The Portland Oregon Temple

For any of you who didn't notice, I've updated some of my earlier posts with new images.

Portland Oregon Temple

The Portland Oregon Temple is one of my absolute favorite temples.   This temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was completed in 1989. I've been to the grounds twice and inside once (the other time was a Sunday so it was closed).   The Portland Temple is modern, detailed, ornate, sleek, bright, rich, original, symbolic, and spiritual.

For those of you who have not been there, it is just off of a freeway (and visible from the freeway) yet the grounds feel secluded due to the dense forest.  Its use of the six spire sloped roof style of temples.  This brings with it priesthood symbolism with the three towers on the west representing the Aaronic Priesthood and its presidency of a bishop and two counselors.  The eastern three towers represent the Melchizedek Priesthood and its presidency, either a stake presidency composed of three presidents or the First Presidency of the church composed of the prophet and his two counselors, all presidents.  The temple is covered in the same symbols that are found on the Salt Lake Temple - representations of the earth, moon, sun, and stars in stone, on the spires, and on the doors.

The Portland Temple spires were intentionally sculpted so they would compliment the forest that fills the grounds.  The spires are essentially made of a series of pointed arches that taper in as they go up.  On the east spires there are stars all over the spires while on the west side no stars are present.  The spires are made of white fiberglass and work well against the brilliant white marble stone that coats the main body of the temple.

The sloped roof of the temple is a nice green slate which helps the structure match the evergreen forest that covers the grounds.

The doors of the temple are done in a nice dark wood.  Symbolic stars are carved into the doors.  The same white stone and dark wood that are found on the temple exterior also run throughout the temple.  The contrast between the two, and the richness of both, makes this temple strikingly beautiful.

Upon entering the temple, you notice an atrium filled with natural light and lush vegetation.  This atrium is open to the public.  To see other atriums, click here.

Inside or outside the temple you might notice the walls glowing.  This is because there are actually windows made of stone cut so thin that it is translucent.  If you look at this picture closely you'll notice that you can see the sun stones illuminated from within the temple.  When I was there, I noticed the earth stones glowing when I was in the downstairs chapel.

Portland Oregon Temple Baptismal Font

Unfortunately, I have not seen the baptistery.  I do have this picture of it and I have been to the Las Vegas Nevada Temple's baptistery which is really similar.  In the photo you can see the stone windows.  I also love the glass used on the railings.  It has a design etched in it and similar glass is used throughout the temple.  I also notice that the floor has a nice design which appears to either be the Star of David or the Seal of Melchizedek.

One unique feature of this temple are the triangular staircases.  These are either in or next to the spires.  These staircases are different from normal staircases because you go up a flight of stairs, step onto a landing, turn 300 degrees, go up a flight, step onto a landing, turn 300 degrees, and so on.  In this way the staircase is triangular (or perhaps hexagonal if you want to include the landing).  I really liked this as it made the temple feel like a special building and not just any architecture.  It also showed creativity.  In addition, the number 3 is filled with symbolism - particularly about God and the Godhead.

Portland Oregon Temple Endowment Room

The endowment rooms are special.  They have the dark wood mentioned earlier.  The wood has a bright gold pattern on it that really stands out.  The grains in the woodwork are also laid out so they form a diamond pattern, something that must have been carefully planned out and shows skill.  The altar is made of the rich dark wood with gold accents.  The shapes on the altar echo the small domes found on the temple exterior and help to tie the architecture together.  The room also feels different from the world due to its orientation.  The room is approximately square, but the altar, screen, and focus is set on a corner of the room.  The seating is also oriented with the rows of seats on either side of the aisle at 90 degrees to each other.  Finally, the altar and veil are on a raised platform that is sectioned off with a small wood barrier that makes it feel extra special.  By the way, this picture doesn't do the room any justice.

Portland Oregon Temple Celestial Room

Going from the endowment room you enter a cross shaped room between the four endowment rooms.  Following one of the legs of the cross leads you into one of the most spectacular celestial rooms ever envisioned.  As you enter the room you are actually walking beneath a staircase that leads to a mezzanine level of the room.  The room is richly decorated and includes gold colored tapestries covering the stone windows along two walls.  This room is also set at an angle and the two walls covered in tapestries are the east facade on the temple exterior.  The gold tapestries contrast nicely with the brilliant white stone.  The tapestries also get thinner as they go up until at the top all you can see is the brilliant white stone windows and any light glowing through them.  This wonderfully represents the eternal progression found in the celestial kingdom.  A small sealing room can be accessed directly off the celestial room and is actually in the east center tower of the temple.  The celestial room also has three bright brass chandeliers that shine with a gold color.  They are virtually identical to the chandelier in the remodeled Logan Temple celestial room, although they are brighter and golder and they work very well in this room.  Modern sconces are found on the columns along the wall with the tapestries and add a lot of class to the room.

Portland Oregon Temple Celestial Room Staircase

If you decide to venture up the staircase, you will get to see some more features of the celestial room.  The stair railing includes glass panels with an etched pattern in them.  This keeps the room light and airy.  The mezzanine level above provides nice views of the chandeliers.  Seating is also present on this upper level.  The multilevel nature of this celestial room reminds us that in the celestial kingdom there are multiple degrees of glory.  A door leads from the mezzanine level to a number of sealing rooms , perhaps to remind us that to attain the highest degree of glory in the celestial kingdom we must be married eternally through the sealing ordinance.

The temple's special chapel, which is essentially a temple assembly hall, is also found off the celestial room mezzanine.  This keeps with the common pattern of having priesthood assembly halls on the top level of temples.  The ceiling of the room follows the slope of the roof.  It must be nice to attend a special temple meeting in this upper room of the temple, especially in the late afternoon on a clear day when the sun would make the stone windows glow.  In that event you would see the sun stones at the top of each window.

The Portland Oregon Temple is one of the six spire sloped roof temples, but it is different than most with a unique floor plan.  It is also a lot larger than most other six spire sloped roof temples.  The spires are far, far more detailed and the symbolism is more advanced than in most other six spire sloped roof temples.  The floor plan of the Portland Oregon Temple was altered slightly and used for Las Vegas Nevada Temple, another one of my favorites and the only example of the six spire sloped roof temple style that can compare to the Portland Temple.  If you have been in a six spire sloped roof temple, but not Portland or Las Vegas, don't think you know what those two are like.  These temples are different.  Although I like the other six spire sloped roof temples, the Portland Oregon Temple is the gem of the style.  If you get the chance I highly recommend that you visit this temple.  Even if you aren't a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it would still be worthwhile just to see the atrium, the beautiful grounds, and the exterior architecture.

I'm not sure why they only built two temples with this floor plan as it truly is a spectacular style, but I am so glad that they made this temple, and that they used its floor plan for the Las Vegas Nevada Temple.

If you know more about this temple, please comment.  You can also comment if you have questions or just want to point out something that you liked.

Salt Lake Temple Symbolic Progression

One of the best parts of the older temples is the use of symbolic progression as one moves through the temple.  When you move from endowment room to endowment room the architecture of each room can be designed to compliment the endowment ceremony in meaningful ways.  I want to explain how some of this is achieved in the Salt Lake Temple.  Each room in the Salt Lake Temple is more than the previous room.  It symbolizes that as we progress in the gospel we become more.  We become better people, we gain more skills, we become more righteous and holy.  We become closer to God and we become more like Him.  I'm just going to show pictures of each endowment room and explain how it achieves this.

The Creation Room:

Salt Lake Temple Creation Room

Originally the creation room didn't even have murals (they were added many years later).  The lighting is very simple (newer lighting has been installed in the last few years, but it still has the simplest lighting).  There are no staircases and no natural light.  Also notice that there isn't even an altar in the room.  Although a nice, moving room, the creation room is very simple.  It is also the lowest in elevation (in the basement) and has the lowest ceilings of the endowment rooms.  This is the first endowment room in the temple.  It is our starting point - the creation of the earth and mankind.  The murals in the creation room also show progression from a disorganized world, to land and seas being formed, to plants being formed.  It is somewhat interesting that no animals are shown in the murals in the creation room despite the fact that animals were created during the creation.  This is used as a way to show progression in the garden room. 

The Garden Room:

Salt Lake Temple Garden Room

The next endowment room in the Salt Lake Temple is the Garden Room.  This room represents The Garden of Eden.  To get to the room, patrons go up a small rise from the creation room (a few feet).  The room is now larger and taller.  There are more lights are each is more ornate (in the picture they are slightly more involved, newly installed lights are really nice) and there is a large light at the top where the ceiling is recessed (recently upgraded with clear art glass incorporating sego lilies).  An altar is present, and although nice, is simpler than other altars in the temple.  3 staircases are now present although they are short and fairly simple.  Originally this would have had a small greenhouse behind the curtains that can be seen in the photo.  This would have brought natural light into the room.  Also notice that the door has glass on the top half and filling the arch above.  The murals now show the Garden of Eden in idyllic splendor with nice plants and animals all getting along.  Adding animals shows progression from the creation room.

 The Grand Staircase:

Grand Staircase, Salt Lake Temple

Upon leaving the garden room, patrons exit (if I recall correctly going down 1 step symbolizing the fall) onto a landing and then go up the grand staircase.  This is a fitting symbol of progression.  A stained glass window of Adam and Eve being expelled from the Garden of Eden is also seen. 

Grand Staircase, Salt Lake Temple

This staircase brings patrons to the first floor of the temple where they will enter the world room.  As they go up the staircase, the doors to the celestial room are visible before patrons turn to enter the world room.  This gives a glimpse of things to come. As a side note, Jesus Christ appeared to President Lorenzo Snow at the top of this staircase and told him he was to be the next prophet and to reorganize the first presidency.

 

 The Telestial or World Room:

Salt Lake Temple World Room

This room represents the fallen world that we all live in, yet at the same time it has to symbolize a progression.  The fallen state of the world is shown through fighting animals, trees competing for space or dying, a river eroding a hillside, etc.  The progression is shown in many ways.  Tall windows let natural light flood into the room.  In addition, the chandeliers are now clusters of ball lights instead of single lights.  The altar is more ornate.  The doors are taller.  The staircase is now more detailed and quite a bit taller.  The entire room is more spacious.  Also notice that the doors now have significantly more glass than in the garden room.  The color scheme is also slightly lighter than the garden room.  The murals also show progression because although representing a fallen world, they are more interesting than those in the garden room with more going on.  Notice that to leave this room one goes up a slight rise.

The Terrestrial Room:

Salt Lake Temple Terrestrial Room (back)

Salt Lake Temple Terrestrial Room (front)

Patrons go straight from the world room to the terrestrial room.  This room represents the Terrestrial Kingdom of God (2nd highest of 3 heavens) or the better world we can experience while still alive if we follow God's commandments.  The room shows obvious progression with ornate chandeliers, moldings, columns, details window arches, a Tiffany art glass window, a nice altar, this time surrounded with a large platform.  A staircase is also present with intricate carvings on it.  The color scheme of the room is the brightest yet with pastel blue and pink and cream.  A large painting is hung in this room (the temple rotates which painting hangs here so I can't say which one), usually of Jesus Christ as a fitting symbol of the only way to attain this state and more even further in life and towards life with God.  Interestingly, the chandeliers were originally clusters of ball lights like those seen in the world room.  This made it so the lights followed one theme and got nicer.  Also, the windows used to let natural light in, but have since been blocked by the sealing room annex (a hallway is now on the other side of the windows).  The terrestrial room is taller, larger, and higher than previous rooms.  Like the other rooms, the architecture here shows us that as we progress in the gospel and follow God's plan we increase in every way.  You might also notice that above the stained glass window there is a detailed carving with flowers and I think fruit, a small hint of what is to come in the celestial room.

The Celestial Room:

Salt Lake Temple Celestial Room

The endowment ceremony always ends in the celestial room, no matter the temple.  In the Salt Lake Temple, the celestial room's architecture is used in an effective way to reinforce the teachings of the endowment.  The room is the largest, highest, tallest, and most ornate of the endowment rooms.  The lighting now consists of eight chandeliers with clusters of more ornate pointed lights (instead of spheres).  Windows and Tiffany art glass windows along the top are also used to bring in light.  Mirrors and glass are used a lot.  Columns, arches, etc. are all far more ornate than in the terrestrial room.  Also, along the ceiling there is a lot of carved fruit and flowers.  Vines, trophies, flowers, etc. are painted on the walls.  Birds are carved into the walls.  The color scheme is bright and glorious with gold details.  When I first went to the Salt Lake Temple I didn't know how the terrestrial room's architecture could be outdone (and I had seen pictures of the celestial room).  Then I stepped into the celestial room and saw how much nicer a room could get.  It is breathtakingly beautiful with so many intricate details.  It is a wonderful representation of the highest heaven where we can dwell with God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost.  No picture does this room justice.

Although not endowment rooms, the sealing rooms and Holy of Holies in the Salt Lake Temple continue the theme of progression.  Notice that from the celestial room you can see (and walk into if you want) the sealing rooms.  To enter each you go up either 2 steps or up a short staircase.  The staircase has a cupid statue as a symbol of love.  Each sealing room is even more ornate than the celestial room, and two of them contain art glass windows.  The sealing rooms have the most ornate altars and have high ceilings.  This shows that as we are married for eternity in temples, and sealed together as eternal families, we grow, progress, fulfill God's plan, and become qualified to enter the highest part of the highest heaven.  In the photo, the second doorway from the right (next to the open sealing room) leads into the Holy of Holies.  This room is the most ornate of all with a short staircase leading from the doorway to another doorway into the room.  The room has a tall dome with art glass windows along the top and a stained glass window of the First Vision.  You can see a picture of it in my post on temple stained glass windows here. 

I love how the architecture of the Salt Lake Temple has been used to give a progression with patrons moving higher from room to more ornate/tall/spacious/bright/light/detailed/etc. room.  I love how the endowment feels when presented in this way.  Unfortunately, most temples have patrons in a single endowment room for the entire ceremony and then finally entering the celestial room.  This gives these temple their own unique ways to symbolize the progression (generally through the lights getting turned on brighter partway through the ceremony), but I think the temples with 4 endowment rooms before the celestial room are able to show this best.  In my opinion, the Salt Lake Temple does this best with the most areas of progression used.

Please comment and let me know what you think.  If there are details you noticed that I didn't mention, or other insights you had, please comment and let us all know.