Dedication of the Billings Montana Temple
The groundbreaking ceremony for the Billings Montana Temple on March 28, 1998, was accompanied by a spring snowstorm, blanketing the grounds in fresh snow. Elder Hugh W. Pinnock, a General Authority Seventy and president of the North America Central Area, presided at the temple groundbreaking. Despite the storm, over 4,800 people from the United States and Canada attended the groundbreaking service. Local government leaders and clergy also attended. The local clergy helped the temple project obtain governmental approval.
Elder Pinnock invited the members of the temple district to accomplish three things before the temple was dedicated: “Live the commandments and be the best neighbors and missionaries you know how to be; second, prepare a TempleReady file so you may come here in just 18 months to accomplish the vital ordinances and covenants for your relatives; third, continue to teach our youth to be worthy so they will be able to be baptized for those that have died and to prepare for their own eternal marriages.”
Snow was removed from the site, and construction for the house of the Lord began about 40 hours after the ceremony. Despite the blizzard only two days before, the weather on the day of construction was clear and allowed for the beginning stages of the foundation building to commence.
The temple public open house began on Oct. 8, 1999. Elder Pinnock took the then-Montana Gov. Marc Racicot on a VIP tour of the temple the day before. After the tour had concluded, Elder Pinnock gave Gov. Racicot a statuette depicting a family.
President Gordon B. Hinckley, 15th President of the Church, dedicated the Billings Montana Temple on Nov. 20, 1999. President Hinckley was accompanied by his first counselor, President Thomas S. Monson, and his wife, Sister Frances Monson; Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife, Sister Elisa Wirthlin; and Elder Yoshihiko Kikuchi, a General Authority Seventy and first counselor in the North America Central Area presidency, and his wife, Sister Toshiko Kikuchi.
Dedicatory prayer excerpt: “We pray for all who will use this beautiful edifice in the accomplishment of Thine eternal purposes. May they not weary in their sacred service. May they know that they are the means of opening the prison doors beyond the veil, all of which is made possible through the great atoning sacrifice of Thy Beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Read the dedicatory prayer of the Billings Montana Temple here.
Timeline of the Billings Montana Temple
The Billings Montana Temple was announced on Aug. 16, 1996, with the groundbreaking taking place on March 28, 1998. Elder Hugh W. Pinnock presided at the groundbreaking, and a public open house ran from Oct. 8 to Oct. 23, 1999. President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the temple on Nov. 20, 1999.
Architecture and Design of the Billings Montana Temple
The Billings Montana Temple stands with a single spire before the Rimrock cliffs, a local land form in the region. The retaining walls and fence foundations were made of stones that were manufactured to resemble the cliffs.
The exterior of the temple is made of Wyoming white dolomite. On the grounds of the temple at the time of the dedication were over 250 trees and 4,500 shrubs. Lawns and flower gardens adorn the landscape throughout the property. Inside the temple are the celestial room, two instruction rooms, three sealing rooms, and the baptistry.