Oakland Temple in the Bay Area

Written by Yenny Mo. originally written in Mandarin

Whether you are facing great or small challenges, there is a well-known place in the California Bay Area that can bring hope, happiness, light, and guidance in life—the Oakland Temple.

The Oakland Temple occupies a total area of ​​18 acres, and its operation officially began on November 17, 1964. The Oakland Temple is highly rated on the world’s leading travel website, TripAdvisor, and ranks first in many categories, including historic sites, sacred and religious sites, gardens, churches and cathedrals, points of interest, landmarks, and travelers’ favorites. “Peace” and “beauty” are most often mentioned in the comments made. One reviewer wrote, “after understanding the meaning of the temple…you will feel peace.”

There are three major buildings on the Oakland Temple site: the temple, the church center, and the visitors’ center.

The Temple

The temple stands at the southernmost part of the Temple Hill campus and is one of the most important buildings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Latter-day Saints believe that the temple is the House of the Lord. Throughout history, the Lord commanded His people to build temples for sacred purposes, such as Moses’ Tabernacle, or King Solomon’s Temple. As in ancient times, the Lord continues to command His people to build temples in modern times. There are currently 167 temples operating around the world, with more under construction.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continues to build temples because it gives people all over the world the opportunity to enjoy temple blessings. Latter-day Saints believe that through the atonement of Jesus Christ, performing sacred temple ordinances, and making promises with God in the temple, they can enjoy many eternal blessings. Two of these great blessings are living with God, and being with family eternally.

The temple is a place of refuge for the saints. In this turbulent era and society, many challenges can cause a loss of hope, motivation, or confidence in life. For times like this, the temple is a place to heal hearts and to receive personal revelation, giving an individual the strength to bravely face challenges in the world. The temple is also a place of learning, where patrons are taught to better understand God’s plan of happiness for us.

Once dedicated, entrance inside a temple is reserved for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who have committed to living the gospel of Jesus Christ and is ready to participate in further sacred ordinances. Any Church member who obeys the teachings and commandments of Jesus Christ can obtain a recommendation card from their local Church leader certifying that they are prepared to enter the temple.

Church Center

To the east of the Oakland Temple site is the church center, covering an area of ​​8,500 square feet, with a 1,639-seat auditorium, a standard-size basketball court, the main chapel with 4,000 pipe organ, a baptistry, 170 rooms of different sizes, and two kitchens. This is a place where people gather together for Sunday worship services. Due to the diversity of ethnic cultures in the Bay Area, Sunday Church meetings are held in various languages including English, Chinese, Spanish, Tongan, and Cambodian (see church service time and locations). All members and non-members are welcome to attend. The church center also hosts service projects, musical performances, and events. With all these activities, the ultimate goal is to help devout Church members and non-members alike grow closer to Jesus Christ and to prepare to enjoy the blessings of the temple.

Visitors’ Center

The Visitors’ Center is located on the west of the temple site. The interior is equipped with an 11-foot statue of the resurrected Christ, portraits, movies, models, and other exhibits to help visitors better understand Jesus Christ, the temple, and the beliefs of the Church. Those who serve inside the Visitors’ Center are friendly volunteers who provide free guided tours and answer questions.

Downstairs, inside the Visitors’ Center, there is a Family Search Library. This library is used for researching genealogy and family history and is available to all visitors free of charge. The library has books, electronic materials, computers, and experts to provide free personal instruction. Visitors can do family history research, build pedigree charts, and preserve existing memories for future generations. Family is very important to Latter-day Saints. They believe that God’s love transcends every generation, therefore providing all those who have been born into the world the opportunity to receive the blessings of the temple. Through temple blessings, everyone can live with God and their families forever. Latter-day Saints work tirelessly to do family history work in order to perform saving ordinances in the temple on behalf of their ancestors who did not get the chance to hear about the Gospel and be baptized while they were living. Temple blessings can be available to these ancestors as they choose to accept and follow Jesus Christ. This is how generations can be connected and enjoy eternal blessings together. Free tours of the Family Search Library are available and can be scheduled at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Oakland_California_FamilySearch_Library or Call (510) 531-3905

Temple Gardens

Whichever building you are visiting, you will walk through the beautiful and charming temple grounds. Throughout the year, there are a variety of beautiful flowers. There are also tall palm trees lining both sides. Through the center of the garden are sparkling fountains and connecting water features, symbolizing the living water given by Jesus Christ to the world. Many people like to stroll, walk their dogs, or relax on the quiet paths. Directly in front of the temple is a calm reflection pool. The water in the pool comes from the grand waterfall on the front wall of the temple. On either side of the waterfall are stairs that lead up to the eye-opening roof garden, with a 360-degree view around the temple, and a panoramic view of the Bay Area, including San Francisco, the city of Oakland, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the coast. In the evening, the temple grounds offer a magnificent view of the sunset overlooking the bay.

After the completion of each temple, and before the official operation begins, Church leaders will offer a prayer, dedicating the temple grounds to the Lord.  The dedicatory prayer for the Oakland Temple, offered by President David McKay in 1964. In his prayer, he stated; “The square where we dedicated the temple and the surrounding walls, flower beds, trees, potted plants, flowers and growing in the soil, the bushes; let them bloom, bloom, and become extremely beautiful and fragrant; let your spirit dwell in it, and let this land be a resting and peaceful place for people to meditate and be full of inspiration.”

Life is indeed unpredictable, sometimes full of happiness and joy, sometimes full of anger and sorrow, but God’s love for us remains unchanged forever. When we are happy, He is happy for us. When we encounter challenges, feelings of anger, fear, or pain, He does His best to support and comfort us. He brings us a sense of security and helps us gain confidence. Any who come to the California Oakland Temple, including residents and tourists, will experience this feeling of peace. That is why it is often called the “Beacon to the Bay.” It is the light that shines at night, not only in the Bay Area, but also in the darkness of life, which indeed brings us hope and happiness, and light and guidance in life.

-Original Text-

灣區奧克蘭聖殿

意想不到的新型冠狀病毒肺炎疫情給家家戶戶都帶來了前所未有的影響。有無數的人仍在承受著病情的折磨和失去愛人的痛苦；也有人正在经历失業和经济困难的憂愁和不確定性帶來的焦慮。無論面臨極大的或較小的挑戰，加州灣區有一處大名鼎鼎的地方可以給人帶來希望與快樂，人生道路的光和指引，那就是奧克蘭聖殿。

加州灣區的奧克蘭聖殿佔地總面積為18英畝，於1964年11月17日開始正式運營。奧克蘭聖殿在全球領先的旅遊網站，貓途鷹（TripAdvisor）上得高評，在各方面都排名第一，包括熱門景點、景點與地標、自然與公園和旅行者最愛。在所發表的評論中最常提到的是 “平安” 和 “美麗”。其中有一位旅客寫道 “特別是在了解聖殿的意義後… 會感到平安.”

聖殿

在灣區奧克蘭的聖殿廣場上有三大建築，包括聖殿、支聯會中心和訪客中心。 聖殿聳立在廣場中間的最南方，是耶穌基督後期聖徒教會最重要的建築之一。後期聖徒相信聖殿是主的屋宇，歷史以來，主為了神聖的目的命令祂的人民建造聖殿，包括摩西建的會幕和所羅門建的聖殿。與古時候一樣，主在現代繼續命令人們建造聖殿。如今在世界各地已有167座正在運營中的聖殿，還有一些正在修建中。

耶穌基督後期聖徒教會連續不斷地建立聖殿的原因是為了讓世界各地的人都有機會享有來自聖殿的祝福。後期聖徒相信透過耶穌基督的贖罪，若在聖殿中進行各種神聖儀式，與神立約，並且堅持遵守承諾，可帶來許多永恆的祝福，包括永遠與神同住，與家人永遠在一起。

其次，聖殿也是聖徒的一個安全的避風港。在這個動盪不安的時代及社會中，許許多多的挑戰有時會使人筋疲力盡，甚至失去對生活的希望、動力或信心，此時聖殿就是醫治聖徒心靈、靈魂和接受個人啟示的地方，讓他們再次充滿力量和靈感，勇敢地面對世上所有的事情。聖殿更是一個學習的地方，聖徒可以更了解神給世人的幸福計畫和益於他們靈魂福祉的事。

然而，只有持有有效的聖殿推薦書的教會成員才可以進入聖殿。任何遵從耶穌基督教導和誡命的教會成員都可以獲得此推薦書以證明他們確實配稱進入主的屋宇。

支聯會中心

在奧克蘭聖殿廣場的東邊是支聯會中心，佔地面積為8500平方英尺，內部設有一個1639個座位的大禮堂、標準尺寸的籃球場、一個具有四千根音管風琴的聚會教堂、170間大小不同的教室以及兩個廚房。這是一個讓人們聚集在一起敬拜、學習、互相關愛、互相幫助和舉行活動的地方。由於灣區種族文化的多樣性，每週日教會聚會的語言包括有英文、中文、西班牙文、湯加語和柬埔寨語(查看聚會時間和地點）。這裡歡迎所有的成員以及非成員。在所有的事情上，其最終的目的是幫助虔誠的教會成員們配稱地進入聖殿，以及幫助謙卑的非成員更靠近聖殿和耶穌基督以獲得永恆的祝福和無盡的喜悅。

訪客中心

訪客中心位於聖殿廣場的西邊，內部設有11英尺高的耶穌基督的雕像、畫像、影片、模型和其他電子設備以幫助來到這裡的訪客更了解耶穌基督、聖殿以及教會信仰和鞏固對耶穌基督的見證及信心。在裡面服務的是熱心友善的志願者，他們提供免費的導覽，解答問題以及任何其它所需的幫助。在疫情期間，導覽一直是以線上互動的形式通過Zoom來進行。由於疫情的好轉，從5月1日起，訪客中心開始對外開放，暫時的限制人數為10個，點擊預約導覽。

訪客中心樓下還有一個家庭搜索圖書館免費提供給所有訪客，內部的書籍、電子版資料、技術設備、傳教士提供的線上家庭歷史導覽以及家庭歷史專家提供的個性化服務可以幫助人們搜索家庭歷史、建立譜系並為後代保留現有的回憶。家庭對於後期聖徒來說十分重要，他們相信神的愛超越每一代，所以祂為每一個來過世上的人提供了一條道路來得到聖殿的祝福，即永遠與神和家人在一起，獲得完全的幸福，變得像耶穌基督一樣。後期聖徒努力不懈地研究家譜，為的是找出他們的祖先，好讓他們在聖殿里代替已世的祖先完成聖殿儀式，若這些祖先願意接受並跟隨耶穌基督，聖殿的祝福也屬於他們。世世代代可以此方法連接在一起，成為一個永恆的大家庭，共同享樂。

聖殿廣場

無論進入哪一個建築，都會經過美麗迷人的聖殿廣場。這裡一年四季都種植著各種各樣、亭亭玉立的鮮花，經常散發出芬芳撲鼻的香味，兩旁矗立著高高的棕櫚樹。最使聖殿廣場變得壯觀活躍的是象徵著耶穌基督所賜給世人的活水，遊客可以在欣賞花草樹木的同時享受著映入眼簾的噴泉和宛如玉帶的涓涓細流。許多人喜歡在兩側寧靜的小徑上漫步、遛狗、散心。往聖殿方向前進，走上台階通過另一扇大門後就來到了水平如鏡的倒影池，池中的水來自聖殿城牆上長流不息的瀑布。除此之外，通過樓梯走上去還會看到眉開眼界的空中花園，可以看到聖殿周邊360度的景象以及灣區全景，包括舊金山，奧克蘭城市，著名的大橋和海岸。日落時分還可以欣賞美上加美的夕陽西下，令人讚嘆不已。這個地方不僅美麗壯觀，還瀰漫著和平與希望的氣息。這是有原因的，在每一座聖殿完工後，正式開始運營之前，都會由教會領袖做一個奉獻祈禱把此地奉獻給主。如今奧克蘭聖殿應驗了當年大衛麥凱會長所做的奉獻禱文中提及到的祝福 “ 我們奉獻聖殿所聳立在的廣場以及周圍的城牆、花壇、樹木、盆栽、鮮花和生長在土壤里的灌木叢；讓他們盛開、綻放並變得極其美麗、芬芳；讓您的靈居住在其中，讓這塊土地成為一個可休息的、平靜的地方，得以讓人冥想和充滿靈感。

人生確實是變化莫測，充滿著喜怒哀樂， 但神對我們的愛永遠不變。在我們開心的時候，祂與我們同樂。在我們遇到挑戰、生氣、害怕或痛苦時，祂想盡辦法來支持和安慰我們，緩解我們的怒氣與憂傷，給我們帶來安全感讓我們充滿自信，變得勇敢。許多來加州灣區奧克蘭聖殿的人，包括居民和遊客，都在此體驗到了這些，所以才稱之為 “灣區的燈塔”，它不僅是灣區黑夜里的燈塔，還是人生黑暗中的照明，確實給人們帶來希望、快樂、光芒和指引。

https://www.tripadvisor.cn/Attractions-g32810-Activities-Oakland_California.html#

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/locations/oakland-temple-hill/event-facilities?lang=eng