Dedication Prayer offered by Elder
Wilford Woodruff at the St.
George Temple, .
"Oh God, our Heavenly Father,
Father of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob; thou who hast created the
heavens, the earth, the seas, and
the fountains of water, and all
things that dwell therein; accept of
the gratitude of our hearts and the
thanksgiving of thy people that
thou hast preserved our lives to
again enter into another Temple,
which has been built by thy Saints
in these valleys of the mountains,
in which to organize the Holy
Priesthood and to administer the
ordinances of the Gospel of the Son
of God, both for the living and the
dead. Oh, our God, we thy sons
and daughters have assembled to-
gether, in the name of thy Son
Jesus Christ, within the walls of
this Temple, this day, for the pur-
pose of dedicating and consecrating
a portion of this house unto the
Lord our God, that it may be holy
and acceptable in thy sight. May
the prayers of thy people ascend
into thine ears, Oh Lord, and be
heard and answered upon their
heads. We now dedicate this Tem-
ple Block, the land, the water tank,
the fencing and all appertaining
thereto, that it may be holy in thy
sight. We dedicate and consecrate
the foundation upon which this
Temple stands, that it may be holy
unto the Lord our God. This
foundation has been created
through much labor and diligence
of thy servants, and we pray, Oh
God, that thy blessing may rest
upon it, that it may remain as firm
as the foundation of the everlasting
hills, that it may not be moved to
the injury of this Temple which is
built thereon. We dedicate all the
outer walls of this Temple unto thy
name, O Lord, that they may be
holy, and all the materials of which
they are composed—the rock, the
mortar, the sand, the lime, the
plastering inside and out, and every
material that is used in their con-
struction, that they may be sancti-
fied unto the Lord. We dedicate all
the windows belonging to this base-
ment story, the sills, the frames,
the sash, the glass, the putty, the
weights, the cords, the fastenings,
and all the materials of which they
are composed, that they may be
holy unto the Lord. We dedicate
all the outer steps and stairways
leading to the Temple, with the
railing, stone, wood, iron, lead and
all materials of which they are
composed. We dedicate unto the
Lord all the inner walls of this
Temple, with all the materials of
which they are composed, that they
may be holy unto the Lord our
God. We dedicate all the doors of
the basement unto the Lord, with
the frames, butts, screws, locks,
and all fastenings, that they may
be holy. We dedicate unto thy
most holy name the font which thy
people have erected for the ordi-
nance of baptism for the living
and the dead. We dedicate the
flagging, the foundation on which
the font stands, unto the Lord. We
dedicate the twelve oxen that bear
up the font, that they may be holy.
We dedicate the font itself, with
the steps leading to it, and the rail-
ing and all materials of which they
are composed, the castings, the
iron, stone, or wood, and we pray
that they may be acceptable unto
thee, O Lord our God. We dedi-
cate the boiler, the engine, and the
pipes leading to the font and wash-
ing baths to warm the water, that
they may be holy. We dedicate
the baths for the washing of thy
people unto thee, O Lord, that they
may be holy. We dedicate the rail-
ing which surrounds the font unto
thee. We dedicate unto thee, O
Lord our God, the rooms which will
be used by thy people for the giv-
ing of endowments and the admin-
istration of the ordinances of thine
house, and all other rooms, includ-
ing the water tank belonging to
the basement story of this Temple
of the Lord our God. We dedicate
all the materials of which these
rooms are composed, the timbers,
joists, flooring, and nails, that they
may be holy unto the Lord. We
dedicate all the frame petitions,
with the curtains and doors thereof,
that they may be acceptable unto
the Lord. We dedicate all the car-
peting which is laid upon the
floors unto the Lord, that the
labor of the mothers and daugh-
ters of Zion may be accept-
able in the sight of heaven. We
dedicate all the altars, with their
coverings and trimmings, unto the
Lord, praying that they may be
acceptable unto thee. We dedicate
unto the Lord all the chairs,
benches, and all materials which
shall be used in the seating of thy
people in the rooms of this house.
We dedicate unto the Lord all the
furniture made use of in the lower
rooms of this house, the desks,
stands, stoves, pipes, wood boxes,
and all materials thereof, that they
may be holy. We dedicate all the
pillars, and beams resting upon the
pillars, erected in the lower rooms
of this Temple for the support of the
upper rooms, that they may be
holy unto the Lord. We dedicate
all the stairways leading from the
basement to the upper rooms, with
the stairs and railing and all mate-
rials made use of in their construc-
tion, that they may be holy; and
we dedicate all the whitewashing
and painting and plastering, inside
and out, and any material not here-
tofore mentioned in the construc-
tion of the Temple, that it may be
holy unto the Lord our God. And
we ask thee, our Father in heaven,
in the name of thy son Jesus Christ,
that thou wilt accept of this Tem-
ple at the hands of thy Saints, both
male and female, who have built it
unto thy holy name, and may no
unclean thing be permitted to enter
therein. Wilt thou bless all thy
servants and handmaidens with
the spirit and power of God, who
shall administer in any of the ordi-
nances of life and salvation within
the walls of this house, and ail [all] thy
people who enter the threshold of
this Temple? May they feel thy pow-
er, and be constrained to acknow-
ledge that the power of God rests
upon it. And we ask, in the name
of Jesus Christ, the son of the liv-
ing God, that the prayers offered up
in the further dedication of other
parts of this house this day, or at
any future time in the dedication
of this house, by those holding the
Apostleship or Holy Priesthood,
that their prayers may enter into
the ears of the Lord of Sabbaoth,
and be answered upon the heads of
thy people. O Lord, be not angry
with thy servants while we con-
tinue our supplications before thee
in this the Temple of our God.
Thou hast said that thou wouldst
take unto thyself them whom
thou wouldst take, and preserve
in life them whom thou
wouldst preserve. Thou hast taken
unto thyself thine aged servant, the
Patriarch Joseph Smith, and his
sons Joseph, Hyrum, Carlos and
Samuel, and many others of thy
servants, but thou hast raised up
unto thyself thy servant Brigham
Young as a law-giver unto Israel
and a leader of thy people. Thou
has taken unto thyself his coun-
sellors Willard, Jedediah, Heber,
and George A., yet thou has sus-
tained thy servant Brigham for a
generation, as men count time, by
the right hand of thy power. He
has been with thy people through
all their afflictions and persecu-
tions, and led them to these moun-
tains of Israel, and guided and di-
rected the settlement of thy Saints
and all the affairs of Zion, as inspir-
ed by the power of God in this the
last dispensation and fullness of
times, in the which thou hast said
thou wouldst establish thy king-
dom, to be thrown down no more
forever. Therefore, O Lord our
God, we pray that thou wilt give
thy people faith, that we may
claim this blessing of thee, the Lord
of Hosts, that thou wilt lay thy
hand upon thy servant Brigham
unto the renewal of his body and
the healing of all of his infirmities,
and the lengthening out of his days
and years; yea, O Lord, may he
live to behold the inhabitants of
Zion united and enter into the holy
order of God and keep the celestial
law, that they may be justified be-
fore thee. May he live to behold
Zion redeemed, and succcessfully
fight the devils, visible and invisi-
ble, that make war upon thy Saints.
May he live to behold other tem-
ples built and dedicated unto thy
name and accepted of thee, O Lord
our God. And we pray thee, our
Father in Heaven, in the name of
Jesus Christ, if it can be consistent
with thy will, that thy servant
Brigham may stand in the flesh to
behold the nation which now occu-
pies the land upon which thou,
Lord, hast said the Zion of God
should stand in the latter days, that
nation which shed the blood of the
Prophets and Saints which cry unto
God day and night for vengeance,
the nation which is making war
against God and his Christ, that
nation whose sins, wickedness, and
abominations are ascending up be-
fore God and the heavenly host,
which causeth all eternity to be
pained and the heavens to weep
like the falling rain; yea, O
Lord, that he may live to see that
nation, if it will not repent,
broken in pieces like a potter's ves-
sel and swept from off the earth as
with the besom of destruction, as
were the Jaredites and Nephites,
that the land of Zion may cease to
groan under the wickedness and
abominations of men. We pray
thee, O God our Heavenly Father,
that thou wilt bless all the coun-
sellors to thy servant Brigham.
Bless thy servant John W. Young,
his first counsellor, that he may be
clothed upon with the power of
God, that he may be a polished
shaft in thy quiver in the defense of
Zion and her cause. May he com-
fort the heart of his father and have
the blessings of God and thy people
upon his head. Bless the house-
hold of thy servant Brigham, his
wives and children. May his pos-
terity remain upon the earth in
righteousness until the coming of
the Messiah and through the Mil-
lennium. Bless thy servant Dan-
iel H. Wells with the spirit and
power of God, and all his house-
hold. Bless all the counsellors to
thy servant Brigham, with their
wives and children and all apper-
taining unto them. Bless, O Lord,
thine Apostles, that the spirit and
power of the apostleship may rest
upon them. Bless their wives and
children with salvation and eter-
nal life, and may all the Apostles
of the Lamb of this last dispensa-
tion and fullness of times realize
their responsibilities before God,
angels and men, and magnify their
calling in that way and manner
that they will be satisfied at the
end of their labor. Bless, O Lord,
thy servant George Q. Cannon, who
is our Delegate appointed to repre-
sent us in the Capitol of our na-
tion. Clothe him with thy power,
O God, and enable him to do thy
will, that his garments may be
clean of the blood of this nation,
that they may be left without ex-
cuse in the day of thy judgments
upon them. O Lord, bless the Pa-
triarchs whom thou hast appointed
in the land of Zion. May they
have power to bless the people by
inspiration, as did the ancients,
that their blessings may be fulfilled
upon the heads of the Saints. Bless
their families and all appertaining
unto them. We pray thee, O Lord,
to bless the High Priests' Quorum
throughout the land of Zion. May
the power of the priesthood rest
upon them, that they may magnify
their calling and have power to
build up the Zion of God on the
earth. Bless their wives and chil-
dren and all appertaining unto
them. We pray thee, our heav-
enly Father, to bless the quorums
of Seventies, with their Presidents.
They are called to be special mes-
sengers to the nations of the earth.
Clothe them with the testimony
of Jesus Christ. We pray thee that
they may bring many souls unto
Christ, and be prepared to assist in
binding the law and sealing the
testimony among the Gentiles in
thine own due time. Bless their
wives and children and all their
households. May the blessings of
God rest upon all the Elders of Is-
rael in all the world, with their
families. O our Father in heaven,
we pray thee to remember in
mercy the Aaronic Priesthood, with
their bishops, priests, teachers and
deacons, who are appointed to be
standing ministers unto the church.
Clothe them with the power of
God, salvation and eternal life,
with their wives and children.
Bless, we pray thee, thine aged
servant Edward Hunter, who is
called to preside over the bishop-
ric. Thou hast seen his labors and
thou knowest the integrity of his
heart. Clothe him with thy holy
spirit, fill him with the spirit of
counsel and consolation to his
brethren, and preserve him in the
flesh as long as he shall desire life,
and when he sleeps may he rest in
peace and the works of righteous-
ness follow him. Bless all the or-
ganizations of thy church and
kingdom throughout the world.
May thy people accomplish the
work unto which they are ordained,
build up the Zion of God and
prepare the earth for the coming
of the Son of Man. Bless the
Female Relief Societies throughout
the land of Zion. May they fully
accomplish the object of their or-
ganization by thy servant Joseph.
May they influence the daughters of
Zion to walk in the paths of virtue,
holiness, righteousness, and truth.
May the blessings of Sarah, Hulda,
Hannah, Anna and Mary, the an-
cient prophetesses and holy women
of old, rest upon them. O God of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we ask
thee, in the name of Jesus Christ
thy Son, that thou wouldst remem-
ber thy covenants which thou hast
made with the whole house of Is-
rael; remember them in all their
abidings in these last days. We
pray thee, in this the Temple of our
God, that thou wilt make bare
thine arm of power in the preserv-
ation and salvation of the small
remnant of the Lamanites that are
left in the land. Deliver them, O
God, from the hand of the Gentiles,
who seek to annihilate them from
off the face of the earth. Inspire
their hearts with thy spirit, to re-
ceive the gospel of the Son of God,
that they may be prepared to build
up Zion and fulfil the covenants
and promises made unto them by
their forefathers who inherited this
land. Remember, O Lord, thy cov-
enant people in the north country.
Hasten the day when they shall
come in remembrance before thee,
when the Prophets shall smite the
rocks and the mountains of ice flow
down before them. May the high-
way speedily be cast up in the
midst of the great deep, that they
may come over dry shod. [Doctrine and Covenants 133:27] May the
everlasting hills tremble at their
presence and their enemies become
a prey unto them. May they come
forth unto Zion and bow the knee,
that they may be crowned in Zion
under the hands of Ephraim thy
servants. We also pray thee, O
God, that thou wilt remember in
mercy the sons of Judah, upon
whose heads the blood of Jesus
Christ has rested for eighteen hun-
dred years. They have been
trampled under the feet of the
Gentiles and been made a hiss and
by word in fulfillment of the
words of Moses, their law-giver,
and of Jesus of Nazareth, and we
pray thee, oh thou great Eloheim,
that the past may suffice. Inspire
their hearts to return home to Jeru-
salem, the land of their fathers, and
rebuild their city and Temple, that
they may be prepared for the com-
ing of Shiloh, their King. O hear,
O hear us, Lord, in these our peti-
tions, and answer us from heaven,
thine holy habitation, and we will
ascribe all honor, glory, and thanks-
giving unto God and the Lamb,
both now and forever. Amen, and
Amen."