Crowds of reverent spectators gathered on temple grounds in Nauvoo, Ill.; The Hague, Netherlands; and Boston, Mass., Sept. 21 to witness the placing of three Angel Moroni statues. The statues were placed in commemoration of the 178th anniversary of Moroni's first appearance to Joseph Smith.
Each temple is nearing completion and is unique in Church history. The Hague Netherlands Temple, located in Zoetemeer, is the first temple to be dedicated in the land where the first European stake was organized.
The placement of the angel statue on the Boston temple comes nearly a year after the temple was dedicated without a steeple.
In Nauvoo, the angel statue was placed high atop a temple being built to model the original temple constructed during the 1840s.
"Despite the great distances the Dutch members had to travel to the Swiss, German and British temples, it has never stopped them," said President Hans Noot of the Rotterdam Netherlands Stake. "Dutch members have proven their love of the Lord and the work of redeeming their ancestors." President Noot was among the three stake presidents from the Netherlands and two presidents from Belgium who witnessed the raising of the angel statue.
Construction workers climbed the scaffolding in their traditional wooden shoes as part of a Dutch tradition known as "het hoogste punt," which is celebrated when workers reach the highest point of construction.
In Nauvoo, members posed for pictures around the statue before it was raised. Enthusiasm ran high as an estimated 500 people attended, including spectators who scaled the fence surrounding the temple to gain a better view. They watched as the gold plated statue was placed atop the dome with the angel overlooking the Mississippi River.
The facade of the Nauvoo temple is nearing completion as stone is hung on the concrete shell. A five-week open house begins May 18 with dedication plans set for June 27 in commemoration of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith in nearby Carthage. Like the dedication of the Palmyra New York and Winter Quarters Nebraska temples, proceedings of the Nauvoo Illinois Temple dedication will also be broadcast by satellite to stake centers.
The angel statue in Boston was raised without ceremony or much public notice. Construction of the temple had been a high-profile news item for several years in New England until the Massachusetts high court granted the Church permission to place a steeple on the temple in May, bringing a five-year legal battle to a close.
Even though no announcement was made to publicize the event, approximately 200 attended. Intermittent rain delayed hoisting the statue, but by mid-afternoon, clouds cleared sufficiently for crews to set it in place.
Crews began several days earlier attaching the steeple that was prefabricated in two major pieces. Once a window specially made in London was installed, crews uncrated the statue and placed it on the grounds near the temple where families posed for pictures. Sister Suzanne Sorensen, temple matron, was asked to install the trumpet.
The height of the temple complies with the 139 feet permitted by officials of Belmont, Mass., where the temple is located. — Shaun D. Stahle
