Portland Oregon Temple
Number42
DedicationAugust 19, 1989, by Gordon B. Hinckley
Site7.3 acres (3.0 ha)
Floor area80,500 sq ft (7,480 m2)
Height181 ft (55 m)
Official website • News & images
Church chronology
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Frankfurt Germany Temple
Portland Oregon Temple		 →
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Additional information
AnnouncedApril 7, 1984, by Spencer W. Kimball
GroundbreakingSeptember 20, 1986, by Gordon B. Hinckley
Open houseJune 15 July 15 – 8, 1989
Designed byLeland A. Gray
LocationLake Oswego, Oregon, U.S.
Geographic coordinates45°25′31.24200″N 122°44′32.00639″W / 45.4253450000°N 122.7422239972°W / 45.4253450000; -122.7422239972
Exterior finishWhite Vermont marble walls with green Vermont slate roof
Temple designModern, six-spire design
Baptistries1
Ordinance rooms4 (stationary)
Sealing rooms14
Clothing rentalYes
Visitors' centerYes
()

The Portland Oregon Temple is a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) located on 7 acres (28,000 m2) of land near the intersection of Highway 217 and I-5 in Lake Oswego, Oregon. The temple's architecture features six white spires and a white marble exterior accented with green marble trim and topped with a green slate roof. It is 80,500 square feet (7,480 m2) in area, with four ordinance rooms and fourteen sealing rooms.[1] This temple serves as a central hub for the Latter-day Saint community in the greater Portland area.

Dedicated in 1989, the Portland Oregon Temple was the church's first temple in Oregon. Prior to its dedication by Gordon B. Hinkley, over 314,000 people attended the public open house.[2][3]

Construction and challenges

The church's acquisition of the property in Lake Oswego in the 1960s marked the beginning of a transformative journey. Initially intended for a junior college,[1] two decades later, church leaders decided to repurpose the site as the location for the temple.[4] The announcement on April 7, 1984, of the intent to construct the temple set the stage for a property development process that faced early opposition. The approval process included at least 27 public hearings, eight lawsuits, and four petition drives intended to stop development.[1][4]

The construction process faced various challenges, including a demanding schedule, coordination intricacies, and the sensitivity of working in the neighborhood. The supersaturated soil required a redesign of the foundation, and the church hired an arborist to protect the trees during construction. W. Craig Zwick, a church general authority with a construction background, played a role as the general contractor for the temple. James Bean chaired the local building committee.[5][4]

Before the dedication ceremony, the temple had a symbolic cornerstone placed in a recess, a capsule that contained scriptures, photographs, historical records, artifacts, and items related to the church in the local area.[6]

Dedication

The dedication of the Portland Temple took place in gatherings held from August 19 to 21 in 1989. The dedication drew over 40,000 members from the temple district of Oregon and Washington, who participated in the 11 dedicatory sessions, as it became church's 42nd operating temple.[4][6]

Church president Ezra Taft Benson presided at the dedication,[2] and was the first to use a trowel of mortar at the ceremony, along with his counselors in the First Presidency, and other leaders in attendance.[7] The temple was dedicated by Benson's first counselor, Gordon B. Hinckley,[1] who emphasized the temple's significance as "a place of peace and holiness, a refuge from the storms of life,"[4] and "There is no compensation for service in terms of the coin of the world, but somehow there is a balm in these houses."[6] Thomas S. Monson, Benson's second counselor, celebrated his 62nd birthday during the services, and adding a personal touch to the dedication, he invited a young local girl to join him, and presenting her with a white rose, he encouraged her to preserve it as part of the temple and return one day for a marriage ceremony.[4]

Other remarks were directed at youth during the sessions (the minimum age for attendance was eight years old), encouraging them to prepare to do baptisms for the dead, missionary service, receive the endowment, and to be sealed (marriage ceremony).[6]

Visitors' center

The temple expanded its offerings with the addition of a visitors' center that was dedicated by Gary E. Stevenson in June 2013.[8] In 2014, the temple commemorated its 25th year of operation.[4]

The temple's open house in 2014 drew over 300,000 visitors. Guided tours during the open house experienced high demand, with some visitors waiting up to 45 minutes in line to enter. Approximately 2,500 visitors per hour flowed through the temple.[4] The tours for this temple were originally done in silence.[5]

Involvement of local church members included about 9,000 volunteers contributing to the open house experience, including distribution of church literature and promoting the event through various media channels. Various inserts were sent out about the temple open house along with invitations, with as many as 1.5 million copies distributed.[9] A movie about the Portland Temple was produced and shown on cable television, that was filmed on the grounds.[9] Testimonials included spiritual experiences during the open house, with one anecdote involving a man initially distributing anti-Mormon literature. He opted to take a tour of the temple, after he stopped distributing the information.[4] The temple's grounds continue to be enjoyed by the surrounding community: in 2014, it was reported that 900 people visit daily.[1]

History

The Portland Oregon Temple at night

The temple in Portland was the church's first in Oregon, dedicated in 1989, by Gordon B. Hinckley; with the Medford Oregon Temple completed in 2000.[10][11] The temple serves members in the Portland metropolitan area, other parts of Oregon and cities in Washington.[2] During construction, (In 1988, approximately one year before completion) the church had 90,000 members, and was the second largest denomination in the area (behind the Roman Catholic Church).[12]

University of New Mexico historian, Ferenc Morton Szasz, places the temple in a group of Post-World War II temples built in the western American States, calling the group of temples "the most impressive religious structures of the entire western postwar building boom."[13]

In 2020, like the church's other temples, the Portland Oregon Temple was closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.[14]

Design

The temple uses marble walls, with a tower design with six spires, meant to be a symbol pointing to heaven, against the backdrop of the forest.[4] The tallest spire goes to 170 feet, adding to 183 ft, including the 13 foot statue of the angel Moroni on the top (which is meant to represent the spreading of the gospel).[5][15] The statue of Moroni is covered in a gold leaf.[9] The 65,000 square foot building has 127 rooms, with the original design featuring a cafeteria, nursery, and baptistry.[5] The total cost of the building added up to $22 million,[5] with all costs set aside before construction began.[12] Funding was raised in part by local members, the rest was funded by tithing.[12] The temple's design has been compared to a medieval castle.[12][4] The Portland Oregon Temple ties with the Seattle Washington Temple for the second highest number of sealing rooms in temples across the world (with 13), behind the Jordan River Utah Temple (with 17).[16] The interior has a skylit atrium in the foyer, and uses mahogany woodwork throughout the interior.[4]

See also

Temples in and near Oregon ()
= Operating
= Under construction
= Announced
= Temporarily Closed

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Newell, Cliff (August 28, 2014). "Reaching toward heaven, reaching out to people". Portland Tribune. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "Portland Oregon Temple". newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Portland Oregon Temple". Church News. March 11, 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Toone, Trent (August 7, 2014). "LDS Church's Portland Oregon Temple turns 25". Deseret News. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "OREGON LDS TEMPLE FULFILLS DREAMS". Deseret News. June 19, 1989. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Temple dedicated in 'quiet splendor sacred edifice offered to Lord in glory, honor". Church News. August 26, 1989. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  7. ↑ "Portland Oregon Temple". Church News. March 11, 2010. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  8. ↑ Bartelt, Karen Wallace (June 15, 2013), "Portland Oregon Temple: Bishop Stevenson dedicates visitors' center", Church News
  9. 1 2 3 ""Now it looks like a temple"". Church News. May 21, 1988. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Mormon Temple Will Rise in Southern Oregon". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. March 24, 1999.
  11. ↑ "Mormons Plan 2nd Ore. Temple". The Seattle Times. Seattle, Washington. (AP). April 4, 1999.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "Mormon Temple rises in Oregon". Statesman Journal. August 1988. p. 18.
  13. ↑ Szasz, Ferenc Morton (2000). Religion in the Modern American West. University of Arizona Press. p. 107. ISBN 0816522456.
  14. ↑ Stack, Peggy Fletcher. "All Latter-day Saint temples to close due to coronavirus", The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 March 2020. Retrieved on 28 March 2020.
  15. ↑ "Portland Oregon Temple, Dedicatory Prayer". www.churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  16. ↑ Petersen, Sarah. "Temple Facts, Stats, and Interesting Stories". www.churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
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