The St. Paul Minnesota Temple is the 69th operating

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church). The intent to build the temple was announced on July 29, 1998, in a letter from the

First Presidency Among many churches in the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency (also known as the Quorum of the Presidency of the Church) is the highest presiding or governing body. Present-day denominations of the movement led by a First Presidency ...

to local church leaders. It is located in

Oakdale, Minnesota Oakdale is a city in Washington County, Minnesota, United States. It is a suburb of Saint Paul and is on the eastern side of the Twin Cities Metropolitan area. The population was 28,303 at the 2020 census. Oakdale is the 36th largest city in M ...

, United States, a suburb of

St. Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...

, and is the church's first temple in the state. The temple site also includes a

stake center A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in certain denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. The name "stake" derives from the Book of Isaiah: "enlarge the place of thy tent; stretch forth the curtains of thine ha ...

, a meetinghouse for church members. The temple is on a wooded site. Designed by Ed Kodet, Jr., of Kodet Architect Group Ltd., the building has a single spire and is covered with a light gray granite veneer. A groundbreaking ceremony, to signify the beginning of construction, was held on September 26, 1998, conducted by Hugh W. Pinnock, president of the North America Central

Area Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-di ...

History

The temple was announced in August 1998, with a groundbreaking ceremony held on September 26, 1998. Construction continued over the following year, with the

angel Moroni The angel Moroni () is an angel whom Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, reported as having visited him on numerous occasions, beginning on September 21, 1823. According to Smith, the angel Moroni was the guardian of the gold ...

statue placed on the spire on September 25, 1999. After construction was completed, a public open house was held from December 18 to 31, 1999, with over 27,000 people visiting the temple. LDS Church

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the St. Paul Minnesota Temple on January 9, 2000, the first dedicated that year. The temple received minor damage on September 10, 2008 in a fire that inspectors believe was arson. In 2020, like all the church's others, the St. Paul Minnesota Temple was closed for a time in response to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Design and architecture

The building uses a classic modern architectural style. Designed by Ed Kodet, Jr. of Kodet Architect Group Ltd., its architecture reflects both the cultural heritage of Minnesota and its spiritual significance to the church. The temple is on a heavily wooded 7.5-acre plot. The structure was constructed with light gray granite veneer. The temple includes two instruction rooms, two

sealing room In temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), an ordinance room is a room where the ceremony known as the '' Endowment'' is administered, as well as other ordinances such as Sealings. Some temples perform a progr ...

s, and a

baptistry In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptist ...

, each designed for ceremonial use. The design uses elements representing Latter-day Saint symbolism, to provide deeper spiritual meaning to its appearance and function. Symbolism is important to church members and includes the statue of the angel Moroni on its steeple to represent “ the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Temple presidents

The church's temples are directed by a

temple president Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of a church temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity. ...

and matron, each serving for a term of three years. The president and matron oversee the administration of temple operations and provide guidance and training for both temple patrons and staff. Serving from 2000 to 2004, the first president was Kayland E. Call, with Virjean M. Call as matron. As of 2025, Robert L. Foote is the president, with Kally R. Foote serving as matron.

Admittance

On November 27, 1999, the church announced the public open house that was held from December 18 to 31, 1999 (excluding Sundays). The temple was dedicated by Gordon B. Hinckley on January 9, 2000, in four sessions. Like all the church's temples, it is not used for

Sunday worship In Christianity, the Lord's Day refers to Sunday, the traditional day of communal worship. It is the first day of the week in the Hebrew calendar and traditional Christian calendars. It is observed by most Christians as the weekly memorial of the ...

services. To members of the church, temples are regarded as sacred houses of the Lord. Once dedicated, only church members with a current

temple recommend In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord. Temples are considered by church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usuall ...

can enter for worship.

Additional reading

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References

External links

St. Paul Minnesota Temple Official siteSt. Paul Minnesota Temple
at ChurchofJesusChristTemples.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Paul Minnesota Temple 20th-century Latter Day Saint temples in the United States 2000 establishments in Minnesota Buildings and structures in Washington County, Minnesota Temples (LDS Church) completed in 2000 Temples (LDS Church) in Minnesota