The Nauvoo Temple: Jewel of the Mississippi

Brigham Young said of the prophet...

"Joseph took heaven figuratively speaking, and brought it down to earth; and he took the earth, brought it up and opened it, in plainness and simplicity, the things of God."

i have seen more than a dozen temples, all are in beautifully landscaped settings, majestically overlooking the surrounding area, adding beauty and meaning to all who enter or simply pass by. My favorite has always been the Logan temple, it's simple rustic beauty separates it from the more modern design of todays' temples, it was where karen and i were married for eternity, for me is a step above all the rest.

as of today, i have a new favorite.

it is simple elegance. i cannot imagine how this poor struggling people built such a majestic building. it is the Lord's house... the design had been shown to Joseph in a vision. the pattern is unbelieveably intricate and the craftsmanship meticulus in every detail; the crescent moonstones, the signature moonstones and my favorite, the five-pointed starstones. the design is unique, i can't imagine anything more perfect for this place. i love the belfry and the clock tower dome with Moroni in his familiar place on top. When Pres. Hinckley gave his dedicatory address he explained why Moroni faces west, not the traditional east direction of other temples; he explained that now the Nauvoo and SLC temples face each other and serve as bookends to the sacrafice and dedication of the saints in the early days of the church... from Nauvoo to Salt Lake City and everything in between.

the saints once again sacraficed all to build a house for the Lord. they did it out of committment and obedience... they did it to receive their promised blessing in the Temple before they had to leave... covenants that would unite them to their families for all eternity. martha thomas explains far better than i, "we esteemed it a privilege to work on the House of God... until it was finished. We were then called to the house to receive the blessings the Lord has in store for the faithful, which amply paid them for all their labors."

a place on earth, where the things of God could be performed in plainness, simplicity and beauty. i again am humbled to be in their presence....

"I looked upon the Temple and City of Nauvoo as i retired from it and felt to ask the Lord to preserve it as a monument of the sacrifice of his Saints." Wilford Woodruff... i believe his prayer was answered.

the cubbies

sorry,
for some reason the cubbie shots won't upload on the blog. i used the small camera and they must be configured differently. guess you'll have to see them when i get home.

cheers

travel day, the cubbies, and the golden dome

the big adventure today was to get to chicago and wrigley field... as i hit the road at 7:00, planning 5 1/2 hours to make the trip, i forgot that i gained an hour by crossing into the central time zone. soooo an opportunity to take in notre dame, the hallowed football stadium and the golden dome.

wrigley field... this has to be the most fan friendly park in america. the stadium, field and set up ARE outdated and definately are showing signs of wear and tear. big deal... you are so close to the action, most take mitt to their seats for shear protection, the bleacher bums are cool, the fans are completely behind their beloved cubbies, people watching is almost as much fun as the game... if they make the playoffs, this place will go nuts again.

as you look at the stadium shots can you tell which outfield stands are part of the stadium and which are ACROSS THE STREET. love the ivy, the bricks and old school feel.

i couldn't wait to join 30k+ of my closest friends stand and sing, "take me out to the ball game," and was not disappointed. griffey got 3 hits, the cubbies 12 runs and 20 hits. hey hey, cubbies win, cubbies win.

parting thought from kirkland...

driving to chicago to see the cubbies today, my thoughts drifted back to kirtland. you cannot help but be impressed by how the Lord put everyone in place... the harris's, whitmers, pratt's, whitney's, oliver, sidney rigdon, young's... all there with support, talent and the faith necessary to restore the church again.

my thoughts however went to emma and the calling and sacrafice she was asked to make. during their courtship she must have first questioned and then became convinced of joseph's calling to restore the church and become it's prophet seer and revelator. i doubt she had any idea of the sacrafices to come and the trials she would be asked to overcome. i think history may paint a poor picture of the women i hope to meet someday, and thank her for all she must have done which allowed Joseph to fulfill his calling... consider the things she had to endure;

- marriage to a man her parents forbade her to be with and all the anxiety and hurt that must have caused.
- the loss of her first 3 children, 2 at birth and one before the age of one.
- became the foster parents of the murdoch twins 9 days after losing her own... and then losing the baby boy to exposure shortly after her husband was pulled from their bed, tarred and featured then left for dead.
- the countless days and nights she worried and prayed for her husbands safety and deliverance.
- the countless days and nights she was left alone to tend to the house, children and affairs of the family while her husband was called upon to do the affairs of the church.
- the persecution she must have endured each time she walked through towns being the wife of the prophet.
- the doctrine of poligamy!!
- having to move from place to place, in support of the church, her husband and the community which followed
- learning to live on next to nothing and somehow making ends meet for her family and all who came to her door.
- the only time she was able to call a home her own was 3 short years in kirtland, living in borrowed rooms of her parents, her in laws, the whitney's, morleys, johnson's and the whitney's again before finally moving into a house of their own just south of the temple in kirtland. the rooms they called home for a majority of their married life were barely big enough to fit a double bed, yet that may have been her only sanctuary.
- was a hostess to thousands of visitors who sought the prophets time and attention
- she was a partner, wife, mother, creator of the first book of hymns, a scribe, a confidant and a living witness to the plates having been shown them by an angel... she may have murmured a bit, and in revelation was asked to repent and support her husband which she did faithfully until his death.

and much much more..

i have watched my wife and my mother, as well as other wives and mothers quietly & efficiently support their husbands... they are called upon to take care of the house, the kids, the cooking, the cleaning and the organization of a family... now that i've been home a bit, i can honestly say that i was the lucky one. my role as bread winner was a piece of cake compared to what karen accomplished on a daily basis while the kids were growing up. marriage is a partnership, we each have a role to play. one cannot be successful without the other. i am eternally grateful for karen... for her support, and unbelievable talents which allowed me be out of the home and chase my career goals.

in the garden of eden, it was determined adam needed a helpmate, a partner to be his equal and soul mate for his sojourn here on earth. learning a little more of the challenges the saints faced in the early days of the church, the burden which each was called to bear... especially the prophet, i know he could not have accomplished what he did without the Lord's help AND a worthy partner.

thank you emma and all the wives, we are worthless without you.

pictures from upper left to right;

-whitney's guest room where smiths stayed when first arriving in kirtland
-conference room above whitney store... revelations were recorded, guests were seated and hosted, next to small room where the school of the prophets was held.
- john johnson's farm, where smith's stayed for 1 year. this was the room Joseph was dragged from then tarred and featured

bottom row... left to right
- finally a home to call their own... just south of the kirtland temple
- historic sign outside the smith home in kirtland
- john johnson home... after joseph was tarred and featured he gave a sermon from the front porch the next morning, some of the mobsters from the night before were in attendence.

a sense of urgency

"... go to the Ohio; and there i will give unto you my law; and there you shall be endowed with the power from on high;"
D&C 38: 32

it was said the 2 purposes for the saints stay in kirtland were; first, get the law; second, be empowered by on high... they accomplished that and much much more.

many of the apostles call the Kirtland area the "crown jewel" of church history sites. Sixty five sections of the D&C where revealed here; the first presidency was organized here, Joseph was first recognized as the president of the church in kirtland; the organization of the church was set up; the school of the prophets was the first formal missionary training program and on and on. it was overwhelming to hear all that happened during the 8 years the saints resided in the kirtland area... the most impressive and inspiring was the fact that 4 of the 5 known visitations that God the Father and the Savior made during the organization of the church were made in kirtland.

- in the room above the whitney store where the school of the prophets was held ( pictured above red rm with the benches)
- the kirtland temple
- the school house on the morley farm (wooded area)
- in the revelation room at the johnson farm. (pictured with bright orange like trim moldings benches and a table)

i stood in each of these rooms, or near the site where the school house once stood... again it is an awe inspiring feeling to know that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ were here. they appeared and instructed the leadership of the church re: the organization, the structure and the doctrine which was to again be Christ's church here on the earth. the oath and covenant of the priesthood, the revelation on the 3 degrees of glory, the word of wisdom... Christ was setting up his kingdom and joseph was his prophet. i stood in those rooms, again i wondered what it must have been like, what that must have felt like... it is a special place... i stood in those places

It was also made known to joseph, in the morley schoolhouse, during the first official conference of the church that the church would eventually move to the rocky mountains and that the gospel would spread to north and south america and the whole earth. twenty three newly named High Priests where in the room, these were rough frontiersman... not exactly high society folks. i'm sure they had no idea where the rockies were and may just have started to understand what a temple was all about, or who or when or where each of them would be called on missions. they were quality, hardworking, ordinary people. they walked by faith, when joseph told them of the word of wisdom revelation they instantly supported, walked to the fireplace, threw in their pipes and chewing tobacco and never touched the stuff again. during this first conference satan again made his presence felt, just as he did in the sacred grove, Joseph had to cast out devils so the church could roll on and these men were being taught what they must do.

eight years was all joseph would have to set up the church, prepare his people, send out missionaries to begin spreading the gospel. he had seen what the church was to become, i also believe he knew he wouldn't be there when most of it would happen.

when joseph and emma arrived in kirtland in feb. of 1831, there were 150 saints... by june of the same year there were close to 2000. growth and industry had to happen. imagine the number of families who sacraficed all just to get there with nothing more than the shirts on their back. image what the saints that were there had to do to welcome and care for them, imagine the amount of work that needed to be done to house, feed and protect them, imagine the strains of a prophet to care for his people, organize a community, as well as prepare them for the trials he knew would come.

we know he grew into his calling as a prophet, he also had to grow into his leadership role. he knew and was determined to get all that he could done before he had to leave this earth. kirtland was a place of learning, of industry and of preparation. the Lord never let the saints rest. each family had to set up their own household, as well as build a temple, and build all the necessary support facilities of a growing community as the surrounding sawmills, printers, grist millers etc stopped services to a growing mormon community... we often look to brigham as the example of a great colonizer and leader, that he was... my guess is he became that by modeling himself after many of the things joseph must have taught him.

throughout the day i was struck by the magnitude of the calling joseph had, by the things he knew he had to get done, by the short time he had to do it in. i have felt that each modern day prophet feels a sense of urgency to get things done; ie Joseph setting up the framework of the church in this despensation; Brigham to trek west; Pres. Bensen a renewed importance on the Book of Mormon, Pres. Hinckley the building of temples. the Lord gives his prophet instruction on what they must do and they have so little time here on earth to get it done. joseph knew what he was called to do and worked tirelessly to get it done. in his last hours in the carthage jail he spoke fondly of his time in kirtland. it was here that he accomplished the most, it was here that ordinary folks, working together, accomplished extraordinary things. i had great respect for the prophet before i got here, i can't even express the feelings i have for him now.

a little catch up

i clicked on the blog this morning and noticed the pictures of the hill cumorah didn't download... i guess there is a limit to the number of pictures you can put together

the hill cumorah is a beautiful place... i was surprized at how steep the hill was, as i seem to remember a photo of it showing it to be more of a rounded hill. the one picture that looks like a golf fairway is the face of the hill that has been cleared for the pagent. they build multiple stages out from the mountain so the play can be performed. the view from the top gives you a feel for the landscape. rolling hills, dense folage and large farms.

if i can download them the other group is of the hall of fame... pretty self explanitory.

travel day

today is a travel day... 256 miles from palmyra to cleveland which is about 23 miles west of kirtland, tomorrow's agenda.

the trip should have taken a little over 4 hours, but seeing a sign along I90 stating that niagra falls was only 26 miles away, i decided to take a little detour to take in the view... great decision, all i could think about was, where is all this water coming from!!! i cannot imagine why anyone would try to go over the falls in a barrel, but they do, on the canada side of the river they have a graveyard for those who don't live through it.... true story. love this trip.

random things:

1. the temperatures have been in the low to mid 80's, moderate humidity and unbelieveably pleasant.
2. i have put over 1200 miles on karen's car in 4 days
3. yes, every tourist at niagra falls has a camera and they all want their picture taken.
4. jacobs field is outstanding... these new parks are beautiful... still get goose bumps when first walking through the tunnel and seeing the green grass and perfect symetry of a baseball diamond.
5. huge thanks to jeff and naomi for setting me up along the way in the family of marriott hotels. tonight and tomorrow i'll be at the ritz carlton in cleveland, regular marriott in chicago and then fairfield inn outside nauvoo... get to have a clean room to return to every night, the employee discount is much appreciated.
6. yes, i would do this trip again... i'm surprized i really haven't minded going solo, probably good theropy for me. i get out early, listen to sport talk radio in each city, talk to folks all over the country on the new blue tooth system, etc.... i have been the only person at most of the historical sites so the sr. missionaries are thrilled to have someone to talk to, give me my own personal tours, answer all my questions etc. we'll see how it goes from here but so far it's been great. next time however, karen your in...

pictures are of the hill cumorah visitors center, niagra falls and then cleveland... enjoy!!