Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — After four years, a symbol of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has returned to the spires of the Salt Lake Temple.
On Tuesday morning, Presiding Bishop Gérald Caussé blew an airhorn to signal to the workers that it was time to move the famous statue of the angel Moroni into place. A crane turned, bringing the statue into view and then over the temple where workers were ready to move it back into place.
After a few minutes, the workers waved and cheered, along with hundreds of people on the ground, including missionaries, church leaders, construction workers, architects, engineers and onlookers.
The statue was removed in May 2020 as part of renovations to the temple to help prevent damage should an earthquake occur. The statue lost its trumpet during the March 2020 earthquake while already under construction.
Bishop Caussé called the statue placement a "significant step" in the renovation process of the temple.
"The temple renovation is a labor of love and devotion that contributes to the ongoing restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ and honors the heritage of the pioneers who settled in the Salt Lake Valley and the people who worship and serve here from all over the world," he said.
The Salt Lake Temple shares its purpose with temples around the world as places for members to make promises, or covenants, with God and Jesus Christ and unite families eternally, Bishop Caussé said.
He spoke about two previous presidents of the church — Brigham Young and Wilford Woodruff — who were instrumental in organizing ceremonies inside the temple and in the building and dedicating of the Salt Lake Temple. A descendant of each of those prophets, Elder Larry Y. Wilson of the Seventy and Mark Woodruff, executive secretary to President Russell M. Nelson, spoke before the statue was placed on the temple.
Elder Wilson said his ancestor, Brigham Young, focused members of the church on the focus of the temple. He said temples connect us to God and each other, and are central to members' faith.
"Brigham Young's action in following Joseph Smith's instruction to organize the temple ceremonies is an example of how revelation so often works. It's line upon line and precept upon precept — a continually unfolding process," he said.
Elder Wilson said Brigham Young selected the location for the temple in Salt Lake City first, and then planned everything else around it, "orienting the city and daily life around the house of the Lord."
Woodruff said his ancestor continued the vision of church founder Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. Wilford Woodruff was the first temple president of the church, in the St. George Utah Temple, and dedicated the Salt Lake Temple on April 6, 1893, 131 years ago.
"While President Woodruff knew the work would continue to be perfected over time, he also knew that families are central to God's plan for his children and needed to be connected for eternity through sealing ordinances that take place in the temple," Woodruff said.
Woodruff said after the Salt Lake Temple was dedicated, his ancestor encouraged members to trace their genealogies back as far as possible, and be sealed to their ancestors in the temple.
"We have incredible resources at our fingertips today, to continue gathering and organizing the names of our ancestors to unite our family's future," he said.
Emily Utt, a historic sites curator for the church, said the Salt Lake Temple was originally designed with a weather vane with a horizontal flying angel, like the Nauvoo Temple. The angel symbolized the good news of the gospel spreading throughout the world.
She said as the Salt Lake Temple was nearing completion, church leaders decided to use a statue, something more fashionable at the time for large buildings. It was not designed to be Moroni. However, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles thought it should be called Moroni when he saw the finished statue.
Utt said the statue was sculpted by Cyrus Dallin, an accomplished sculptor who was not a member of the church, who said it brought him nearer to God than anything else.
Utt quoted Dallin saying, "It seemed to me that I came to know what it means to commune with angels from heaven."
She said the angel on the temple reminds members that the heavens are open, and that they can return.
This statue is the same one that was on the temple before 2020, but the statute and its capstone were preserved and refurbished along with other stones on the upper spires of the temple.
Bishop Caussé said an important part of the project was to strengthen the foundation of the temple, and shared a quote from President Nelson saying temples are at the center of strengthening faith and increase members' understanding of Jesus Christ.
The Salt Lake Temple was the first temple to be topped with the angel. The statue is 12 feet 5 inches tall and stands on a stone ball on the center east spire of the temple.
Similar statues have been placed on several temples, and some temples have received statues after their dedications as part of renovation projects, the church's website says. The statue, however, is not a requirement for temples and is not included in some temple designs.
The Salt Lake Temple closed in the final days of 2019 and work began at the start of 2020. The renovation project initially was expected to take four years, with the temple reopening in 2024. Unexpected challenges presented by the excavation of the temple's foundations have led to two announcements of extensions. The temple is now expected to be completed in 2026.
