Phoenix Arizona Temple Fun Facts

-The Phoenix Arizona Temple is the 144th dedicated Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The Phoenix Temple is the fifth temple built in Arizona.

-The groundbreaking was done by Elder Ronald A. Rasband in 2011 and dedicated by President Thomas S. Monson on November 16, 2014.

-The announcement for the Phoenix Arizona Temple came less than a month following the announcements of the Gilbert Temple, and Gila Valley Temple.

-When announcing the Phoenix Arizona Temple President Monson said: "The blessings of the temple are eternal. Those who come to this holy house will feel of God's love for His children and come to a greater understanding of their own divine origin and potential as His sons and daughters." All three of the new temples would serve members belonging to the Mesa Arizona district. The Mesa Temple was attended by more patrons than any other temple outside Utah.

-The building of the Phoenix Temple was met with protest after protest. The temple had to be modified over and over again, hoping to make the neighbors happy. Although it met all the zoning qualifications the fights kept happening. They protested the size, location, height, lighting and the color of the new temple.

-Because of all the problems with the neighbors the temple architects changed the temple plans from two story to a one story with a full basement.

-Temple Symbolism: “Water is central to the desert and the people that live here,” said Elder Kent F. Richards of the Seventy and executive director of the Church’s temple department. “It has always been carefully preserved to allow the desert to flourish.” A spiritual water flows from the temple to the people, he continued. “In the gospel we think of the Savior as living water.”

-“The living water of the gospel is just like the water that flows through the rivers and nourishes a parched land.”

-Three fountains are featured on the temple grounds. Together they form a symbolic river bringing water, and with it life and nourishment, to the parched Arizona desert.

-To compliment the landscape around the temple, the Phoenix Arizona temple highlights a motif of aloe stalks and desert tree leaves and is decorated in earth tones enhanced with terracotta designs.

-At the dedication of the Phoenix Arizona Temple President Uchtdorf said it is a great blessing to witness a supernal event — “the opening of a door to a place that bridges heaven and earth. The Phoenix Arizona Temple stands as a witness to the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and as a beacon to those searching for light and truth.”