Did you go to the Mesa AZ, Easter Pageant?

Every year at the Mesa Arizona Temple there is a wonderful portrayal of Jesus Christ's life, death, and resurrection. Thousands of hours are put into the preparation and actual performance of the production. Over 100,000 people attended this year. I am used to seeing protesters standing on the periphery holding signs disagreeing with the biblically accurate performance.

Unfortunately, this year the protesters went too far, and we need your help if you witnessed their abusive language shouted throughout the performance. From the Bee-line E-Letter

Easter Pageant Leaders Need Your Help -- Please Voice Your Concerns Regarding Protestors
Apr 13, 2009
Dear Friends,
We greatly need your help -- and hope you will forward this e-mail to as many people as you can, or to any of your group e-mailing lists.
If any of you attended the Easter Pageant this year, particularly this past Thursday or Saturday nights, you are aware that the protestors’ interference with the Pageant performances was extremely disruptive and disturbing, not only because of the constant shouting throughout the Pageant, but especially because of the many vulgar things that were yelled continually -- and with thousands of children present.
This is a free event to the public, and as taxpayers, we should not have to worry about taking our families to a family-oriented production and having them exposed to such crude language and alarming protests. Many people from out-of-state came to Arizona this year to see the Pageant, and like all of us, they were extremely offended and distracted.
This is a horrible representation of our City. We have met with attorneys and city officials, and are in the process of asking for a public hearing requesting that a “disturbing the peace ordinance” be enforced next year, or interpreted to apply to the Easter Pageant.
However, the ONLY leverage we have is YOU. If any of you were in attendance this year during the nights the protestors were there, here is what we need you to do – so we can present this issue effectively to the City of Mesa – and appeal to them to take action:
1. Please write a brief letter (even a short paragraph), complaining about the protestors this year at the Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant. Tell briefly why they were offensive to you, and ask for the City of Mesa to take action. (We are already preparing for next year’s production.)
2. Address the letter as follows: City Officials of Mesa, AZ, To Whom It May Concern:
3. Sign and date your letter, indicating your city and state.
4. Mail a hard copy of the letter to: (or you can fax it to Wudel, Inc. 480-834-4271)
Nanci Wudel
1716 No. Almond Street
Mesa, AZ 85213
WE MUST HAVE PAPER LETTERS – NOT E-MAILS. When we receive these letters, we will forward them, en masse, to the appropriate officials and agencies.
We need for you to do this as soon as possible … and please forward this to your friends, or anyone else you know who attended the pageant.
There are too many people who come from all over the world to Mesa to see this pageant (the largest, annual, outdoor Easter Pageant in the world), to have their experience so rudely disrupted. In addition, it is unacceptable that, as citizens and taxpayers, we should have our families polluted by these vile protestors. It is inexcusable.
The beautiful message we are telling through the Easter Pageant is for all ages, cultures, races, and religions – as evidenced by the more than 100,000 people we had in attendance this year. Each attendee’s civil rights should be protected to be able to attend the production, hear it, and enjoy it without being stirred to anger, distracted from the presentation, or worse, sickened by the impact of these protestors on our families and children.
PLEASE HELP US! After much investigation, meetings with city leaders, and legal counsel, as Easter Pageant leaders, our hands appear to be tied without a grassroots protest from the community and those who were in attendance.
Thank you, in advance, for taking a few minutes to make such a difference.
Much gratitude,
Nanci Wudel
Director
Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant

Mesa Temple at Christmas

I love going to the temples at Christmas time to see the beautiful lights and other attractions. I live near the Mesa, Arizona temple. They have musical performances every evening by local high school bands, various denominations, and other LDS musicians. Inside the temple visitor's center there are nativity scenes from around the world.

For more information and a list of who is performing when, please go here.

Linking the Generations 3 Nephi 25

1 FOR behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
2 But unto you that fear my name, shall the Son of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth and grow up as calves in the stall.
3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of Hosts.
4 Remember ye the law of Moses, my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;
6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

(Book of Mormon | 3 Nephi 25:1 - 6)

A good companion scripture for verse 1 can be found in D&C 64: 23-24. It also correlates well with the last chapter speaking on tithing:

23 Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming.
24 For after today cometh the burning—this is speaking after the manner of the Lord—for verily I say, tomorrow all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, for I am the Lord of Hosts; and I will not spare any that remain in Babylon.

That verse speaks of the second coming of the Savior, and is why in many circles we refer to paying our tithing as “fire insurance.”

I really love those passages of scripture where the LDS church seems to have a good understanding of them, and where I can’t find another church that understands that passage. Verses 5 and 6 falls into that category. Our understanding of the passage is due to continuous revelation. These verses speak of a linking of the generations through time in one form or another. This linking is being done today through genealogy work and subsequent temple work for the deceased. I know of no other organization, religious or otherwise, that does genealogy work on the scale that we do.

We search out our ancestors, and when we find them we perform the ordinances necessary for salvation for them in our temples. One example of an ordinance that is necessary for salvation is baptism. Evidence of this can be found in the fact that Jesus himself was baptized and in verses like John 3:5, “Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”

In 1 Corinthians 15:29 we read, “Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?” That is another passage of scripture uniquely understood by the LDS church. Paul plainly states that people are being baptized for the dead, and trying to prove that the resurrection is a reality, asks the question why do it, if they’re not going to rise again?

We link the fathers to the children and the children to their fathers by doing genealogy for our ancestors, and then performing the necessary ordinances for them, like baptism, so that our hearts are turned to each other.

Two new temples for Arizona!

President Monson Announces Two New Temples in Arizona

SALT LAKE CITY 28 April 2008 Plans to build two new temples in Gila Valley and Gilbert, Arizona, were announced today by Thomas S. Monson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This will bring the total number of temples to 139 already in operation or in the planning and construction phases.

“It is my personal priority to make sure members of the Church have access to the blessings of the temple,” said President Monson. “It is here where members learn of their divine origin and destiny, where they are strengthened spiritually as individuals and as families. Temples are sanctuaries from the storms of life.”

To members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, temples are the house of the Lord, the most sacred place on earth. Temple services bind families together forever, teach the purpose of life and explain God's plan of salvation. Temple attendance strengthens Latter-day Saints' commitment to living Christian principles, emphasizes personal spiritual growth and increases devotion to family.

There are currently two temples in Arizona: one in Mesa and another in Snowflake.

Latter-day Saint temples differ from the tens of thousands of local meetinghouses where members typically meet for Sunday worship services and midweek social activities and where visitors are always welcome. Temples are used solely for the performance of sacred ordinances and religious instruction aimed at strengthening members’ relationships with God and their fellow man. They are closed to the public after they are dedicated.

My comments:
The church is growing by leaps and bounds here. When I first moved to Chandler, AZ six years ago, I was the Elders Quorum Secretary for Jim Anderson. Neither Jim nor I have moved in that six year period. We are now in different stakes. My ward has been split, or had the boundaries changed at least three times in the last six years. It's great to see new temples being built here. I've heard unsubstantiated rumors of where the Gilbert temple might be built. If the rumors are true, it will be about five minutes from my home. I am grateful for temples and the ordinances that are performed inside them that link generations and help the Lord to accomplish His work and glory.