Following a blueprint for a building — in this case, the restoration of a house of the Lord — can also serve as a blueprint for building a more peaceful world through trust and friendships, said Elder Patrick Kearon to the global faith leaders gathered in Kazakhstan.
With crews working together and following blueprints in the multiyear, cooperative effort to renovate the Salt Lake Temple, the member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles sees the hundreds of skilled workers coming together to accomplish “something greater than themselves” in downtown Salt Lake City.
Speaking to global faith leaders Wednesday, Sept. 17, at the Eighth Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, held at the Palace of Independence in Astana, Kazakhstan, Elder Kearon called the temple renovation a powerful metaphor for building relationships with others.
“We know what a difference it makes when we approach our own personal interactions with the same kind of care we are taking with our historic temple,” Elder Kearon said. “I am grateful for our shared striving — beyond the walls of temples, churches, synagogues and mosques — to treat the space between us with the same sense of reverence and purpose.”
Elder Kearon represented The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the annual conference, and was joined by Elder Matthew S. Holland, a General Authority Seventy who leads the Church’s global communications efforts. With the plenary session theme being “Dialogue of Religions: Synergy for the Future,” other participants included Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, Russia, and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb of Egypt.
Building relationships requires deliberate effort
Elder Kearon said building peaceful relationships of trust, friendship and sacred space between people requires deliberate effort, such as taking time to listen, replacing judgment with compassion and remembering that “what unites us is far greater than what might divide us.”
“Just as holy edifices rise one stone at a time, so too are peace and understanding built, moment by moment, encounter by encounter,” he added. Learning to appreciate and honor religious diversity and the holy space of other faiths is key to building these types of relationships of trust and friendship, said the Apostle, citing compassion, dialogue and understanding as key foundation stones and building blocks.
“We can repair what is broken, strengthen what is fragile and frame a future where peace can replace fear,” Elder Kearon told the congress. “We can draw closer and forge connections as thoughtfully and hopefully as we build and preserve physical sanctuaries. In doing so, we will best realize the kind of world those buildings represent — a place of heaven on earth. Thank you for being such builders.”
He also invited congress attendees to attend the Salt Lake Temple open house, which begins April 2027 and runs for six months.
Preserving sacred spaces
Elder Holland spoke at the congress in a Tuesday, Sept. 16, special session on preserving sacred spaces, saying protecting holy ground has never been more important.
“There are places and spaces on this earth that should be treated with special reverence and care,” he said. “This is true not because they simply have been built, or simply exist, but because of what happens in and around them.”
In calling for their protection, Elder Holland added: “Among other things, this means we call upon governments, journalists, tourists and others to respect the sacredness and access rules that a particular religion may impose on its own sacred site and the ceremonial activity that goes with it.”
Ministry’s additional meetings
Besides his address at the congress, Elder Kearon also conducted several private meetings with leaders of other faiths with representatives of the government of Kazakhstan. His eight-day ministry also included meetings with local and area Church leaders, missionaries and members.
Stating the congress is valuable not only because of its speeches, formal meetings and breakout sessions, a key aspect of the gathering of global faith leaders is the individual meetings, which can help build connection, understanding and friendship, Elder Kearon explained.
“We grow in understanding. We know what is on their minds, and we have so much in common,” he said. “Particularly when we meet in gatherings like this, we don’t focus on the few things that might separate us. We focus on things that unite us and what we might do together.”
In addition to conducting an area review and instruction meetings with the Church’s Eurasian Area, Elder Kearon conducted a member devotional in Almaty, Kazakhstan, which was also broadcast to Russian and Belarusian Latter-day Saints. The Apostle alos met with missionaries of the Armenia/Georgia Mission and held a member devotional in Tbilisi, Georgia.
