Halifax Nova Scotia Temple Wiki

Description

The Halifax Nova Scotia Temple is a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada.

History

Church members in Atlantic Canada were very grateful for a temple to be built closer to home. Before the Halifax Nova Scotia Temple was built, members drove 24 hours to the nearest temple either in Washington, D.C., or Toronto.

Nova Scotia and the other Maritime Provinces grew exponentially in membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during the 1970s. In 1972, there were merely 250 members living in that part of the country, but membership increased 800 percent in 10 years. Church meetings were once held in hotels and school buildings around Nova Scotia, but now chapels are scattered everywhere throughout the province.

Announcement

Plans to construct the Halifax Nova Scotia Temple were announced on May 7, 1998. The groundbreaking ceremony was held on Canadian Thanksgiving on October 12, 1998. Despite heavy rain, 700 people attended the ceremony led by Church leader Jay E. Jensen. Elder Jensen and other Church leaders turned the wet soil on the grounds in preparation for the imminent edifice. When inside a meetinghouse and sheltered from the rain, Elder Jensen advised Church members to keep regular temple attendance as a priority.

Groundbreaking

Open House

On October 12, 1998, Jay E. Jensen led a group of 700 members in a groundbreaking ceremony on Thanksgiving Day.^[1]“`What a happy day’ as 700 attend Halifax temple ceremony”, Deseret News, 17 October 1998. Retrieved on 28 March 2020.

Open House

The Church received increased recognition and respect throughout the Maritime Provinces when the temple was open to members of the public from November 3 to 6, 1999. About 8,000 visitors toured the temple during that time, including VIPs such as the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia, J. James Kinley, and his wife. Since this open house, the temple has been a landmark in the community. President Richard Moses, chairman of the local temple committee, said that he knew someone who wasn’t a Church member who had a picture of the Halifax Nova Scotia Temple hanging in his home.

The Spirit of God was felt during the open house, affecting many of those who were present. One woman who was not a Church member watched the temple being constructed, as the temple site was near her home. When she attended the open house, she said, “It was such a privilege to go through your temple. I didn’t want to speak with anyone; I wanted to just sit and experience the special feeling.”^[2]Shaun Stahle, “Thousands Attend Open Houses in Canada,” Church News, Nov. 13, 1999. On another occasion, a visiting elderly man told a member after finishing the tour, “I’m so emotional I can hardly speak. God bless you and your people. Please tell your leaders that.”^[3]Stahle, “Thousands Attend,”.

The open house also presented Church members the opportunity to teach their nonmember friends, acquaintances and loved ones about the gospel. President Richard Moses, Secound Counselor in the Dartmouth Nova Scotia Stake noted the concern expressed by a reporter of the province’s largest newspaper. “After completing a tour during the open house, and obviously touched by what he was feeling, the reporter commented that there was no way he could write what he felt in the small space he would be given for the article.” On another occasion, “A man dressed in leather and sporting many tattoos came to the open house. He was quiet during the tour and sat by himself in the celestial room. Soon, tears were flowing.”

One member brought his nonmember mother, and as they were sitting in the celestial room, his mother said, “I’ve never felt closer to God.”^[4]Shaun Stahle, “Cover Story: Historic Sabbath in Canada,” Church News, Nov. 20, 1999.

Dedication

Prior to the Dedication, members voluntered time to make the temple as perfect as possible. Richard Moses, second counselor in the Dartmouth Nova Scotia Stake presidency and chairman of the local temple committee, noted, “When several flecks of grouting were found on the bottom of the baptismal font after last-minute tile work done the day before the dedication, members were willing to drain, then re-fill the font.”

President Moses recounted an experience one evening in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, that demonstrates the love of the members for the temple. “We were taking a tour through the temple district to give a report on the progress of the temple and show them a sample of the granite stone. At one point, I asked for volunteers to crochet altar cloths. A blind sister sitting on the front row quickly volunteered. ‘I’d like to do this,’ she said, and rather forthrightly, requested a pattern. A hush fell over the others as they considered the sacrifice she was making. Then they quickly volunteered.”^[5] (Church News, 20 November 1999).

The Halifax Nova Scotia Temple was then dedicated on November 14, 1999. For the first time in the Church’s history, two temples were dedicated on the same day: the Regina Saskatchewan Temple, a temple in a Prairie Province of Canada, and the Halifax Nova Scotia Temple. President Hinckley, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1995 to 2008, planned to dedicate both temples a day apart, but because of mechanical problems with his airplane, one temple dedication was postponed a day.

The Regina Saskatchewan Temple, scheduled to be dedicated by President Hinckley the next day, was instead dedicated by Elder Boyd K. Packer, acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, while President Hinckley presided over the postponed dedicatory sessions for the Halifax temple.

President Hinckley, accompanied by local Church leaders, placed mortar on the final cornerstone and fit it in place to officially complete the temple. He then gave a dedicatory prayer in three sessions, in which he blessed all those who looked on the edifice: “We pray that those who view it from the outside may recognize it as a place of holiness, dedicated unto Thee.”^[6]Halifax Nova Scotia Temple dedicatory prayer, in Church News, Nov. 20, 1999.

Many Church members traveled far distances to attend the dedication — their devotion knows no bounds. Some members traveled from cities in

President Moses observed, “When the dedication was postponed, members showed no irritation, but inquired what they could do, like opening their homes to help offset the expense of those who would need to stay an extra night to attend the dedication.” He added, “It is impossible – there are not words – to adequately express our gratitude for this temple. No longer do we just look at a picture of a temple. Now, when my daughters look out their bedroom window, they see the softly lighted figure of the Angel Moroni standing as a beacon over the area.”

To attend the dedication, members in the Bay Roberts, Grand Falls and Corner Brook branches drove six to eight hours to a sea port where they ferried to Nova Scotia during the night, then drove four more hours to the temple. Members from Maine drove eight hours to attend. Members in New Brunswick and on Prince Edward Island also drove many hours. “These are faithful people who don’t consider attending the temple to be a sacrifice,” President Moses said. Their joy and gratitude for the temple was infectious and pervasive. “Every time I’ve come here, even before I walk up the stairs, I shed tears of joy for this temple,” said a Church member at the dedication.^[7]Stahle, “Cover Story,”

Since the dedication of the temple in Nova Scotia, many more temples have been built in the eastern United States and other parts of Canada. Lloyd Hart, a local Church member, said, “My biggest challenge used to be attending the Toronto or Washington D.C. Temple. But now with a temple across the street from my home, my biggest challenge is not having a big challenge.”^[8]Shaun Stahle, “Distinguished as Doers and Dreamers,” Church News, Jan. 29, 2000. Many members found the temple construction as an answer to their prayers to bring the blessings of the temple in closer proximity to their homes. Church leader Byron R. Christensen remarked, “How many times have we prayed for a temple in the Maritimes? History is being made.”^[9]“‘What a Happy Day’ as 700 Attend Halifax Temple Ceremony,” Church News, Oct. 17, 1998.

Dedication Order

The Halifax Nova Scotia Temple is the 64th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Detail

Exterior

The building is 10,700 square feet, has a Bethel white granite exterior .

Location

Amidst the sea spray of the Atlantic coast, the Halifax Nova Scotia Temple stands as a spiritual beacon to Latter-day Saints in the Maritime Provinces of Canada.

Interior

The temple holds two instruction rooms, two sealing rooms, a celestial room and a baptistry.

Among the beautiful apple orchards, towering lighthouses, thousands of lakes and breathtaking Atlantic coasts of Nova Scotia, the Halifax Nova Scotia Temple stands as a beam of light to Church members and nonmembers alike.