Many decades ago my family would boast that a family member had not only been a temple president, but had been president of the salt lake temple.

With maybe 10 temples at the time, it was a rare thing to have a temple president in your family.

Add to that the mystic stories of temple presidents meeting Satan himself and rebuking same as he tried to bar members from entering the temple. And the temple president seemed almost like an apostle.

Now with hundreds of temples and the folklore of old disavowed, is there any prestige to the position?

I would think it is still one notch above SP, and a lot less aggravation. MP is a step above SP too, but that job to me would be a whole lot of aggravation.

It’s “out to pasture,” like being made a patriarch.

Prestigious as long as one’s memory holds out.

Was it ever prestigious?

A long time ago, I noticed that returning Mormons who had an "interesting" past were often given the calling of High Priest leader.

I only have a sample of 2.
1) Drug addict who was having an affair with a co-worker. They got married and they started to go to church. He became High Priest leader.
2) Alcoholic who got arrested by the FBI for p*rn (never heard the details). He got married to a member and became High Priest leader. (Thankfully, he's sober now.)

I heard from a Mormon that men who are at risk of leaving are given callings to weaponize their sense of duty. Who would leave the Mormon church after being called to the Bishopric? And leave all those people without a Bishop? That sense of duty is also taught by Mormonism. There is no obligation to stay in a religion that destroys the soul. It's just manipulation.

This might be a very unscientific way to look at it, but now when I hear that a relative who was on the fence suddenly became bishop, a guy's gotta wonder.

When I was showing all the signs of leaving, they just got out of my way and did not intervene.

Maybe it was because I gave them my death stare when they said something stupid, or tried to order me around.

But on a side note, all the Temple Presidents I have met are heavy on the sweet and smiley side.

Good point. Maybe it's a different calling. I have been to the temple, but I don't think I've met any temple presidents.

I guess they want to the temple to be as good an experience as possible, despite the awkward goings on.

Most temple workers were just kind, grey-haired people who were probably retired, based on the fact that they were at a temple during weekday business hours.

It's going to depend on the location, like missions are today.

----

Him: "Honey, guess what? I've been called to be a temple president."

Her: "Oh, that's wonderful, dear! You've been so loyal and paid so much tithing! Where do we get to go?"

Him: "Um… Bakersfield."

Her: "oh…" <breaks down sobbing>

and I've told this before, but this thread brings some things to light--the bishop kept telling him to get me in for an interview and I kept saying no. I went to very few bishopric interviews after we got married. I knew my ex was cheating with men and I had started going inactive. So I finally went in and the bishop said my husband would be one of the next two bishops. My reaction was NOT to do better. I knew I had to immediately stop all church attendance so that he wouldn't be called.

My ex told me a few years ago that he thought the bishop told me that to get me interested in going to church more. He doesn't know me very well!!! My ex went active as soon as he was released. We didn't talk to any leaders about him being gay after we got married.

Prestigious? Take my brother for example. He doesn't answer to anything unless you call him by his true name: "President." Not kidding. Following being Mission President which already made him a legend in his own mind the title matters more than anything.

His wife always refers to her husband as President as well unless she is talking to him directly.

He will mention in case you haven't noticed how humble he is. Always good to know.

It's not very prestigious. My former MP got called to a temple in South America after getting booted out of the 2nd Q of the 70. This was the guy who drank too much kool aid about seeing Jesus in the temples. Oh, I don't think he lasted more than a year as temple prez.

His latest escapades (2017) I found from online sources that he was on some sort of -If we pray harder, the Lord will send us priesthood holders to reactivate. I find it funny because I was one of those elders who did a pretty good job getting people to give the Mormon church another go.

And this MP grabbed my area book (3 ring binder) and tossed it across the wall. He screamed- I'm tired of planting seeds, Elders! It's time to harvest and you sloths are wasting time trying to reactivate members. Go find new ones, otherwise I won't bother to interview you next month. Just set your empty baptismal reports in front of my door.

Yeah, he's a real loser. Lawyer from Idaho and he's hunting inactives in AZ.

Agreed.

Being a temple president is like being a lame duck president. No one pays you any attention anymore. You have a predetermined set of responsibilities and no room to take the initiative on anything, and you're out of the running for important callings.

No one will notice when you're gone.

Same for my brother. MP and then Area Seventy and then Temple President. I think there's a pattern and I do think the TP is the demotion. "Thank you for your service, Brother, uh . . . what was your name again?"

I was under the impression that temple president is a full-time job, much like being a mission president. Is that so, or is it part time, like being a stake president?

You make a good point, Heartless, that with the current proliferation of temples, a temple presidency may not have quite the cachet that it once had.

The rules are a member of the Temple Pres must be in the building at all times. So a counselor opens early, the President comes in during the day, and another counselor stays late and is the last out of the build. So the whole presidency must be in town all the days the temple is open. For busy temple that is Tuesday to Saturday. So they only leave town when the temple is shut for cleaning in the summer.
Side note, the Los Angeles temple used to be crazy busy. Now they have diluted the area with several small temples, so it is only open Wed-Sat, and only a few days is it open early. And most sessions are almost emply

My goodness. That is a very demanding position for a busy temple.

ALL callings are prestigious in mormonism!

Especially AP!

It's one of the most, probably the most, definately the most prestigious. It's one helluva mantle! Not everyone can handle it.

Has anyone ever met a temple president in the temple? Is there any reason to believe they do anything substantial as opposed to sitting in some office in the bowels of the space ship somewhere?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/20/2023 10:26PM by Lot's Wife.

Lot's Wife Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Has anyone ever met a temple president in the
> temple? Is there any reason to believe they do
> anything substantial as opposed to sitting in some
> office in the bowels of the space ship somewhere?

Yes, he was summoned when I had to use the bathroom, extreme emergency in the middle of an endowment session. The temple workers did not know what to do save for stopping the session to see a flustered young man attempting to leave to use a toilet. I kid you not, I was in severe agony with stomach cramping. And here were two workers telling me it wasn't proper to leave a session once it had started. A third, younger worker in his 40s arrived and told me to control myself and hold it for another hour.

Of course, all the eyes were upon me. And I could hear the murmuring from other patrons, especially the sisters- he wasn't clean and the spirit is driving him out of our midst.

And the temple president came to meet with me and all I could think about was how my white polyester rented jumpsuit was going to turn brown from crap rolling down my leg. Pretty sight indeed.

He said- You are voluntarily leaving an endowment session, correct?

Messy- Yes, I need to use a restroom. I started walking away and he grabbed my arm.

TP- Don't you know that you are losing blessings that are bestowed upon you forever and forever? Are you willing to risk eternal damnation for leaving the room at causing this individual to not receive his endowments?

Messy- Yes, I really need to use a restroom, right now!

TP- Ok, he then said something like President (his name) as vested by the authority of Jesus Christ, I hereby revoke the covenants already presented to _________ (he grabbed my slip with the name on it to read the name). I also revoke any blessings to ___________ (Messy Goop) on this day for rejecting the sealing power in this house of the lord on this (date).

TP- You are free to leave the house of the lord. Do not make plans to return later. Get dressed and get out as soon as you can. You are not welcomed to loiter inside near the front.

Somehow, I got to a toilet in time as it all came out. And yes, I indeed had to wait outside for my dad. It was no big deal to him. He told me that he wondered where I had gone and he thought it was ridiculous that they couldn't pause the session for an emergency bathroom break.

I'm sorry but I can't quite buy into your story. With all the old geezers with prostate & Bowell problems running around these days I think this would be a common occurrence these days and even in 1980.

PHIL Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'm sorry but I can't quite buy into your story.
> With all the old geezers with prostate & Bowell
> problems running around these days I think this
> would be a common occurrence these days and even
> in 1980.

Good for you.

They need more money. Send them a fat check.

Are all these positions, SP, MP , TP, etc paid or do they get a stipend?

Seems they are committing a lot of time for charity.

MPs get a nice stipend and lots of other subsidies, including transportation, education for the kids, money for housekeepers, etc.

SPs do not get anything.

I don't know about TPs.

My former dentist Mark Evans served as temple president in Cardston. It didn't lead to further callings as far as I know.

I would guess that they do indeed receive a reimbursement stipend for all the time they spend there.

A New Name seems to have viable info about their required duties.

An Ultra TBM friend of mine who was a temple worker told me that there's a SOP manual that purported to detail rules & protocols for every possible situation, including marriages/sealing, divorces and re-marrages, adoptions, foster children, widows & widower, etc. which temple workers, supervisors, etc. MUST OBEY with absolutely no variance.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/21/2023 11:17AM by GNPE.