THE NEW PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA TEMPLE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS IN CRANBERRY. | PHOTO COURTESY CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

You have a little more than two weeks to get a rare glimpse of the inside of a real Mormon Temple. 

The Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — the second temple of its kind in the state — will open its doors to the public at its Cranberry site from Friday. Aug. 16 to Saturday, Aug. 31, excluding Sundays. Tour hours are from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. No tickets are needed; admission is free. 

Mormon temples, considered by church members as the House of the Lord and the most sacred structures on earth, typically are open to the public for a short time once construction is complete. After they’re dedicated, however, they are open only to the most faithful or “temple-worthy” and are places where sacred ceremonies are held, such as marriages, baptisms and other special rites. They’re different from regular chapels or meetinghouses, where Sunday worship services are held. 

The temple in Cranberry, which broke ground in August 2021, is the 196th temple to be built. It will serve more than 29,000 church members in more than 80 congregations in this region, many of whom had to travel to Philadelphia, Cleveland or Washington D.C. for the closest temple. 

THE TEMPLE’S BAPTISMAL FONT STANDS ON A BASE OF 12 GOLDEN OXEN, WHICH REPRESENT THE 12 TRIBES OF ISRAEL. | PHOTO COURTESY THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

“The temples, for us, are our most sacred place. They, literally in our mind, are the house of the Lord, and so we do everything we can to make them beautiful because we’re building to the Lord,” Elder James R. Rasband, an assistant executive director of the Temple Department, said in a statement. “And we believe when we enter it, we enter in His presence. And so, there’s not anything more sacred than that.” 

The 32,240-square-foot steel-frame structure, with granite cladding and a spire that reaches to 125 feet, sits on 5.8 acres at 2093 Powell Road. Its design includes the mountain laurel, Pennsylvania’s official state flower. The art glass features a dogwood tree and flower motif in gold, pink and green. 

Before any ceremonies can be performed at the temple, it will be dedicated in two sessions on Sunday, Sept. 15 by Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The dedication will be broadcast to all chapels and meeting houses within the temple district.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was started in 1830 by Joseph Smith. There are now 17 million members across the globe. A third temple in Pennsylvania, announced in April 2023, will be built on 5.36 acres in Harrisburg.

[Updated with correction: There are no tours on Sundays. The wrong day was given in an earlier version. We regret the error.]