October 5, 2014

• A Gleaming Citadel: A Journey to Salt Lake City, Part III

  Sept. 19-20, 2014-  Lunch hours at the  Convention ran two hours.  On Friday, this gave me the chance to revisit Temple Square, home to the grand edifices and garden of the Mormon Faith.  The health systems and personal health regimen espoused by the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are the impetus to the essential oils movement.  So, although I follow another Faith (Baha’i) which prescribes strict adherence to healthy life practices, I am very appreciative of the Mormons’ dedication to a better world.

  I first visited these buildings in 1999, during an educational seminar at the University of Utah. I got to engage a few people in the Tabernacle Visitors’ Center about spiritual matters, but did not photograph the complex.  On the latest visit, I was able to enter the Salt Lake City Tabernacle and the Tabernacle Chapel, but, as is customary, I did not enter the Mormon Tabernacle itself.

  Here are some views of the sights in Temple Square. The first is the Tabernacle Chapel, approached from the west.

   Upon entering Temple Square, the first sight is the excellent Genealogical Research Center, open to all.

  

  The Mormon Tabernacle stands on the northeast quadrant of the complex, and carries its share of majesty.

  

  

  The Tabernacle Chapel is open to visitors, and young people serving their mission to the Church serve as hosts and guides.  A couple of young women from Taiwan were hosts on the day I visited.

  

  

  I next strolled the garden, before taking a brief look inside Salt Lake City Tabernacle, a domed structure, which houses the headquarters of the local LDS community.

  

  

  

  

  Most of the statues in the garden are esoteric to the theology of the Mormon Faith.  This statue of a Utah pioneer, however, speaks to the striving of many, regardless of Faith.

  

  

  This is the exterior of Salt Lake City Tabernacle.

  

  Here is its interior, similar to, but slightly larger than, the Chapel.

  

  There were many other visitors during this lunch period, including several of my fellow Conventioneers, but it was a serene and peaceful visit. Regardless of one’s personal creed, an appreciation of the gifts offered by such as the Mormons benefits everyone.

  NEXT:  The Utah State Capitol and adjoining buildings

  • 11:17 pm
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