The House of the Lord
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The House of the Lord: A Study of Holy Sanctuaries, Ancient and Modern is a 1912 book by James E. Talmage that discusses the doctrine and purpose of the temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Published by the LDS Church, it was the first book to contain photographs of the interiors of Latter-day Saint temples.
Author | James E. Talmage |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Publisher | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
Publication date | 1912 |
Pages | 238 |
On September 16, 1911, the Salt Lake Tribune published an account of individuals who had secretly taken photographs of the interior of the Salt Lake Temple while it was undergoing renovation.[1] The photographers had written to the church's First Presidency in a blackmail attempt. The church was offered the photographs for $100,000. If the church refused to pay, the photographers threatened to publicly display the photographs.[1][2] Church president Joseph F. Smith was outraged and refused to deal with the photographers.[1][2]
In response to this report, Talmage wrote to the First Presidency and proposed the church pre-empt the revelation of the photographs by authorizing the publication of a book that contained high-quality photographs of the interior of temples.[3] Talmage also proposed that the book could contain an explanation of the purpose and importance of temples to Latter-day Saints.[3] The First Presidency agreed with Talmage's proposal and on September 22 assigned Talmage to produce such a book.[3] The book was completed on September 30, 1912. During the time he was working on the book, Talmage was ordained as a church apostle in December 1911.[3]
The House of the Lord contained 46 photographic plates with descriptive captions and included photos of the interiors and exteriors of the six temples that built by 1912: the Kirtland, Nauvoo, Salt Lake, St. George, Logan, and Manti temples.[3] The majority of the photos—31 of them—were of the interior of the Salt Lake Temple, including one of the temple's Holy of Holies.[3] In the 1968 edition of the book, the photograph of the Holy of Holies was omitted.[3]
Talmage's book "had a significant and long-lasting effect on nonmembers and members alike".[3] The book has gone through a number of editions and remains in print. In October 2010, an adapted excerpt from the book was published by the LDS Church in its official magazine.[4] In 2000, Signature Books published a 1912 first-edition reproduction.