Dedication of the Seattle Washington Temple
The Seattle Washington Temple was dedicated throughout 13 sessions from Nov. 17-21, 1980, by Church President Spencer W. Kimball. Upward of 3,900 Church members attended each of the 13 sessions, with 43,000 of those in attendance belonging to the temple district, which included Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon and parts of Idaho.
In the weeks leading up to the dedication, over 100,000 visitors toured the temple. One nonmember woman visitor said the temple was “a truly beautiful place to find Jesus. I want to come back again and again.”
Favorable press coverage during the open house helped positively raise the Church’s profile, with a pair of major television talk show hosts visiting for an hour.
“We have seen a definite shift in the attitude of the press. When they ask questions, the barbs aren’t there any more,” said Elder W. Grant Bangerter, a General Authority Seventy and executive director of the Temple Department.
The Church News at the time noted that the Seattle and Tokyo Japan temples’ concurrent dedications — the Tokyo temple was dedicated 21 days earlier, on Oct. 27, 1980 — were part of a century-long trend of building temples in pairs to accelerate development. The previous pair — the Ogden Utah and Provo Utah temples — were dedicated on Jan. 18 and Feb. 9, 1972, respectively.
“Surely one of the ‘signs of the times’ must be the fact that two temples of the Lord are completed and dedicated in less than a month,” read a Church News editorial on Nov. 15, 1980. “... And so it is that all nations will be given the full ordinances of the temples as they are built in various parts of the world. Indeed their construction is one of the significant ‘signs of the times.’ Both Tokyo and Seattle testify of this truth.”
At a dedicatory session, President Kimball told the assembled Saints that temple ordinances are sacred, not secret or mysterious, and that “the temple serves the purpose of helping to bring to pass the eternal life of man.”
“... Temples are a place of peace and holiness. Let us lay aside the cares and worries of the outside world. We can then center our minds on the things of the Spirit, as the great mysteries of life are unfolded to us.
“It would be foolish for us to come to the dedication of a temple and not make up our minds that from this hour on, we are not just here for a visit, we are here to receive the word of the Lord.”
Seattle temple President F. Arthur Kay remarked that the testimonies, willingness to sacrifice and desire to serve among the ordinance workers he called were “unequaled in any or all of my past Church assignments.
“Eyes sparkle with love, glisten with tears as gratitude is expressed for the privilege of service in the temple. But, then, should we not expect the profound development of such characteristics as great loyalties, strong testimonies and willing hearts after so many years of gospel living and Church service? Are not these the fruits of obedience, of labor and love?”
Dedicatory prayer excerpt: “Bless, we pray Thee, the presidency of this temple and the matron and all the officiators herein. Help them to create a sublime and holy atmosphere so that all ordinances may be performed with love and a sweet, spiritual tone that will cause the members to greatly desire to be here and to return again and again.”
Read the dedicatory prayer of the Seattle Washington Temple here.
Timeline of the Seattle Washington Temple
Plans to build a temple in the Seattle, Washington, area were announced by the First Presidency of the Church, with President Spencer W. Kimball as Church President — on Nov. 15, 1975. Ground was broken for the temple on May 27, 1978.
The public was invited to tour the Seattle Washington Temple from Oct. 7 through Nov. 8, 1980. President Kimball then dedicated the Seattle temple from Nov. 17-21, 1980, throughout 13 sessions.
Architecture and Design of the Seattle Washington Temple
The exterior of the Seattle Washington Temple is made of reinforced concrete faced with quartz and marble aggregates. The 110,000-square-foot house of the Lord sits near a meetinghouse that also functions as the Seattle Family Discovery Center for FamilySearch.
A re-creation of the statue “In the Family Circle,” originally created by Dennis Smith, sits on the temple grounds. The interior of the temple features a baptistry, four ordinance rooms and 12 sealing rooms.