of the Quorum of the Twelve (also President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, President of the Council of Twelve Apostles, and President of the Twelve) is a leadership position that exists in some of the churches of the Latter Day Sai ...

, was in attendance at one of the three sessions. Also in attendance at one or more sessions were M. Russell Ballard and Gary E. Stevenson, both of the Quorum of the Twelve; members of the

Presidency of the Seventy A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified by a ...

; members of the

Seventy 70 (seventy) is the natural number following 69 and preceding 71. In mathematics 70 is: * a sphenic number because it factors as 3 distinct primes. * a Pell number. * the seventh pentagonal number. * the fourth tridecagonal number. * the fif ...

responsible for overseeing the church's Temple Department ( Kent F. Richards, executive director, and Michael T. Ringwood and Larry Y. Wilson, Assistant Executive Directors); Dean M. Davies, First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric; and auxiliary leaders, including Bonnie L. Oscarson, Young Women General President.

Grounds and architecture

While keeping the exterior style of the Provo Tabernacle, the interior of the building was redesigned for its new function. The changes to the interior were drawn from themes from

Victorian architecture Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. ''Victorian'' refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian we ...

from several of the region's historic buildings including the

Gardo House The Gardo House was the official residence of the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) during the tenures of John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff. Construction Joseph Ridges, designer and builder of the original ...

, the Utah Governor's Mansion, and the

Salt Lake Assembly Hall The Salt Lake Assembly Hall is a building owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) which sits on the southwest corner of Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah. It has seating capacity for an audience of approxima ...

. Stained glass from the original tabernacle was used in the reconstruction. Provo_City_Center_Temple_gazebo_(27763909697)

The grounds also contain a pavilion with a replica of the Christus statue for visitors and wedding guests to wait in.

References

External links