The adjective pivotal literally refers to a point at which things turn or change direction. The Swiss Temple occupies such a turning point in Latter-day Saint history for at least two reasons: (1) ir was the first “overseas” temple, and (2) it was the first to employ new audiovisual media in presenting the sacred endowment instructions.

The First Overseas Temple

The construction of the Swiss Temple was a significant reflection of the worldwide Latter-day Saint growth following the close of World War II and of the impact made by David O. McKay. A fellow Church leader and biographer asserted that President McKay “was the prophet who bridged the gap and ushered The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from a status of powerful provincialism to one of international influence.” This began with his worldwide tour of missions in 1921 and “culminated with his initiatives in constructing temples abroad.” President McKay stressed that “Zion” is not confined to any particular geographical location, but it is “a condition of heart and mind” which can be found in any part of the world. [1] Consequently, General Authorities counseled the Saints to remain in their homelands and build up the Church there.

The President also explained that “one of the distinguishing features of the Church of Jesus Christ . . . is the eternal nature of its ordinances and ceremonies” performed only in temples. [2] In the postwar years, however, temples were located only in the United States and Canada. Although overseas Saints understood that they were part of Zion, they still felt the need to go to America for the Church’s highest blessings.

In Switzerland, for example, missionary Johann Billiter traveled throughout the country soon after the close of World War II, teaching the Church members the importance of genealogy and temple work. A newfound understanding of genealogy work, coupled with the microfilming of genealogical records in 1947, stimulated the Swiss Saints’ interest in receiving temple ordinances. This resulted in many members’ emigration to America contrary to Church leaders’ counsel. [3] To stem the tide it would be necessary to provide temples in Europe.

The notion of temples being built overseas was not new. In 1906 President Joseph F. Smith became the first to visit Europe while serving as President of the Church. At a conference in Bern, Switzerland, he prophesied that the time would come when Europe would “be dotted with temples.” [4] President Heber J. Grant made a similar declaration in 1923 when speaking at the Alberta Temple dedication in Canada: “I have no doubt in my mind that Temples of the Lord will be erected in Europe, none whatever. How soon that will come I do not know. It will not come until the spirit of peace has increased among the people of Europe.” [5]

In 1937 another prophecy was given by Frederick W. Babbel, a missionary serving in Germany just before the outbreak of World War II. He challenged the members in a branch “to lead the Church in preparing their genealogical records.” After the war ended he was with Elder Ezra Taft Benson in Berlin when a sister read to him from her little black notebook a prophetic promise he had made on that occasion: “If we proved our sincerity and faith, given ten years of peace in which to work, the Lord would bless us with a Temple in Europe where we might receive our own sealings and endowments.” [6] World War II ended in Europe in 1945, and the first temple on that continent was dedicated just ten years later.

Since the nineteenth century, the Church erected temples only in the central areas of Latter-day Saint gathering. Even Hawaii was a territory of the United States when the temple was dedicated there, and Laie was a Church gathering place. The General Authorities would not depart from such a long-standing pattern without extensive and prayerful consideration. During the 1930s the Church purchased the site for a temple in southern California, where the number of Latter-day Saints was growing at an increasing rate. Beginning in 1945 temple ordinances were presented at the Arizona Temple in Spanish—the first time in a language other than English. President David O. McKay later reflected on the significance of this move as he spoke to the congregation who had come long distances to attend the Spanish temple sessions in Mesa: “It was because of your faithfulness and diligence that we were impressed to give to other people the opportunity of receiving these blessings in their own language.” [7] On 17 April 1952, following thorough discussions, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at their regular meeting in the Salt Lake Temple made the historie decision to build temples in Europe.

President McKay was authorized to select a site in Switzerland. This country was chosen because of its relative peace, central location, and multilingual population. In the temples dedicatory prayer, President McKay would specifically express gratitude for “the freedom-loving government of Switzerland, which through the centuries has held inviolate man’s free ageney and his inalienable right to worship thee without dictation from any man or group of men whomsoever.” [8]

On 29 May 1952 President McKay, accompanied by his wife, departed for Europe. At a chapel dedication in Scotland, the President sounded a theme that would become the major message during his tour—the Church was truly international, not “one that thrives only in the western deserts of the United States.” Henceforth, “the call of the missionaries would not be to gather to the land of Zion, but rather to come to the spiritual Zion or, in other words, to any place in the world where the pure in heart dwell.” [9]

After a little more than a week in Britain, President McKay and his party “made a hurried, unplanned trip to Switzerland.” On 10 June, at mission headquarters in Basel, he met with leaders representing the British, French, and Swiss-German Missions. Kneeling in prayer with this group he was impressed to locate the temple at Bern, Switzerland’s capital. [10] The next morning before the travelers left for Holland, they inspected several sites and chose one in the southeastern part of the city and assigned Swiss-Austrian Mission president Samuel E. Bringhurst to acquire the property. President Bringhurst, however, discovered that this parcel had just been acquired for the city of Bern as a college site. Conferring with David O. McKay by phone, President Bringhurst was directed to identify other potential sites to be inspected by President McKay when he returned for his regularly scheduled visit to Switzerland in early July. This time a new location was selected—part of an estate owned by a group of thirty heirs, all of whom would need to give their consent in writing before the property could be purchased. The principal heir, a banker in Bern, agreed to use his influence with the others to secure their agreement. At a news conference in Glasgow on 22 July, as President McKay was about to end his eight weeks in Europe, he announced that negotiations were under way for a temple site in Switzerland. Upon arriving home he further stated that the Swiss Temple would be but the first of several temples to be built in Europe, explaining that “the Church could bring temples to these people by building smaller edifices for this purpose and more of them.” [11]

Despite several months of negotiations with the site’s owners, no definite agreement could be reached. One gentleman explained that in Europe, unlike the open spaces in western America, most land has been developed and held by the same families for hundreds of years. “Switzerland is small, and there’s only one crop of land.” [12]

Finally, during a “sleepless night in October,” President Bringhurst recalled, “the thought occurred that perhaps there was a reason for the delay, and that we should pray for a decision, and leave the matter with the Lord.” Subsequently he asked all the missionaries to fast with him. The following day he was notified that the property was no longer for sale. “This answer so quickly [received], while a little disappointing, was a wonderful testimony to all of us.” [13] President Bringhurst reponed these developments to President McKay, who replied: “As I read your letter stating that all effort had failed and a negative decision had been rendered, I was not surprised, but at first disappointed; however, strangely enough, my disappointment soon disappeared and was replaced by an assurance that the Lord will overrule all transactions for the best good of his Church, not only in Switzerland but throughout Europe.” [14]

Meanwhile, the mission president and his real estate agent found another property in the Bern area. “As we walked over it,” President Bringhurst later reflected, “all doubt seemed to leave and we felt certain we were on the site the Lord wished for the first European temple. . . . At this time we learned why the Lord did not allow us to purchase the first site.” The construction of a new highway preempted the key section of the original parcel. [15] The new location in Zollikofen, included twice the area and was purchased for half the cost on 20 November 1952.

A New Type of Temple

While these negotiations were moving forward, the process of planning the new temple had already begun. They faced some unique challenges. The temple would have to present ordinances in nearly a dozen languages and do so in a smaller space. As President McKay later explained, “You cannot carry the Salt Lake Temple . . . which took forty years to build, over to Switzerland. . . . You cannot present the entire plan of going from room to room. Some modification had to be made.” President McKay testified that “when the revelation came” to make temples accessible to the Saints abroad, he was also told how to make the same ceremonies and covenants available “to the Saints on the outskirts of Zion.” He insisted that the “divine requirements of that revelation” had been followed. [16]

Edward O. Anderson, who was still supervising construction of the Los Angeles Temple, received the assignment to plan the new structure. As early as 1937 Anderson had been considering how the temple endowment could be presented in just two rooms instead of five. When President McKay visited architect Anderson in Los Angeles to discuss the Switzerland assignment, Anderson shared with him his sketch of a two-room temple. The President liked his floor plan and asked to see a sketch of the proposed temples exterior. “Well, I don’t like it,” he frankly admitted as he looked at the flat-roofed design. “It doesn’t look like a temple.”

“President McKay, what does a temple look like in your mind?” The architect queried. The President then described for him a design with a single tower at one end, something like the St. George Temple. He then asked Anderson to make some formal drawings following these guidelines. The architect asked for three months to complete them but was given only two weeks. [17] These architectural sketches were completed as agreed and made public just prior to the April general conference. [18]

After reflecting on these events, architect Anderson recalled: “When President McKay told me that the Church was going to build this new type of temple in Switzerland, his description of it fixed a picture so firmly in my mind that I could draw it.” As the process of designing progressed, some changes in the original plan were made without architect Andersons knowledge. “Brother Anderson, this is not the temple that you and I saw together,” President McKay asserted when he met Anderson in Los Angeles on 23 July. The architect agreed, so “the changes were dropped and the prophet s concept carried through to completion.” [19]

“Designing a temple to be used by members speaking several languages presented a complex problem,” the architect later reflected. However, “modern equipment like the motion picture machine and the public address system helped furnish a solution.” Using such means made it possible to present the endowment in more than one language with far fewer than the usual number of temple workers. [20]

On 29 October 1953 President McKay recorded in his diary that he had decided to form a committee “to begin preparations for the sound and pictures of the temple ceremony.’ ‘ This committee would include Elders Joseph Fielding Smith and Richard L. Evans of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Gordon B. Hinckley (secretary of the missionary committee), and architect Edward O. Anderson. [21] President McKay indicated that under the direction of the General Authorities on the committee, Brother Hinckley would have the prime responsibility for completing this assignment in time for the temples dedication two years later. “It was a charge of enormous significance,” Gordon B. Hinckley s biographer declared. “The ramifications of this project were enormous, as they would extend far beyond the temple in Switzerland.” [22] In the fifth floor room where James E. Talmage completed his monumental book Jesus the Christ, Brother Hinckley spent many evenings, including Saturdays and some Sunday mornings, “pouring over the language of the temple ceremony, sketching out ideas, and pleading with the Lord for guidance.” [23] Although other members of the committee were helpful, Brother Hinckley soon found himself working personally with President McKay. President McKay closely followed the temple related developments with “fatherly concern.” [24] He later remarked: “There is no other man in the church who has done so much in assisting to carry this new temple plan to the Saints of the world as has Brother Hinckley.” [25]

Although some of the scenes were shot at various locations in California and Utah, the new films were produced in the large assembly room occupying the upper half of the Salt Lake Temple. Soon this ornate hall was converted into a “makeshift movie set. They hung a huge, floor-to-ceiling scrim as a backdrop for the cameras” and “used heavy-duty pulleys to lift various props through the room’s large windows.” All this was done in such a way as to avoid “attracting the attention of temple workers.” After a year of grueling work, mostly on weekends, the English-language film was completed. In the following months, separate films were produced in French, German, Dutch, Finnish, Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian; each featured a distinct cast made up primarily of immigrants and returned missionaries who spoke those languages.[26]

Care needed to be taken to safeguard the sacred content of these temple films. Brother Hinckley contacted James B. Keysor, a faithful Latter-day Saint in southern California, who arranged with a laboratory to develop the films in such a way that only authorized persons would ever see them. [27]

Architect Anderson recruited the help of several southern California motion picture studios in designing the technical equipment. Personnel at Fox, MGM, and Paramount, for example, helped identiiy the best type of screen to be used in the temple. The latter studio was particularly helpful because of the “personal friendship” between David O. McKay and Cecile B. DeMille, producer of The Ten Commandments. [28] A one-twelfth scale working model of the ordinance room was demonstrated to the First Presidency and temple building committee, who enthusiastically approved the new concept. [29]

Temple Constructed and Dedicated

When the architect s drawings of the new temple were released to the public in April 1953, copies were forwarded to Switzerland. In accordance with Swiss law, the plans needed to be placed on public display in the city hall before a building permit could be issued. A leading Protestant minister objected because the law recognized only the Catholic and Protestant Churches. All others must be registered as “vereins” (associations). To comply with this requirement, a group of Saints convened the following Sunday in Basel and officially organized and voted to authorize President Bringhurst to proceed with the temple project. [30]

The groundbreaking ceremony was set for 5 August 1953—As the date drew near, the Saints were concerned because it had been raining steadily for six weeks. Consequently, the missionaries and the Saints fasted and prayed for good weather. The morning of the groundbreaking was gloriously sunny with the magnificent snowcapped Alps in full view. The temple was located on an elevated, grassy plot with a beautiful forest backdrop. When President McKay and his party arrived, “he was elated with the site and surroundings.” [31] Children then presented him with an arrangement of rare Alpine edelweiss. Fifty chairs had been set up in front of the small platform because only a few individuals were expected to attend this relatively unpublicized event. Surprisingly, however, about 300 people from various parts of Switzerland and Germany attended.

One observer reported, “The feeling of humility, respect and reverence was so strong that many eyes were filled with tears from emotion.” Following President McKay’s prayer dedicating the site, he and other leaders turned the first shovels of soil. With the shovel still in his hand, President McKay was pleased to explain the purposes of the future temple to interested civic officials who were present. That night the rains resumed and continued throughout the following day. “Surely,” President McKay was convinced, “the prayers for good weather during the dedicatory services were answered.” [32]

Actual construction got under way on 1 October, and Saints throughout Europe eagerly contributed to the project. Therese Leuschner, an eighty-year-old widow, had saved one hundred francs over an extended period. Because she had been able to put aside only a little bit at a time, she gave the entire amount in half-franc silver coins. “I will not be alive when this holy building will be dedicated,” she believed (and she was not) but was eager to make her donation anyway. [33]

The Church employed local craftsmen wherever possible. William Zimmer, a counselor in the mission presidency, redrew the plans in German. Michael Jager, the branch president in Basel, became the contractor for the metal work on the doors and the baptismal font. [34] The stainless steel font had the appearance of silver.

The cornerstone was laid 13 November 1954 under the direction of Stephen L Richards, First Counselor in the First Presidency. Most of the service was conducted inside the uncompleted building, the congregation being seated on rough wooden benches. At the conclusion of President Richards s address, the group moved outside. A mason in his working clothes brought out the copper box containing various historical documents and placed it in the space prepared. As the masons began to brick up the opening, President Richards, using a trowel, assisted in placing the last stone which bears an inscription, including the dates of construction. [35]

Architect Edward O. Anderson had an interesting experience when he went to consult with personnel in General Electric’s Swiss office in Zurich. He was anxious “to know the latest developments in electricity in Switzerland, in order to malee the lighting at the temple the most effective and up-to-date available.” When he was shown the picture of a building’s interior to illustrate the system of lighting that the Swiss experts were proposing, he was surprised to recognize it as a picture of the Kirtland Temple’s main meeting hall, which had recently been fitted with modern indirect lighting. [36]

As the appointed time drew near, some feared that the temple would not be ready. Gordon B. Hinckley arrived at the Basel airport on Saturday, 3 September 1955. He personally brought films and related materials to be used in the temple. On Monday, he and mission president William F. Perschon completed the task of getting these items through customs. They had fasted and prayed that they might be able to get these sacred objeets to the temple unmolested, so Brother Hinckley regarded their success as an answer to prayer. Each morning, Brother Hinckley and his wife, Marjorie, rode the tram the few miles from Bern out to Zollikofen, then walked the two blocks from the railway station to the temple to put in a full day. Marjorie helped with such tasks as ironing clothing and vacuuming while her husband worked on installing the equipment. Working with Hans Lütscher, the newly appointed temple engineer, Brother Hinckley, together with Paul Evans and Joe Shaw, two other members= of the committee who produced the temple films, worked long hours every day that week, installing and synchronizing the film projectors and audio equipment, and checking these out with each of the several languages. “We had so much work to be done,” Brother Hinckley later reflected, “and we couldn’t even think of letting down President McKay So we worked our heads off; night and day we worked.” Two days before the temples dedication they worked through the night. [37]

As President McKay left Salt Lake City for the dedication, he rejoiced that the European Saints would no longer need to emigrate in order to receive their temple blessings. He stressed that this milestone was “but the beginning of a temple building program that would bring these blessings to every Latter-day Saint throughout the world.” [38] Later, referring to the savings the European Saints would realize by not having to travel across the Atlantic to a temple, President McKay remarked that the cost of building the temple in Switzerland was “one of the greatest investments the Church has made.” [39]

Although there had been a steady rain before, Sunday morning, 11 September 1955, was beautiful. As President McKay and his party arrived at the temple, his secretary described the lawn and surrounding flower gardens as “glorious.” Members, missionaries, and even townspeople swarmed over the grounds. As President and Sister McKay entered the building, the missionaries formed a pathway for them, standing in reverent silence. Dressed in spotless white, President McKay, with his wavy white hair, looked like a prophet. When the beloved prophet entered the temples celestial room, Sister Hinckley reflected, “It was as though Moses had arrived.” [40] The first dedicatory session convened promptly at 10:00 A.M. Three hundred members of the Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir, then on a concert tour of Europe, were seated in a semicircle around the stand. The choir sang “The Morning Breaks,” a great hymn of the Restoration, to open the session. “From the time we entered the Temple,” choir members recalled, “there was not a word spoken until we left the Temple at the close of the services. During much of the service there was not a dry eye in the congregation.” The Choir found it difficult to sing through “tears and emotion of a very sacred nature. . . . It was as if the Heavenly Hosts were verily a tangible part of the audience. If our mortal eyes could have been opened we might have seen them.” [41] Architect Anderson, who was present at the dedication, concurred: “It was so glorious you could almost hear the angels sing.”

As President McKay greeted the hundreds who were present, “it seemed proper,” he noted, “to express also a welcome to an unseen, but seemingly real audience, among whom were possibly former presidents and apostles of the Church, probably headed by the Prophet Joseph Smith, to whom was revealed the essential ordinances of baptism for those who died without having heard the gospel; also his nephew, President Joseph F. Smith, who prophesied forty-nine years ago in the city of Bern that ‘temples would be built in divers countries of the world.’ . . . With these distinguished leaders we thought, too, there might have been departed loved ones whom ‘we could not see, but whose presence we felt.”‘ [42]

Elder Ezra Taft Benson reflected on this sacred occasion as he spoke at general conference three weeks later: “I think I have never felt in all my life the veil quite so thin” as it was during the temple s dedication. All were convinced that “the action taken by the First Presidency in extending temples into Europe had the benediction and approval of our Heavenly Father. I shall never forget that glorious event! To me it was the most important event that has transpired in Europe in 118 years since the gospel was first taken to those shores.” [43]

In addition to the 1,200 people gathered inside the temple, hundreds of others filled the grounds outside. Many lined adjacent streets, waiting for admission to the afternoon session designated for missionaries and servicemen. Furthermore, the opening session was recorded and later broadcast on radio station KSL in Salt Lake City.

Dedication events continued through Thursday, there being a total of ten sessions conducted in eight different languages: English, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, and French. Faithful Saints had come long distances from all over Europe by train, boat, and bus, sometimes needing to spend one or more nights en route. One missionary noted that the dedication was truly “a spiritual occasion” for those who had come long distances because most “really had to dig deep and sacrifice things they would otherwise do. They really had to focus their attention on going to the temple.” [44]

When missionaries from Britain arrived, Elder Heber Clark was impressed with the “beautiful white building” and its surroundings. To him, the blooming flowers appeared as though they had been growing there for years. Elder Clark confided to his diary, “How pure and simple and heavenly this edifice appears” in contrast to the “heavily decorated” and “richly adorned” cathedrals of the area. Upon entering the temple, “there was a sweet spirit of calmness and heavenly influence. There must have been concourses of heavenly beings surrounding it.” [45]

An unusual experience occurred when missionary Gosta Berling was called on to offer the closing prayer in one of the Scandinavian dedicatory sessions. “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,” the Elder began in Norwegian. “I could feel even before I said it that something happened,” Elder Berling later reflected, “and that was all I said of my own initiative. I was used as an instrument. It was very humbling, because the words that came were by the Spirit. . . . Then I closed in the name of Jesus Christ. That was all I personally contributed, the beginning and the end. As Elder Berling turned away from the pulpit, President McKay grasped his hand; the eyes of both were filled with tears. The Elder subsequently learned that all present, even those who did not speak Norwegian, had understood “every word” of the prayer. [46]

The original plan had been to begin ordinance work the following Monday, but to accommodate those who had traveled long distances the sacred ceremonies commenced Friday morning instead. Consequently, Gordon B. Hinckley, Paul Evans, and others stayed up until 4:00 A.M. to have everything prepared for the first German session early Friday morning. In six languages, session followed session without ceasing for forty hours. Speaking through an interpreter, President McKay greeted the first three companies and commended them for their faith. Through the night, various groups waited in the temple for their turn. The faithful Saints endured this inconvenience because they were eager to receive their temple blessings. [47] By Saturday evening, some 280 Saints had received their own endowment. [48]

Brother Hinckley later reflected: “As I saw those people gathered from ten nations to participate in the temple ordinances, as I saw elderly people from behind the Iron Curtain who had lost their families in the wars that had washed over them, and witnessed the expression of joy and tears of gladness which came from their hearts as a result of the opportunities that had been given them; as I saw young husbands and wives with their families—their bright and beautiful children—and saw those families united in an eternal relationship, I knew with a certainty even beyond what I had known before that [President McKay] was inspired and directed of the Lord to bring these priceless blessings into the lives of those men and women of faith gathered from the nations of Europe.” [49]

In his dedicatory prayer, President McKay had petitioned: “May this building ever be held sacred, that all who enter may feel a peaceful and hallowed influence, and may those who pass the grounds, whether members or non-members of the Church feel a hallowed influence.” [50] Local Church authorities noted that President McKay’s prayer was answered. Residents of the area were already referring to the new structure as “our temple” and regarded the Latter-day Saints as Christians. [51]

A year later mission president William F. Perschon reported that the temple was continuing to create interest among locals. Residents frequently rented rooms to temple visitors. When missionaries came to Zollikofen for a conference, most of them stayed in the homes of the locals; some of the citizens slept on the floor to give their beds to the elders. When the “Bureau of Information,” or visitors’ center, opened, missionaries were stationed there to give tours of the grounds and to teach visitors about the history and doctrines of the Church. Many members of other faiths also attended organ recitals in the adjoining new chapel. President Perschon described these activities at the temple as “the greatest missionary work in the mission.”

Following the temples dedication, President Perschon gratefully reported that emigration had nearly ceased. Furthermore, he noted there was “more faith” and a “finer spirit” among the Saints. He noted that branch and district leaders were typically the first to attend the temple and that their enthusiasm encouraged others to follow their example. [52] Many European Saints spent their vacations at the temple. Members from distant areas usually spent several days there, often being assisted by local Swiss branches with finances and lodging. Those who did not rent rooms from local residents camped out in the beautiful woods behind the temple. [53] Now that the House of the Lord was accessible to them, it became a powerful influence in their lives.

Epilogue

In subsequent years other temples were dedicated in Europe: London (1958), Freiberg (1985), Stockholm (1985), Frankfurt (1987), and Madrid (1999). Echoing President McKay’s 1952 announcement, in 1997 President Gordon B. Hinckley, now President of the Church, explained that smaller temples would be built so there could be more of them closer to the people. [54] Within two years, plans were announced for additional temples in The Hague, Copenhagen, Helsinki, and Kiev.

In 1990 the Swiss Temple closed for extensive renovation. The original cream-colored terra cotta exterior was replaced by gleaming white stone. The interior was remodeled so that four 70-seat ordinance rooms replaced the single 250-seat auditorium; this made it possible to have a new endowment session begin every half hour rather than only once every two hours. When the work was completed, more than 32,900 individuals visited the temple during an open house. The structure was rededicated in sessions beginning 23 October 1992. In his prayer of rededication, President Gordon B. Hinckley referred to the temple’s original dedication some 37 years earlier and added: “Since that historic day . . . the faithful have gathered here from the lands of Europe to receive sacred ordinances administered through the fullness of the everlasting priesthood. This temple has been a haven of peace in its beautiful surroundings. It has been the house of the Lord.” [55]

Notes

[1] Francis M. Gibbons, David O. McKay: Apostle to the World, Prophet of God (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1986), 234.

[2] David O. McKay, “The Purpose of the Temple,” Improvement Era, November 1955, 793.

[3] Dale Z. Kirby, “History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Switzerland” (master’s thesis, Brigham Young University, 1971), 115; see entire chapter, 113—141.

[4] Quoted by Serge F. Ballif, in Conference Report, October 1920, 90.

[5] Alberta Temple dedications proceedings, manuscript, Archives, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; hereafter Church Archives, 242.

[6] Frederick W. Babbel, On Wings ofFaith (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1972), 61–62.

[7] Church News, 29 October 1955, 2.

[8] ImprovementEra, November 1955, 798.

[9] Gibbons, David O. McKay, 294.

[10] Samuel E. Bringhurst, “Acquisition of Property and Construction of Swiss Temple,” Church News, 17 September 1955, 4. Bringhurst’s later statement that this meeting took place on 26 June does not agree with the contemporary report time that, following this experience, President McKay flew from Switzerland to Holland on 11 June (see Church News, 25 June 1952, 2).

[11] Church News, 23 July 1952, 2; 30 July 1952, 1; 11 April 1953, 7.

[12] Marba C. Josephson, ‘A Temple Is Risen to Our Lord,” Improvement Era, September 1955, 625.

[13] Bringhurst, “Acquisition,” 4.

[14] Quoted in losephson, 624–25.

[15] Bringhurst, “Acquisition,” 4, 10.

[16] David O. McKay, Dedication Proceedings, New Zealand Temple, 20–23 April 1958, manuscript, Church Archives.

[17] Edward O. Anderson Oral History, interview by Paul L. Anderson, 12 December 1973; James Moyle Oral History Program, typescript, LDS Church Archives, 7; Edward O. Anderson, “Inspirational Events Associated with the Building of the New Temples,” statement dictated September 1959, typescript, Church Archives.

[18] Church News, 11 April 1953, 7.

[19] Anderson, “The Making of a Temple,” Millennial Star 120, no. 9 (1958): 279.

[20] Ibid.,281.

[21] Gibbons, David O. McKay, 328–329.

[22] Sheri L. Dew, Go Forward with Faith: The Biography ofGordon B. Hinckley (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1996), 176–77.

[23] Ibid., 177.

[24] Gibbons, David O. McKay, 342.

[25] McKay, Dedication Proceedings, New Zealand Temple.

[26] Dew, Go Forward with Faith, 178.

[27] Ibid., 179.

[28] Anderson Oral History, 1—2; Kirby, “Church in Switzerland,” 127.

[29] Anderson Oral History, 2.

[30] Bringhurst, “Acquisition,” 10; Kirby, “Church in Switzerland,” 125–26.

[31] Bringhurst, “Acquisition,” 10.

[32] Clare Middlemiss, Cherished Experiences (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1967), 38–39; Church News, 15 August 1953, 2–6.

[33] Josephson, “A Temple Is Risen,” 685—86; compare similar experience related in Church News, 15 August 1953, 13.

[34] Kirby, “Church in Switzerland,” 130.

[35] Church News, 20 November 1954, 4.

[36] Josephson, “A Temple Is Risen,” 685.

[37] Dew, Go Forward with Faith, 180–81.

[38] Church News, 10 September 1955, 2.

[39] Church News, 24 September 1955, 2.

[40] Dew, Go Forward with Faith, 181–82.

[41] Warren John “Jack” Thomas, Salt Lake Mormon Tabernacle Choir Goes to Europe—1955 (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1957), 153.

[42] David O. McKay, in Conference Report, October 1955, 7; see also Church News, 17 September 1955, 2.

[43] McKay, in Conference Report, October 1955, 107.

[44] Gosta Berling, interviews by Richard L. Jensen, 1976–77, manuscript, Church Archives, 148–49.

[45] Heber Don Carlos Clark Diary, 1953–76, manuscript, Church Archives, 340–41.

[46] Berling interviews, 148–52.

[47] McKay, Conference Report, October 1955, 8.

[48] Church News, 24 September 1955, 2.

[49] Dew, Go Forward with Faith, 182—83.

[50] Church News, 17 September 1955, 4.

[51] Church News, 24 September 1955, 2.

[52] Church News, 8 September 1956, 4.

[53] Kirby, “Church in Switzerland,” 139–40.

[54] Gordon B. Hinckley, in Conference Report, October 1997, 68—69.

[55] Church News, 24 October 1992, 3; 31 October 1992, 5.