p>Brigham Young was determined to fulfill the charge Joseph Smith had given him to finalize the endowment and sealing ceremonies and begin administering these sacred ordinances to the living in behalf of their dead. This work, however, could be performed only in a dedicated temple.
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< /p> < p>Knowing the temple being built in Salt Lake City would require years to complete, Brother Brigham was inspired to build a temple that could be constructed sooner. The place he designated was in Utah's Dixie, an isolated desert outpost that had only recently been settled.
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< /p> < p>In this riveting volume, best-selling author Blaine M. Yorgason presents the inspiring true story of the enormous sacrifice and prodigious labor performed by the St. George pioneers called to bring the prophet's vision to fruition.
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< /p> < p>The authors document details of the temple's construction, and they recount many previously untold, often miraculous, stories of those who sacrificed greatly and worked diligently to raise a majestic, snow-white house of the Lord in the red-rock wilderness of southern Utah.
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< /p> < p>Equally compelling are accounts of events after the dedication of parts of the temple in January 1877. Brigham Young and other Church leaders sought and received revelation on how the temple ordinances were to be formalized, and Wilford Woodruff was inspired to do the work for the founding fathers of the United States and other prominent men and women who dies before the gospel was restored.
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< /p> < p>The St. George Temple is the place where the Lord at last revealed all that was promised through the coming of Elijah and where temple worship, as we now know it, was practiced by the Latter-day Saints.
Blaine M. Yorgason is the author or co-author of more than seventy publications, including such best sellers as Charlie's Monument, The Windwalker also an acclaimed feature film and Chester, I Love You, released by Disney Productions as Thanksgiving Promise. He holds a master's degree in history with a specialization in the American West. He and his wife, Kathy, serve in the St. George Utah Temple.
Richard A. Schmutz earned a PhD in medieval European history from the University of Southern California. He taught at the University of New Mexico and at Brigham Young University. He helped develop the Southgate area of St. George and with his wife, Miriam, served a mission at the Bern Switzerland Temple. He serves as a sealer in the St. George Utah Temple.
Douglas D. Alder earned degrees in history, political science, and German and a PhD in modern European history. He taught history at Utah State University before becoming president of Dixie College in St. George. He was president of the Mormon History Association and continues to teach and write history. He served as a counselor in the presidency of the St. George Utah Temple, and his wife, Elaine, as an assistant to the matron. Brother Alder serves as a sealer in the St. George Utah Temple.
