The Holy of Holies or Holiest of Holies is a room in 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 ...

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), wherein the church's

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

— acting as the Presiding High Priest of the church — enters to act as High Priest of Israel in direct relationship with God, in accordance with the LDS interpretation of the

Book of Exodus The Book of Exodus (from grc, Ἔξοδος, translit=Éxodos; he, שְׁמוֹת ''Šəmōṯ'', "Names") is the second book of the Bible. It narrates the story of the Exodus, in which the Israelites leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through ...

. Hence, this Holy of Holies in the

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 ...

is considered by adherents to be a modern cognate to the inner sanctuary of the

Tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle ( he, מִשְׁכַּן, mīškān, residence, dwelling place), also known as the Tent of the Congregation ( he, link=no, אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, ’ōhel mō‘ēḏ, also Tent of Meeting, etc.), ...

and

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jeru ...

. The room was also the place where the second anointing ordinance was administered, although now any room in a temple set apart for this purpose is used.

Location and description

The Holy of Holies is a room adjoining the celestial room of the

. The room is described in the ''

Encyclopedia of Mormonism The ''Encyclopedia of Mormonism'' is a semi-official English-language encyclopedia for topics relevant to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church, see also "Mormon"). The five-volume texts have been digitized and are available ...

'': "Beyond its sliding doors are six steps to similar doors, symbolic of the veil that guarded the Holy of Holies in ancient times. The sanctuary is of circular design with a domed ceiling. The appointments include inlaid wood, gold leaf, stained glass, and unique lighting." The room includes a twelve-foot stained glass window, designed by the

Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company Louis Comfort Tiffany (February 18, 1848 – January 17, 1933) was an American artist and designer who worked in the decorative arts and is best known for his work in stained glass. He is the American artist most associated with the Art NouveauL ...

, depicting the

First Vision The First Vision (also called the grove experience by members of the Community of Christ) refers to a theophany which Latter Day Saints believe Joseph Smith experienced in the early 1820s, in a wooded area in Manchester, New York, called the ...

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, ...

Teachings by LDS Church leaders

Boyd K. Packer, who was a member 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 ...

, has stated that "hidden away in the central part of the temple is the Holy of Holies, where the President of the Church may retire when burdened down with heavy decisions to seek an interview with Him whose Church it is. The prophet holds the keys, the spiritual keys and the very literal key to this one door in that sacred edifice". Apostle James E. Talmage stated that "this room is reserved for the higher ordinances in the Priesthood relating to the exaltation of both living and dead".

, the founder of the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by J ...

, stated that "no one can truly say he knows God until he has handled something, and this can only be done in the Holiest of Holies".

Cognate of the "most holy place"

Although not a general rule, in certain contexts outside of the LDS Church the term "Holy of Holies" may be synonymous with the "most holy place" referred to in the Book of Exodus. The construction "Holy of Holies" is a translation of a

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

idiom ''Qodesh haQodashim'' ( ''קֹדֶשׁ הַקָּדָשִׁים'' ), referring to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle or Temple in Jerusalem. In Biblical Hebrew, the Holy of Holies is distinguished from the phrase ''most holy'' by the definite article; viz. the room is the Q''odesh haQodashim "''Holy of the Holies" and anything else described as most holy is ''Qodesh Qodashim'', "Holy of Holies". In the King James Version of the Bible, this sanctuary is always referred to as the "most holy place"; this usage is followed in the LDS Church book of

scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual pra ...

known as the Doctrine and Covenants.

In church scriptures

Speaking of the purposes of temples

"Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings, and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices by the sons of Levi, and ''for your oracles in your most holy places'' wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelations and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name."

First Presidency receives the oracles for the church

"I give unto oseph Smithfor counselors my servant Sidney Rigdon and my servant William Law, that these may constitute a quorum and First Presidency, to ''receive the oracles for the whole church''".Doctrine & Covenants 124:126
(emphasis added).

References

External links

*{{cite news , author= Liu, Yvonne., title=What the Church Has Said About the Holy of Holies , work=LDS Living , date=July 14, 2018 , url=https://www.ldsliving.com/What-the-Church-Has-Said-About-the-Holy-of-Holies/s/88839 , accessdate=2020-08-29 Individual rooms Significant places in Mormonism Temples (LDS Church) Salt Lake Temple