The Palmyra Temple

We are one of six senior couples called to be temple missionaries. We worked five shifts this past week. A shift is about 5 hours long. We have great members who travel some distance just to be ordinance workers. They are so dedicated and inspire me not to complain at all about the 20-minute drive to our closest temples in Utah.  We've had patrons from as far away as Colombia and Brazil.  The baptistry is always busy, and the laundry, which is manned by the sister missionaries, plus a few dedicated sister ordinance workers, is constantly in use.  It is amazing to me that two washers and a dryer are strong enough to handle all the wet towels and jumpsuits that are used in a typical baptistry session, let alone in a single day.

The Palmyra Temple is small but beautiful. I love looking out the window that overlooks the Grove. Most everyone who comes to the Temple is taken to this transparent window and told the story about Pres. Hinckley specifically commissioning it, allowing patrons the view overlooking the Sacred Grove. It is the  first ever built into an LDS temple. 

Inside the temple, the stained glass windows help create a feeling of being in the Sacred Grove surrounded by beauty and light, as was the Prophet Joseph Smith. Bro.Tom Holdman, creator of the windows, remember when he sought the Lord’s help and inspiration. He said his mind was flooded with an image of all 108 windows of the temple filled with stained glass trees. In all, 12 employees worked full time on the 17,000-piece project. It includes more than 6,800 tiny hand-cut and hand-notched tree leaves. In four months, they were finished. I never tire of looking at these windows as they fill the temple with light and beauty, something all temples do for us when we attend.

Transparent center window 

Transparent center window looks west to the Sacred Grove.

These stained glass windows in the celestial room feature the tree of life in the center panel. 

 

In the foyer of the temple is also a framed stained-glass mural depicting the First Vision. 

I love the temples of the Church. Each one is beautiful in its own way. I love the feeling I get when I am participating in ordinances there. I feel the priesthood power that blesses us as we make covenants. We are so blessed to be here!