Five Things Temple Workers Wish You Knew.

In my life, only twice have I had the opportunity to completely dedicate myself to the work of the Lord. The first time was as a full-time missionary with a tag that read Elder; the second time was as a temple worker that read Brother. While serving at the Mount Timpanogos Temple, my love of the temple and understanding deepened dramatically. With that context, I want to share with you five things temple workers wish that patrons understood.

1. We Love Seeing People Make Mistakes

I know this sounds bad, but I promise there’s a good reason behind it. As a Temple Worker, you know the primary reason you are there is to help each temple patron do vital work for deceased relatives while strengthening their relationship with Christ. This means we are entirely reliant on the patrons coming to the temple for the work getting done. Fortunately, members of the Church are great about going to the Lord’s house to serve, and tens of thousands of ordinances are done every day. 

Unfortunately, it is usually the same group of Saints who come to the temple regularly. These “regulars” typically say every word perfectly, which makes us so happy as we can see how much they love coming to the temple. On the other hand, as a temple worker placed there to help people it is easy to feel almost useless when nobody needs help. Sometimes as a worker, you’ll have 5 or 6 patrons in a row come through without a single mistake, and you’ll start to lose focus. Then, a nervous patron walks up and immediately looks at you with eyes silently pleading for help. At that moment, you get a quick glimpse of what the Savior might see when we turn to Him to ask for help. These are the moments that make working at the temple truly magical.

2. We Love Seeing New Faces

We especially love it when people make mistakes because it’s usually a sign that this person isn’t at the temple as often as some other patrons. Workers love the patrons who come every week, but there’s something special about helping someone who isn’t always there. Few things are more welcome in the temple than new faces and faces we haven’t seen in a while. The idea of helping a new sheep into the fold or welcoming a lost sheep back is a temple worker’s dream. Whether it’s the freshly-made deacon in the baptistery, the convert who joined the church a year ago, or the less active member who hasn’t been to the temple in 20 years, seeing someone who isn’t usually at the temple provides workers with an opportunity to help them want to come back. So when we hear a mistake, we see a chance to help someone have the kind of temple experience that will hopefully keep them coming back week after week.

3. We Don’t Want to See Robots

Most of the patrons we serve in the temple have been there hundreds of times. This is wonderful, but it also brings a couple of issues. Those individuals who come to the temple every day almost always have the ordinances memorized perfectly. This is exactly what the Lord wants. However, far too often this leads the ordinances to become more robotic as the person thoughtlessly recites the words. Suddenly, the temple worker feels less like they’re helping people and more like they’re on the phone with an automated messaging system. This is dangerously close to the “vain repetitions” we are counseled to avoid. Both the patron and the worker have to constantly remember that they are performing a sacred, saving ordinance for a real person who could even be in that room with them. How can we be robotic or flippant while doing something this momentous and (eternal) life-changing?

4. We Are Still Human, So Be Patient With Us.

Temple workers are still human, we are striving to serve the best we can, but we make mistakes.  Sometimes they are minor mistakes, like mispronouncing a name, other times we make more significant mistakes that require us to restart the ordinance. Please be patient with us as we learn the many parts and memorize the ordinances required to serve in the temple.  If we mistakenly do something that you find offensive, please realize our intent is pure, and we are just trying to serve the Lord and build His kingdom. In the words of Elder Holland: “Except in the case of His only perfect Begotten Son, imperfect people are all God has ever had to work with. That must be terribly frustrating to Him, but He deals with it. So should we.” (April 2013, Lord, I believe.)

5. You Can Ask Questions.

Whereas temple workers are not there to expound doctrine, we are here to help you with your temple experience. So feel free to ask us questions, and we will do the best we can to help you. One of my favorite things to do is to ask temple workers the themes in the temple. For example, in the Gilbert temple, the Agave plant is prominent in the décor; most temples have common themes woven throughout the temple décor that the workers might help you with identifying.  And if we need to find the Temple President, Matron or one of their counselors to help, we can. When my sister received her endowment, she had some significant concerns, the Temple President of the Timpanogos temple talked with her, and he helped explain the doctrines to her and eased her mind. Our goal is to ensure that your temple experience is a sacred experience.

This article was written jointly by Dylan Dolisi and Jeremy Goff.

Dylan Dolisi is an educator from the Paola, Kansas who has spent the last 2½ years working in the Kansas City Missouri Temple. He loves the Lord, his new wife Athena, his family, and playing the ukulele

Also, special thanks to Alan Fullmer for allowing me to use his picture of the Celestial Nauvoo temple.