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Public invited to Bountiful Temple

At the official opening of tours of the Bountiful Utah Temple Thursday morning, Nov. 3, Elder James E. Faust of the Council of the Twelve hosted members of the media at an open house. Throughout the remainder of the day and on Friday, Nov. 4, he hosted government, business, community and education leaders, representatives of other religions and other special guests on tours of the new edifice.

Public tours of the temple begin Saturday, Nov. 5, and are scheduled to continue through Dec. 17, except Sundays and Thanksgiving. On Tuesdays through Saturdays, tours are scheduled for 8 a.m.-9:30 p.m. The temple will close to tours at 6 p.m. on Mondays.While tours are free to the public, tickets are required. Earlier, tickets were distributed in Salt Lake, Davis and Weber counties through local Church units. Ample tickets are still available at the Bountiful Regional Center (formerly Valley Music Hall), off I-15 at the Woods Cross exit. (Telephone 801-299-4222.)

Officials anticipate 900,000 to 1.1 million people will tour the temple during the open house. More

than 33,000 tickets were issued for Saturday, Nov. 5, alone.

The new temple is located about nine miles north of Salt Lake City in the foothills of Bountiful overlooking the Great Salt Lake. It will be the Church's 47th temple in operation and Utah's eighth. About 92,000 members reside in the 28 stakes that comprise the temple district, which extends from North Salt Lake to Kaysville in Davis County.

"We are certain that anyone who participates in either the open house or in the dedicatory sessions that will be held in January will never be the same again, with respect to their attitudes and perspectives toward the House of the Lord," said Elder John E. Fowler of the Seventy and president of the Utah North Area. "Whether they're members of the Church or not, active or not, everyone who walks through this sacred edifice will be forever changed by the spirit of the Bountiful temple.

"This open house is a wonderful and unique opportunity for everyone in the vicinity. It is very infrequently that people who are not members of the Church or who have not been to the temple are able to experience first-hand a house of the Lord. This is a special edifice, the construction and use of which is unique to the Latter-day Saint people. We desire greatly to have as many people as possible come see it during the open house. All are welcome. The active and less-active Latter-day Saints and those who are not members of the Church will have a marvelous experience as they visit the temple."

Elder Blaine P. Jensen, the regional representative who is vice chairman of the Bountiful Utah Temple committee, said: "The temple is ready. We feel that we have all the arrangements made to accommodate these many thousands of visitors who will attend the open house. Our great hope is that all who come will have a worry-free and an interruption-free spiritual experience as they go into this magnificent building."

Directions to the temple and instructions for parking are printed on the back of each ticket, along with other key information pertaining to attending the open house. "We will do all in our power to make this a marvelous experience for everyone. We will be able to accommodate people with handicaps or special needs.

"We are extremely pleased with the support of the local members of the Church. We anticipate that before the completion of the dedication we will have had 40,000 volunteers involved."

After the open house, the temple will be closed for three weeks to prepare for the dedication, which will comprise 28 sessions from Sunday, Jan. 8 to Saturday, Jan 14. Each of the temple district's 28 stakes will be assigned a dedicatory session. Tickets to attend the dedicatory sessions will be issued to those baptized members 8 years of age and older who are determined to be worthy by their bishops.

The First Presidency has invited members of the Church who live in Salt Lake and Weber counties, as well as those in Davis County who are not part of the temple district, to participate in the events of the dedication, Elder Fowler said. Tickets will be available through their bishops. Many members will be invited to participate in the dedicatory services through closed-circuit television at the Salt Lake and Ogden tabernacles and the Bountiful Regional Center.

"No matter where members attend the dedication, it will be a wonderful experience," Elder Fowler said. "Can you imagine the excitement of being in the Tabernacle on Temple Square or in one of the other great assemblies and being part of a dedication session with thousands of other Latter-day Saints, relishing the beautiful spirit of that occasion?"

The new temple, constructed by Okland Construction Co., includes 100,000 square feet. It has four ordinance rooms, eight sealing rooms, a celestial room, baptistry, offices, laundry and cafeteria. Ground was broken for the edifice May 2, 1992, by President Ezra Taft Benson.

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