I've seen several posts on here about low attendance at LDS temples, and I thought I'd throw in my few cents.

Earlier today I drove by the Atlanta, GA temple and looked over at it as I passed. The gates were open, but there were only two cars in the parking lot. (And, yes, the way the parking lot is situated, you can see the entirety of it from the street.)

Two cars? Has their temple activity really fallen that far?

I'm guessing some members have to work during the week.

Oh, I'm sure the work week has a good bit to do with it. But back in the early 1990's when I worked right down the street from the Atlanta temple, the parking lot was full no matter what time of day one went by it.

Back in the early 1990s, you didn't have all the little McHinkley Temples dotting the southern landscape the way you have now.

In fact, I occasionally drove one of those cars you saw in the Atlanta temple parking lot.

It took all day for me to drive from my home to Atlanta, but I did it at least twice a year.

Then, they built a McHinkley Temple an hour from my home, and I never went back to Atlanta -- but I attended the temple even more often than before.


Of course, now I'm an Ex-Mo. I still live an hour away from a McHinkley Temple, but I've got better things to do with my time then go in there to don my green apron and snooze through the new movie.

I wonder if they're using the "there are SO many temples" thing as an excuse for low attendance. My daughter got married in the Atlanta temple and we had to drive four and a half hours to get there. Now she could have just driven 2 hours to Memphis or Birmingham. But I'll bet if you combined all the cars that are in the Memphis, Birmingham, Kentucky and wherever all the temples are that people used to have to drive to Atlanta, you wouldn't have half the number of cars that used to be in Atlanta during the week. Funny how 22 years after first moving to the Southeast and how many convert baptisms must have been performed since then, I know of no new wards, no better attended wards, nothing. The only thing that's growing is the number of inactive people on ward rolls. My DIL's father was a bishop in one of the wards close to here and she said there were over 700 people on the records and an average of around 100 people who attended.

The Kentucky temple opened about 2003. It took about 4 months for the bretheren to start getting after the members for low temple attendance.

A friend of mine went to this temple a few weeks ago and told me that they were the only couple in the session and that they had to bring in temple workers to have enough people.

I keep asking my Mormon family why they keep building temples, but there's no one there and no cars in the parking lot. They keep swearing that the temples are always full, every single day.

I keep countering with a simple question: where are they parking??

The temples in Utah are full right now...everyone anxious to see the new movie.

If every endowment session was even half full, you would have over 1,000,000 endowments performed each month. I would bet that there are more endowments performed in the dozen or so Utah temples than there are in the other 100+ temples.

Maybe the House of Handshakes need some new rides, new attractions, and change the movie every week? Make it an E ticket instead of a TR.

Yo ho, yo ho, the Celestial Kingdom for me!

can you imagine the endowment as a water ride, with an animatronic Adam and Eve? I would pay 10% for *that*!

He he! +1
They could have Joseph Smith chasing a bunch of women around in a circle.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/29/2013 11:52AM by snuckafoodberry.

Apparently even the TBMs are realizing what a complete waste of time it all is.

The "Greatest Generation" who retired in their early 60s kept the temple busy during the day until just recently. They had pensions and social security and a time in the 1980s when their CDs paid 13% interest. It's much harder to go to the temple in your 80s. They're in assisted living, many can't drive, they have trouble hearing once they get there and they just made the endowment movie 20 minutes longer. Sitting for an additional 20 minutes is a big deal if you're old.

Us "Baby Boomers" aren't visiting the temple during working hours because we gave 10 percent of our income to TSCC, we don't have pensions, our retirement investments were hit by the dot com scandal and then by the recession and now we're going to be working until we fall down.

Most of my friends work at the temple, but they all work Friday date night and Saturday morning live sessions.

I hope that the younger generations figure out that while date night at the temple may be cheap, it is not a place where couples bond (they're on different sides of the room for crin' out loud) and it's just plain a lousy date. If you want a cheap date where you don't have to talk to your spouse, go to the library.

hey watch it on the library topic!
I have always considered libraries to be sanctuaries.
Not the same as temples, but close, as all religions are available there and everyone has the free agency to choose.
I will be reading aloud out of a banned book in my library soon.

I am sorry that you thought I was making a disparaging comment about libraries. I love the library. I actually meant to say that it is a much better place to go than the temple and it is free. If the date that you want involves having a common but not interactive experience the library is great for that. One spouse can peruse the non fiction, while the other enjoys the fiction stacks. You can visit a travelling art exhibit or enjoy a lecture.

Good luck with the banned book. At one time or another, in one place or another, some of my favorite books have been banned.

Is sarcasm lost on you? Some people have difficulty picking up on sarcasm. I know my sister does as well as my husband.

...any chance it's closed for cleaning? Even for as empty as temples are, all the workers, etc usually make up a good portion of cars in the lot...*shrug*

anonymousgirly Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...any chance it's closed for cleaning? Even for
> as empty as temples are, all the workers, etc
> usually make up a good portion of cars in the
> lot...*shrug*

The Atlanta Temple was closed the last half of July for cleaning, but it is open now. On Wednesdays there are several sessions schedule.

Cool, just wondering. Glad to know I'm not the only one not going all the time. The new movie isn't worth it!

The number of temple patrons has been roughly a fixed number. As all the new temples have been built (to communicate to members and the world that the work is rolling forth), there are far more places for the patrons to dissipate their "work."

Back in the 70s, the DC temple was THE east coast temple. Tour buses of patrons showed up from all along the eastern seaboard. It was packed. Nowadays, never packed. Boston, Manhattan, Orlando, Atlanta, etc. have sucked off the patronage.

The Houston temple is not far from my house. Whenever I drive by there are never more than a handful or so of cars in the parking lot. Of course, it's sitting on a prime, expensive piece of real estate next to a very expensive neighborhood and a golf course. I don't think I've ever even seen wedding parties outside taking pictures.

Google satellite map the temples outside of Utard. You will find that the lots are empty.

I am Utardian a Utard as spoken of from the people from the north country. We drive fast, honk at jerks and are the only ones allowed in the far left lane. We are crapy drivers and very proud of the fact. Now that you know this please give us plenty of room to drive wildly:)

https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl

Check it out.

Maybe the satellite was working on the Sabbath.

So what do the temple pres. and his wife, and all the staff do all this time when there's nobody to wash and annoint??

And what happens if there are only 1 or 2 people showing up for a session??

of course its empty... those who are fully engaged in the church don't have any time to attend...

most of them work 60-70 hours a week, attend other activites and meetings 3-4 nights a week, and at least 1 saturday activity a month.

Hell, some of them only get to see their kids awake for about 1 hour a day... and now they are supposed to attend a session for 3 hours where they sit by themselves.

Beautiful on the outside, but dead and hollow inside.

Okay, let me settle this once and for all. The temple parking lots are always full. ALWAYS!!!! The problem with the parking lots isn't anything to do with the temples, or the Mormons building too many, but with your eyes. You are simply not using your spiritual eyes, like a TBM or Book of Mormon Witness would, and seeing all the spiritual cars feeling all of the spots, that others can so clearly see.

Also, those temple sessions are always completely full, and not everyone has been assigned the same secret name that day, because that would be stupid. No, if you will listen with your spiritual ears, you would hear that every rendition of Daniel, or whatever the name is that day, is pronounced just oh so slightly differently. Sometimes the difference pronunciations are so small, they can only be detected by a finally tuned spiritual ear, after much fasting and much prayer, but this is how God sorts us out.

+ 100 Love it, love it, love it ! I was going to say that the Mormon delusions are endless but you said it better : )

You should watch the Nauvoo temple attendance. Full to over flowing in summer cause everyone from Utah wants to get married there for the novelty. Nauvoo is deader than a door nail in the winter cause nobody from Utah has time or wants to drive roads in winter to get there and the local Mormons can always find a closer temple because Nauvoo is mostly populated by Catholics.

I was going to play Devil's advocate and suggest that perhaps the temple was closed for maintenance, but that happened in July.

I know the temple closest to where I live is not near as busy as they would like for it to be. It used to be open on Mondays, but they are now closed. They used to have some sessions that started way early like 6:00 AM, now they don't.

I'm quite sure it is a generational thing to some degree. The younger folks just don't want to do it.

Just checked out the Google image of my local Temple: about 10 cars in a very large lot. Of course, they probably built in anticipation of future growth.

What might they do to increase Temple attendance? I have a couple of speculations. Would these require some kind of proclamation/manifesto/"revelation?"

1) Relax the standards for the Temple recommend. Now they wouldn't ease up on the tithe requirement, but what about some of the "laws" that are queried about in the bishop interview? Suppose they simply stopped asking about masturbation: that could get devout but otherwise ineligible teens into the Temple.

2) Beyond the open houses prior to Temple dedication, what if they allowed investigators to tour the Temple prior to enlistment, I mean, baptism? It would taint the esoteric mystery of the place, but I think a number of investigators would be impressed by the place and more inclined to sign up.

Now, if I were running the cult, that's what I would do, simply from a marketing standpoint.

Really want to get attendance up? Offer discount coupons ! If I were TBM and you offered a coupon that would reduce my tithing by even 1% you can be sure I'd be attending as much as possible, provided the discount made up for the gas I would have to use.

GAs DON'T CARE about individuals in TSCC; their only care is about the total church.

Local leaders pass the Heat onto the backs of members for SM & temple attendance... because the GAs make budgets & other 'benefits' linked to them.

LDS activity & the way that policies / procedures / church History... even 'Pure' Doctrine are applied are 'The Perfect Storm' of EVERYTHING set up to appear & tilt in favor of the Corp, NOT the members.

Googl Earthed the Birmingham temple. There were 14 cars, but most were parked next to the adjoining stake center.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/29/2013 11:29AM by fossilman.

Timpanogos temple parking lot was full a couple of weeks ago. TBM son says it's usually that way every day.

Must be the new film. Or maybe it was summer wedding season.

Since the MorgTrainingCenter provides lots of patrons who walk there from across the street.

But I think that would be an exception.