King Solomon Himself Would Be Impressed By Temple Open House

As the general manager of Sacramento Faith TV it's my obligation and my pleasure to visit some of the events that you see posted in our newsletter.  Continue to send us events and I may also visit you for an editorial.
The August newsletter featured the grand opening of the Yuba City Mormon temple, I personally,  like most of you reading are not Mormon but that doesn't mean we shouldn't learn more about our brethren and their beliefs.
I had never visited a Mormon Temple before but have been curious, normally they are closed off to the public and members have to get special permission to enter, only during grand openings are temples open to the public for a short period before they're closed forever.

My expectations as I entered this grand monument to God was to see a huge cathedral-like space for the congregation to meet, well I was way off, that's what the church is for. The temple itself is a grand maze of rooms set up for different event purposes, prayers, teachings, baptisms, and weddings.
King Solomon himself would be awed by the grandeur of this dedication to God. Everything within handmade to perfection, marble floors from Italy, mahogany doors 4 in thick with stained glass, gold trim on just about everything, crystal chandeliers, artwork reflecting the life of Jesus, no wallpaper but hand painted patterns on the walls from the floor to the 15 foot ceilings, and crystal chandeliers.
The whole Temple is built for silence, for reflection and prayer as we sat quietly to take in the peacefulness of the place it is that quiet that you could "NOT" even hear a pin drop.
As extravagant as it is I did not get a feeling of gaudiness but a feeling of reverence and it reflects the Mormons love for God. During the tour our guide gave us an inside look at their Doctrine, which was equally impressive, the Mormons faith is built on the rock of family and that family being eternal, married on earth and eternally in heaven. Something that surprised me is that in the Bible Jesus states that you must be baptized to make it to heaven, so the Mormons can get baptized as a surrogate for past relatives that did not have the opportunity to be baptized in life, offering the relative the opportunity to enter the Gates of Heaven. Whether you believe in this practice or not I felt it was heartwarming and beautiful.
The Wedding Chapel also equally impressive but surprisingly small, as they only allow for about 50 of the closest friends and relatives making it a more personal event, both bride and groom kneel before a small altar in the middle of the room with a special mirror placed on opposite walls so when the bride and groom look into the mirror they get that symbolic reflection of Eternity as their image bounces back between the mirrors to give you that effect of eternal connection, I also felt this was a moving sentiment visually of once bonded it's eternal. There was a lot more to reflect upon including the wonderful Gardens that surround the outside of the Temple including 100-year-old olive trees. The temple will be open till September 9th and then it will be closed to the public forever, I highly recommend if you get a chance to take the family on a short field trip and get out of the heat, you will enjoy the comfort of this remarkable air conditioned tribute to God.
1470 Butte House Road, Yuba City