Seoul Korea Temple
The Seoul Korea Temple is the 37th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The first member of the Church of Jesus Christ in Korea was baptized in 1951. At that time Korea was in the midst of a civil war with the Communist armies from North Korea. Latter-day Saint servicemen from America taught the gospel through the way they lived. As one convert noted, "Many of these men had come fresh from the [battle] line ... yet even that did not deter [them] from meeting to honor the Sabbath and to share their testimonies." [1]
The first Latter-day Saint missionaries arrived in South Korea in 1954. Some years later President Boyd K. Packer, an Apostle was assigned to travel to South Korea and find a place in which to build a Latter-day Saint Temple. After considering several locations, President Packer eventually chose the property which the Church had purchased almost two decades earlier. In 1981 the announcement was made for a temple in Seoul, South Korea. Even before the temple was announced, President Harold B. Lee in 1954 declared the following: "I feel the Spirit of the Almighty brooding amongst the Korean people and the unfolding of a great work is yet to come." [2]
President Gordon B. Hinckley, prophet of the Church, dedicated the Seoul Korea Temple on December 14, 1985. The temple walls feature Korean granite with six white pillars drawing the viewer's eyes toward heaven. A traditional, tiled "hundred-year roof" gives the temple a uniquely Korean appearance. Inside, the temple is decorated with delicate brush paintings, intricate wooden molding, silk wall coverings, gold leaf, dome chandeliers, and white lacquer furniture inlaid with mother of pearl. [2]
After the temple was dedicated, a subway system was built in conjunction with the Summer Olympics at Seoul in 1988. The system included a line that ended right at the base of the hill upon which the temple was built, making the temple even more accessible for members of the Church of Jesus Christ.
The importances of families and one's ancestors have been a long tradition in Korea. Some families have kept records for hundreds, even thousands, of years. With the dedication of the Seoul Korea Temple, the submission of names for temple work to be done was phenomenal. One such family had submitted names from fifty generations.
The Seoul Korea Temple has a total of 28,057 square feet, four ordinance rooms, and three sealing rooms.
Notes
- "For Those Who Dare to Dream", by Newby Younger and LeChiminant, 35
- "The First 100 Temples", Chad Hawkins, 2001, 102-103
