Temples as Beacons of Hope

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about temples, particularly temples in areas where the temple is a beacon of hope. This includes areas where the gospel isn’t preached freely or areas where war is taking place. I’m sure there are other great temple examples, but these are the three that came to mind for me.

Hope in East Germany

When the Freiberg Germany Temple was announced, Freiberg was in East Germany and was part of the Soviet Union. Before this, Saints living in East Germany had little to no access to temple blessings. In many ways, they were cut off from the blessing of the main body of the church. The Freiberg Germany Temple was dedicated in 1985. Roughly five years later, The Berlin Wall came down, and East Germany was reunited with West Germany.

This temple is especially meaningful to me. My family was living in West Germany both when the temple was built and when the Berlin Wall came down. At the time, I didn’t realize the significance of the wall coming down. Yet, I remember the excitement of the people. Because I can imagine how these people felt having a temple in their country, it is included as one of my beacons of hope.

A Temple in Mainland China

While the temple is not built yet, a temple was announced in Shanghai in April 2020. Anyone familiar with China’s stance on preaching religion will recognize this as a miracle.

I taught English online to children in China for about four years. One of the things I quickly learned was that their government is very strict about what can and cannot be said when it comes to religion. There were several units on holidays, including Christmas. When teaching about Christmas, we were not allowed to mention Christ’s name. If the student tried to bring Christ into the discussion, we were to move the discussion back to topics such as presents and time with their families.

Chinese members of the church living in China have had to travel to Hong Kong to attend the temple previously. This is not always practical or possible for some of them. This temple will only accommodate Chinese members who have a valid temple recommend. This means that tourists from other countries as well as non-Chinese citizens living in China will not be able to attend this temple.

On the surface, that sounds sad. Can’t we all worship together? For me, though, the temple in Shanghai is one of my beacons of hope. If there are enough members of the church of Chinese descent in China to build a temple, there is real hope for growth in the country and real hope for more religious freedoms for the people.

*Yes, I am aware that the Hong Kong Temple could also be listed as one of the beacons of hope.

The Russia Temple

In April 2018, President Russell M. Nelson announced a temple in Russia. That in itself was pretty amazing. About four years later, Russia invaded Ukraine. In no way is this meant to be a political post, but there is definitely a loss of hope for the future for many people in this area. The promise of a temple in their country, though, is why this future temple is included as one of my beacons of hope.

For a temple to be built in Russia, I feel like things in the area will have to be at least a little more peaceful. In times of darkness, when it feels like things will not get better, the promise of a temple in Russia can give hope to the people of the area.

How All Temples Can Be Beacons of Hope

Fortunately, these three temples are not the only ones that can be beacons of hope. For me, visiting any temple is a wonderfully spiritual experience. It is the opportunity to make covenants with Heavenly Father both for myself and for those who are unable to make those covenants themselves. Temples are an opportunity to disconnect from the world. They are an opportunity to focus on the things that are eternally important. When I feel discouraged, a visit to the temple always makes me feel better, even if that feeling only lasts for a short time.

Each temple really is a blessing and a miracle. Whether the temple serves a small group of people or thousands of people, each temple can be its own beacon of hope.