Dedication of the Indianapolis Indiana Temple
A temple for Indianapolis, Indiana, was announced Oct. 2, 2010, by Church President Thomas S. Monson. Afterward, the Prophet encouraged, “May we continue faithful in attending the temples, which are being built closer and closer to our members.”
President Koy E. Miskin — a member of the first Indianapolis temple presidency and who served as historical co-chair with his wife, Martha, on the temple committee — spoke of the historical significance of the house of the Lord to Church News at the temple’s dedication.
“By the middle 1840s, 30 counties in Indiana had active branches,” he started, then he described that by the late 1840s, Church members moved west to Utah and left Indiana without a trace.
However, as Latter-day Saints began to spread around the globe, the state would regain its Church presence. Indiana would see a growing Church member population, with its first Latter-day Saint meetinghouse constructed in 1927 and the Indianapolis Indiana Stake organized in 1959.
In the following decades, faithful Church members in Indiana would be blessed with temples in nearby states — such as Illinois, Missouri and Ohio — but the Indianapolis temple was a special blessing for Latter-day Saints in Indiana, said Larry Shumard of the Fort Wayne Indiana Stake at the temple dedication on Aug. 23, 2015.
The Indianapolis Indiana Temple was brought to pass, he said, “because of the faith and sacrifice of generations.”
Dedicatory prayer excerpt: “Wilt Thou accept it as the offering of Thy sons and daughters who love Thee and seek to accomplish Thy purposes. We dedicate unto Thee and Thy Son this beautiful temple with all its facilities, furnishings and ancillary structures. We dedicate the ground on which it stands, with the vegetation growing thereon to add such beauty to this structure.”
Read the dedicatory prayer of the Indianapolis Indiana Temple here.
Timeline of the Indianapolis Indiana Temple
Church President Thomas S. Monson announced a temple for Indianapolis, Indiana, during general conference Oct. 2, 2010. The temple’s groundbreaking ceremony was held Sept. 29, 2012.
More than 90,000 visitors toured the temple during its open house from July 17 through Aug. 8, 2015, and a cultural celebration in honor of the temple was held Aug. 22, 2015, featuring some 1,500 youth from the temple district.
President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency, dedicated the Indianapolis Indiana Temple on Aug. 23, 2015.
Architecture and Design of the Indianapolis Indiana Temple
The 34,000-square-foot Indianapolis Indiana Temple stands on 18.11 acres of land, which is filled with grass fields, trees and concrete walkways. Stone on the exterior includes aero cream limestone quarried and fabricated in Turkey. The site used to be farmland before it was acquired for the temple. A large fountain sits outside the edifice, in front of the entrance.
The interior decorations include art-glass windows, carved cherry wood and an original oil painting wall mural depicting landscape scenes of Indiana. Many of these decorations depict a motif of blossoms from the tulip poplar — Indiana’s state tree — and a motif of circles — representing Indianapolis’ nickname, “Circle City.”
A principal motif in the building’s windows is that of the Celtic knot, a looped design with no start or finish, symbolizing eternity.
Interior Photos of the Indianapolis Indiana Temple
