Announced: April 1, 1981.
Location: In Quezon City; 13 Temple Drive, Greenmeadows Subdivision, 1110 Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
Site: about 3.5 acres.
Exterior finish: Ceramic tile.
Temple design: Six-spire design.
Architect: Church staff, with assistance from Felipe M. Mendoza & Partners, Manila.
Construction adviser: Wayne Tuttle.
Contractor: A. C. K. Construction.
Rooms: Baptistry, celestial room, four ordinance rooms, three sealing rooms.
Total floor area: 26,683 square feet.
Dimensions: 200 feet by 75 feet, six spires; statue of Angel Moroni is 115 feet high.
District: Stakes and districts in Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Cambodia, Burma, and Micronesia: Majuro, Kosrae, Chuuk Phonpei, Yap, Guam, Kwajalein.
Groundbreaking, site dedication: Aug. 25, 1982, by President Gordon B. Hinckley.
Dedication: Sept. 25-27, 1984, by President Gordon B. Hinckley; 9 sessions.
Dedicatory Prayer
Done by President Gordon B. Hinckley
Our Eternal Father in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thou art the Mighty Elohim, the Father of all men, our God whom we worship and to whom we look with love and gratitude. We come unto Thee in prayer in the name of Thine Only Begotten Son, the Redeemer of Mankind, the Savior of the world.
We are thankful for this day when we dedicate this sacred building. Its completion brings to full fruition the marvelous and wonderful work of establishing Thine eternal ordinances in this nation. Now Thy sons and daughters of the Philippines have available every gift and blessing, every act and ordinance pertaining to the dispensation of the fulness of times.
Our hearts are filled with thanksgiving to Thee and to Thy Son whose redeeming sacrifice has made possible our salvation. We thank Thee for the great eternal plan which Thou hast revealed through Thy prophet for the salvation and exaltation of Thy sons and daughters. We thank Thee for the restoration to earth of Thy divine gifts and powers of all prior dispensations. We thank Thee for the vision afforded the boy Joseph Smith when Thou and Thy Son appeared and opened the work of restoration.
We thank Thee for the coming forth of the Book of Mormon as another witness of the reality and divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. We thank Thee for the promise found therein that in the latter-days Thou wouldst remember Thy children on the isles of the sea.
This nation of the Philippines is a nation of many islands whose people love freedom and truth, whose hearts are sensitive to the testimony of Thy servants, and who are responsive to the message of the eternal gospel. We thank Thee for their faith. We thank Thee for their spirit of sacrifice. We thank Thee for the miracle of the progress of Thy work in this land. In a few short years it has grown from small beginnings to its present stature with many established stakes of Zion.
We thank Thee for the hospitality afforded Thy servants by the government of the Republic of the Philippines. Bless the gracious officers of this nation, and preserve by Thy mighty power peace and freedom in the land. Lift the blight of poverty from which so many suffer. Particularly bless Thy faithful saints who live honestly with Thee in the payment of their tithes and offerings. As was promised of old by Thy prophet Malachi, open the windows of heaven and pour out blessings that there shall not be room enough to receive them. Bless Thy saints in their faith that they shall remain true as Thy covenant people. Bless them in their homes that there shall be love and peace. Bless them that neither they nor their generations after them will go hungry, nor naked, nor without shelter from the storms that beat about them. Open their minds that they shall grow in wisdom in matters both spiritual and temporal.
May Thy Church in this island nation grow and increase in numbers. May the evil designs of its enemies be frustrated. May Thy work become as "a city set upon a hill whose light cannot be hid."
O Father, we pray for Thy prophet, President Spencer W. Kimball, whom we love and honor. He is now old in years, his body worn from service to Thy children. Sustain him by Thy power, and comfort and bless him.
We love Thee, our Father and our God. We love Thy Son, our Redeemer and our Savior, the author of our salvation, He who gave His life as a ransom for all men. Grant us faith and knowledge of things divine. Grant us willing hearts and obedient spirits. Grant us strength and the will to walk the straight and narrow way that leads to life eternal. Bless us as a people, wherever we may be found, that we may be worthy of the respect and confidence of all men and that we may walk acceptably before Thee.
We thank Thee for this beautiful edifice and for all who have worked to make it possible. May it stand as a pillar of truth and as an invitation to all who look upon it to learn of the purposes for which it has been created.
Now, in the authority of the holy priesthood in us vested and in the name of Jesus Christ we dedicate unto Thee and to Thy Beloved Son this the Manila Philippines Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We dedicate it as Thine abode and as the abode of Thy Son. Wilt Thou accept this temple as Thy house, a gift of Thy grateful people. We dedicate the building, all parts thereof and any related structures, with all of the facilities and furnishings thereof. We dedicate the grounds and their plantings. We dedicate it as the house of the Lord with shouts of hosanna unto Thee and the Lamb. Wilt Thou deign to visit it and sanctify it with Thy presence. May Thy Holy Spirit always abide here.
We dedicate it for the sacred ordinances Thou has revealed to Thy prophets. We dedicate it for Thine eternal purposes. May it be holy to all who enter within its walls. May no unclean thing desecrate its sacred precincts. May it be preserved from the storms of nature, from vandalism, from trespass by those who are unworthy to enter it.
Bless the work that will be done here by Thy covenant children. Bless Thy work in all the world. Bless Thy people everywhere. May the spirit of Zion grow in their hearts wherever they reside. May the messengers of Thy divine truths be endowed with power from on high in their sacred ministry. Wilt Thou reveal unto Thy prophets, seers and revelators Thy will concerning Thy people. Bless the leaders of Thy work in this land and in all lands that they may seek to do Thy will and that they may counsel with the people under inspiration and direction from Thee.
Now, Almighty God, accept of our thanks, hear our prayer, pour out Thy healing spirit upon us, accept of our offerings, forgive our sins, strengthen us against evil temptation, magnify us in our service in Thy great eternal cause, bless us as we seek to build Thy kingdom, we humbly pray as Thy thankful sons and daughters, in the name of Thy Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Manila temple grounds aglow in many lights
Thousands of lights - hung in shrubbery, trees and other areas surrounding the Manila Philippines Temple - transformed the temple grounds into a spectacular sight at the annual lighting ceremony Nov. 29.
Almost 17,000 people attended the ceremony to witness the illumination of the lights. Elder Augusto A. Lim of the Seventy, second counselor in the Philippines/Micronesia Area presidency and a native of the Philippines, flipped the switch that turned on the lights.Elder Vaughn J Featherstone, area president, spoke at the ceremony, as did F. Briton McConkie, Manila temple president; Ishmael Mathay Jr., Quezon City mayor; and Ignacio Bunye, Metro Manila Authority chairman and Muntinlupa mayor.
Other local government officials also attended the lighting ceremony, including the chief of civil-military relations of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and other representatives from the Armed Forces as well as the Quezon City councilor.
"At this Christmas season," Elder Featherstone said, "we see again the lowly stable and manger, the radiance of Mary and the submissiveness of Joseph. We hear the choirs and proclamations. We bear testimony with Isaiah and the prophets. We worship and love, we live and we strive, we honor and adore Him. He is the King of heaven and earth, the literal Son of God, Jesus the Christ. Oh come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord."
". . . Today stands a Church which is a landmark in Quezon City," Mayor Mathay remarked. "Not only a landmark in terms of architectural design, not only a landmark for it stands as a building of steel and stone, but a Church that is living, that is vibrant and that is breathing, responding to the needs of the community."
Mayor Bunye, who is not LDS, said the strength of the Church comes from members who are upright and righteous people and he expects to see membership grow. "Today we see the number, I think more than double from last year, and next year we expect the number to quadruple, until we fill the whole of Quezon City and the Philippines."
The ceremony, which included the music of four choirs, began a musical program held nightly at the temple grounds beginning Dec. 13 through 20. The Las Pinas Youth Choir, Marikina Stake Choir, Quezon City Stake Choir and Makati Stake Choir provided music for the lighting ceremony.
Choirs from different stakes and districts in Metro Manila were scheduled to perform in the nightly programs at the temple grounds. Church leaders anticipated large crowds would be drawn to the temple as in past years for the music, lights and peaceful atmosphere.
Roland Arcansalin, temple recorder and president of the Manila Philippines Stake, conducted the lighting ceremony.
The Manila Temple was recently adjudged as a "Model Institution" for 1992 by the Quezon City Industrial Safety Council for its strict adherence to safety.
Temple moments: ‘Best part of life’
Because of its strategic location in the Pacific Rim, the Manila Philippines Temple is continually busy as members arrive by boat, airplane, bus or traditional jeepneys. Some arrive on foot after walking many, many miles. Thousands of members have come in the past few months from all over the Philippines, the Pacific islands and even India. On a single recent day, 143 members received their endowments.
Representative of the many who came long distances was a group of 39 members from Kosrae, one of the Federated States of Micronesia. The Kosrae members planned the trip for about three years, said President Randolph Jonathan of the 200-member Kosrae Branch.
"It is the best part of our lives to come to the temple," said President Jonathan.
The trip took seven hours as they flew from Kosrae to Ponape to Guam and finally to Manila. They were accompanied by Elder Robert and Sister Joan Walker of Afton, Wyo., Church Educational System missionaries serving in Micronesia. After arriving, the Kosrae members came to the temple many times, receiving their own endowments and doing work for their ancestors.
One evening, the Kosrae members, who were very grateful to each person who assisted them in seeing their temple dream come true, gathered and sang for the temple workers.
"They have such beautiful voices and such volume we will never forget them," said a temple worker.
When their allotted time was over, the group climbed back aboard an airplane and returned to their quiet island to farm and fish, make handcrafts or work for the government.
They will keep forever in their hearts the happy memories of the Manila Temple. — Sister Sharon Reeder, Oceanside, Ore., temple missionary
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