Why is the Kirtland Temple so significant? And what happens next?

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — When Glenn Rawson heard the news Tuesday that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had purchased the Kirtland Temple, tears welled up in his eyes.

“I know the stories, I know what happened there,” said Rawson, a church historian and tour educator. “To be able to take people there now and tell those sacred, special stories where they actually happened brings me so much joy.”

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But for someone who isn’t steeped in church history, the significance of the acquisition — which was in the ballpark of $200 million — might not be immediately apparent. So why does the Utah-based faith care so much about the building roughly 20 miles outside of Cleveland, Ohio?

As Rawson explained it, the Kirtland Temple was the first temple in the church’s history, constructed under the direction of Joseph Smith, the faith’s founder. The origins of the church’s practices and ceremonies began there in the 1830s, before the migration to Utah.

“It’s foundational to our doctrine, our belief,” Rawson said. “It’s a place that we hold sacred.”

Speaking at a Wednesday news conference, Matt Grow, managing director of the church’s history department, said that in Latter-day Saint theology, the Kirtland Temple was one of a few places where the divine touched earth.

“Jesus Christ himself appeared, ancient prophets appeared,” he said. “Those sites where heaven and earth came together, for us, continue to be sacred ground.”

The LDS church acquired the Kirtland Temple from the Community of Christ, which was formerly known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This group had held the legal title to the building since the early 1900s.

For decades, the Community of Christ stewarded the temple, preserving it as a historical site. But on Tuesday, the LDS church bought the temple, as well as several artifacts and other historical sites, in a $192.5 million deal. The temple has since been closed to facilitate the transfer.

Like the LDS church, the Community of Christ also traces its origins back to the teachings of Smith, who published the Book of Mormon. But after Smith’s death in 1844, his following splintered, with different groups backing different leaders.

While the majority of the church’s members followed Brigham Young to Utah, smaller groups stayed in the Midwest, forming their own religious communities. One of these would later become the Community of Christ.

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According to Grow, there was animosity and tension between the LDS church and the Community of Christ for decades. But starting in the 1960s and ‘70s, the relationship softened, and the churches began to share documents and artifacts, chiefly for historical research.

“It was a love of the shared heritage by those who loved history in both churches that broke down those barriers,” Grow said, adding that now both churches hold a respectful, friendly relationship.

With the LDS church’s acquisition of the Kirtland Temple, the Utah-based faith plans to offer free public tours starting on March 25. Under a specific arrangement, members of the Community of Christ will be able to hold special meetings at the temple.

For Rawson, the tour educator, he has plans to visit. While he’s been to the Ohio temple many times, he’s excited to be able to teach and share stories from inside the building for the first time.

“There’s nothing quite like standing on the ground where these wonderful, historic events occurred,” he said. “You can’t get that in a classroom, you can’t get them in a textbook.”

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