Manti Utah Temple

Manti Utah Temple. Photo credit: Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

The Manti Utah Temple is the third operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is considered one of the four original Pioneer Temples.

On June 25, 1875, the building of the Manti Temple was announced. The site for the temple was Manti Stone Quarry, a large hill in the area. It had been prophesied numerous times since the beginning of settlement in the area that this would be the site of the temple. When Brigham Young announced the building of the temple he also announced that the 27-acre plot would now be known as Temple Hill.

The temple was completed in 1888 and a private dedication was held on May 17, 1888, with the dedicatory prayer given by Wilford Woodruff. Three public dedications were held on May 21-23, 1888, and were directed by Lorenzo Snow.

Throughout the years, the temple underwent various remodelings and renovations. There was once a tunnel that went under the east tower of the temple but it has now been closed off. A great stone stairway was started in 1907 that led to the doors of the temple. In 1935, the temple was fully lighted at night for the first time. In 1940 the stairs were removed and work began to beautify the grounds. Between 1944 and 1945 the annex, chapel, kitchen, garden room, and men’s and women’s areas were all remodeled.

In 1981 it was decided that the interior of the temple needed to be extensively remodeled. Renovation took four years; murals were restored, original furniture was also restored, offices were enlarged and remodeled, a separate door was made to the baptistry, water and weather damage were repaired, an elevator was installed, and locker rooms were improved among many other projects. Rededication ceremonies were held on the 14-16 of June 1985 with Gordon B. Hinckley directing.

William H. Folsom designed the Manti Temple. It combines the Gothic Revival, French Renaissance Revival, French Second Empire, and Colonial architectural styles. The temple has 100,373 square feet, eight sealing rooms four ordinance rooms, and the exterior is made of fine-textured, cream colored oolite limestone from quarries on the hill the temple now stands on. The two towers of the temple are 179 feet tall, and the open center spiral staircases inside of the towers are a marvel of pioneer ingenuity.

Until 2019, the Manti Utah Temple was the backdrop for the Mormon Miracle Pageant each June. The pageant told stories from the Book of Mormon as well as portrayed events in Church history and from the life of Joseph Smith. Admission to the pageant was free and approximately 100,000 visitors viewed it each year.

Renovation

In his April 2019 General Conference closing remarks, President Russell M. Nelson announced the renovation of the Manti Temple at a future date. The pioneer temples "stand as monuments to the faith and vision of our beloved pioneers. Each temple constructed by them resulted from their great personal sacrifice and effort. Each one stands as a stunning jewel in the crown of pioneer achievement.

Ours is a sacred responsibility to care for them. Therefore, these pioneer temples will soon undergo a period of renewal and refreshing and, for some, a major restoration. Efforts will be made to preserve the unique historicity of each temple wherever possible, preserving the inspiring beauty and unique craftsmanship of generations long-since passed.[1]

In a message from the First Presidency on March 12, 2021, further information was announced about the renovation of the Manti Temple:

Beginning later this year, the Manti Temple will begin a multi-year renovation that will include mechanical updates and other changes to prepare the temple to serve for generations.

Similar to the changes in the Salt Lake Temple, the progressive room-to-room presentation by live actors will transition to single-room presentations by film. The murals will also be photographed, documented, and removed. Some elements of the temple’s structure will be updated to accommodate these changes and improve accessibility for patrons. The historic staircases in the Manti Temple (and Salt Lake Temple) are being preserved during the renovations.

With each of these temples, there is a desire to ensure that the learning and experience are similar for all who come to the temple from anywhere in the world. The same ordinances, covenants and authority are available in every temple, and will now be presented in the same way, and now in more than 90 languages.

The historic pioneer-era temples have been a blessing to the Latter-day Saints for more than 140 years, and we know that with the updates and renovations now announced or underway they will continue to serve their sacred purpose for generations to come.[2]

See Pioneer Temples.

First Presidency Announces Adjustments to Renovation Plans for Manti Temple

On Saturday, 1 May 2021, in a prerecorded message played at a press conference inside the Manti Tabernacle, President Russell M. Nelson announced that the Church had adjusted the renovation plans for the 133-year-old Manti Utah Temple. The project will still be, as detailed in March, a multi-year endeavor that includes mechanical upgrades, safety improvements and the implementation of filmed presentations of temple ceremonies to expand worship access in more than 90 languages. He also said that the renovation would begin in October 2021.

He said, "As we have continued to seek the direction of the Lord on this matter, we have been impressed to modify our earlier plans for the Manti Utah Temple so that the pioneer craftsmanship, artwork and character will be preserved, including the painted murals loved by so many. We will leave those murals where they are located now — inside the Manti Utah Temple."

Brent Roberts, Special Projects Department Managing Director, said the Manti Temple renovation would be a mix of preservation, restoration, and installation of new equipment.

Bishop W. Christopher Waddell said the Manti House of the Lord is a "jewel of a temple." Latter-day Saints "owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to determined pioneers who settled in this area and who had to battle rattlesnakes for possession of this valley," he said. "During the construction of this sacred edifice [in the 1870s and 1880s], some workmen walked the seven miles from Ephraim each Monday morning and back home again Saturday night. In addition to being self-sacrificing, their service was of the highest quality. The work that will now be done will not only honor the Lord but will honor our pioneer forbears whose sacrifice and talent will continue to be on display for generations to come as members of the Church worship in this sacred house of the Lord."

Elder Kevin R. Duncan, Temple Department Executive Director, said that during the construction of the temples in Ephraim and Manti, volunteers would be invited to serve in either the Cedar City Utah Temple or Payson Utah Temple as needed.

Open House and Rededication

President Nelson and his wife Wendy; Elder Ronald A. Rasband and his wife, Melanie; Elder Kevin W. Pearson and his wife, June; and Elder Kevin R. Duncan and his wife, Nancy.

A public open house ran from Thursday, March 14, through Friday, April 5, 2024, excluding Sundays. Before the public open house, a media day was held on Monday, March 11, 2024. Invited guests toured the temple March 11–13.

The temple rededication was held Sunday, April 21, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. in one late-afternoon session, with no adjustments to regular Sunday worship services for the wards and branches in the temple district. The Manti temple rededication session was broadcast to all units within the Manti temple district, with the units holding their standard two-hour Church meetings at their regular times that day. Elder Russell M. Nelson presided at the rededication.

“We build temples to honor the Lord,” said President Nelson during the rededication. “They are built for worship and not for show. We make sacred covenants of eternal significance inside these sacred walls.”

He continued, “We rejoice in this renewed temple. . . . And we cherish the blessings that come from obedience to the solemn promises made here.”

In the prayer, the prophet said, “We thank Thee for Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and our Redeemer. We are grateful that, because of His Atonement, we have the possibility of eternal life with Thee and with our families.”

“We rededicate this magnificent temple to Thee from its foundation to its towers. We rededicate each room for its intended and sacred purpose,” President Nelson said.[3]

President Nelson was joined at the rededication ceremony by his wife, Wendy; Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife, Melanie; Elder Kevin W. Pearson, Utah Area President, and his wife, June; and Elder Kevin R. Duncan, executive director of the Church’s Temple Department, and his wife, Nancy.

"This sacred temple is particularly special to me because my family history is so closely connected to it," said Elder Rasband. "By divine design, the Manti Utah Temple is built on sacred land and has been consecrated by those who for more than a century have faithfully made and kept sacred covenants."[4]

President Nelson’s mother and father were born in the valley. His four grandparents and all eight of his great-grandparents also knew this valley as their home.

Sister Nelson’s great-great grandfather worked on the circular staircases in the Manti temple. He and his wife, both pioneers from Scotland, raised their 11 children in Manti.[5]