Rick B held a livestream video discussing the purchase of the Kirtland Temple by the LDS Church this week. Of course, there is a lot of interest in the temple. We’ll talk about that and the other properties included in the transaction, including the Nauvoo properties, and several important artifacts.

First of all, I know many LDS are gloating over the sale, while my Community of Christ friends (without exception) are devasted. Many are angry. Clearly the CoC has been in serious financial difficulty. According to a church statement, 70% of tithe payers are over the age of 65, while just 3% are under the age of 40. If trends continue, this means a 70-97% reduction in income over the next generation. It make some sense that leadership could no longer sustain these properties given future income projections.

Brigham Young Tried to Sell Nauvoo Temple

It should be noted that Brigham Young attempted to sell the Nauvoo Temple to the Catholic Church. Brigham also tried to sell the Kirtland Temple (although there were serious title problems.) The Catholic Church felt the asking price was too high, so Brigham and the saints just walked away from it for nothing. BYU professor Dr Richard E Bennett (no relation) discusses this issue with me back in 2017. Were you aware that the LDS Church tried to sell these temples?

Historic sites and their interpretation. (9:43)

Many have expressed concern that LDS ownership of these properties will lead to proselytizing. However, former Church historian on Facebook posted the following:

Several people have reached out to me regarding the announcement yesterday about the transfer of Kirtland Temple and several historic Nauvoo properties from the Community of Christ to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

While this news is received joyfully for many, I imagine it is a sad and difficult decision for our friends in the Community of Christ to part with these sites. The have lovingly and professionally preserved these sites for many, many years. They welcomed hundred of thousands of people to these places and shared accurate and inspiring tours of these sacred places.

Several have expressed gratefulness that these sites can “now be cared for properly.” To that I ask, have you visited these sites? The Community of Christ and their staff cared for these sites just as my colleagues and I would have. They preserved these sacred places, maintained them, and kept them beautiful and welcoming for all who came. I have never seen these sites in poor or unkempt condition. They have been immaculately maintained over the years and are beautiful places to enjoy the Spirit of the Lord.

Some have expressed gratitude that these sites will now be open to visitors free of charge. I too am grateful for that, but also was proud to pay the fees for tours of these sacred places. It was money well spent! The funds collected were used to preserve these historic sites. I am grateful and proud to have made a several small contribution to the preservation of these historic sites over the years.

I plead with my Latter-day Saint friends to be grateful for the professional and loving care and respect shown to these sacred buildings by the Community of Christ. Please be respectful and understanding of how our friends in the Community of Christ are feeling. Please express your thanks to them for all they did to preserve these sacred places that are meaningful to those of both faiths and many others whose religious roots trace back to the restoration.

The Kirtland Temple’s history and renovations. (16:16)

While we are all used to the white facade of the Kirtland Temple seen today, it wasn’t always white. Dr Mark Staker, while debunking the story that Mormons used their “best china” to create the outer facade of the temple so it would sparkle. (In reality, they just used broken china that normally broke during everyday use.) The original temple was supposed to resemble a bluish-gray to look like cut granite, which the saints could not afford but wanted the building to look impressive. The temple also had a red roof, and I have some artist representations of the changing outer exterior of the temple in the video.

I was also lucky enough to win a nighttime tour when Sunstone was held in Kirtland about 5 years ago. I got to see portions of the temple that most of the public doesn’t see, such as the Bell Tower. It was also fun to tour the temple at night. When a light shines through the arched glass windows, they form what looks a little like “Angel Wings” on the ceiling. I also got to crawl around in the crawl spaces between floors to see the wood and stone work of the walls of the temple, along with people who had carved their initials in the wood. Does “MH” stand for Martin Harris? Who knows? Lots of people have carved initials into the woodwork. Some may be more modern, but some could date to the 1830s.

Historical buildings in Nauvoo. (41:12)

While the Kirtland Temple was the big headline, I was surprised to learn that the Community of Christ basically sold all of their Nauvoo properties as well. These include the Mansion House, Red Brick Store, Nauvoo House, Joseph & Emma SMith’s home, the Lewis Bidamon home, and several other undeveloped lots. Until I interviewed Community of Christ archaeologist Paul Debarthe, I didn’t know there were 4-5 different locations for the Times & Seasons newspaper. On the LDS side of Nauvoo, they have a reconstruction of one of the later Times & Seasons buildings. On the Community of Christ side of Nauvoo, Paul was digging into the foundation, where he discovered type used to print the newspaper. He did hope one day that the building could be reconstructed. While devasted to learn his archaeological dig was part of the sale, with LDS Church resources, he may get his wish to come true some day.

The Temple Lot

I had a friend ask me last week if I thought the Community of Christ would ever sell the Kirtland Temple. I told him that due to the financial difficulties, I could see it happen in the next 20-30 years. He teased me when it happened within the week of his question. His next question was, when will the Church of Christ (Temple Lot) sell the temple lot to the LDS Church?

For those who don’t remember, Joseph Smith originally planned 24 temples to be constructed in Independence & Kirtland. (I discussed this in my interviews with David Hall & John Hamer.) After the Extermination Order in 1838, Mormon were expelled from the state of Missouri. Granville Hedrick, an early Mormon leader, had a revelation to return to Missouri to buy the temple lot. John Hedrick is the first Saint of any sect that came back to Jackson County in 1865 and scouted out the place for the movement of the whole Crow Creek branch out of Illinois in 1867. He then started buying up the temple lot property that same year in 1870.

Hedrick’s group is now known as the Church of Christ (Temple Lot.) They reject the Doctrine & Covenants in favor of the Book of Commandments and believe Joseph was a fallen prophet over his practice of polygamy. They still own the land where the first of the 24 temples was to be built. The Community of Christ temple is on land for the other 24 temples, and the LDS Visitors Center is also part of the original temple lot. But the Hedrickites own the plot of land where Joseph placed the first cornerstones for where the first temple should be built.

Back in the 1930s, a convert from the RLDS Church joined the Church of Christ (Temple Lot) named Otto Fetting had a revelation that the Temple Lot Church should build Joseph Smith’s temple. Since he was a building contractor, this was right up his alley. A large foundation was dug, the original stones placed by Joseph Smith were found (and are now in relics in their museum.) However, the Great Depression struck and construction was halted for decades.

When President Harry Truman, a native of Independence, retired from office, the city council did not want him to see the giant hole that had become an eyesore on the Temple Lot. Since the Church of Christ did not have enough money to fill the hole, the city council offered to pay to fill it in and it is now a nice grassy field that you see today.

However, the LDS Church is not the only church who wants to regain this property. In 1890, the RLDS Church sued the Church of Christ to regain ownership claiming to be the real successors of Joseph Smith’s Church, and originally won the case. However, on appeal, the LDS Church assisted the Church of Christ and reversed the case so that it remained in the hands of the Hedrickites. (This is known as the Temple Lot case.) Additionally, after a disgruntled member burned down the Temple Lot Church in 1990, the LDS Church paid for the current building to keep the Church of Christ on the land.

Land disputes are not over. A latter-day prophet in Brazil (Mauricio Berger) claims to have translated the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon, which he claims was given to him by the angel Moroni. (I discussed this with John Pratt, a member of the First Presidency of the Reborn LDS Church.)

The Brazil group has a lot of adherants from Church of Christ (Temple Lot). They seem to be trying to gain enough voting power in the Church of Christ so that they could initiate a sort of “hostile takeover” of the property. Of course the Temple Lot Church doesn’t like this and is actively rooting out members of the Reborn LDS Church to avoid the takeover, which theoretically could be done via common consent.

So, in answer to the question of when the LDS Church will purchase the Temple Lot, (1) I would say a hostile takeover is more likely to happen first, and (2) I am not aware that the Church of Christ is in the same financial stress that the Community of Christ is currently under. So I don’t see the LDS Church buying the Temple Lot anytime soon. Then again I’m a terrible predictor of future events.

What are your thoughts on the sale of the Kirtland Temple & other properties? Have you been to an LDS historical site since 2019 where they are supposed to be more historical presentations than proselyting?