"Come brethren,"
Joseph would say when he was foreman of the quarry in
Kirtland, "let us go into the stone-quarry and work for the
Lord." "The Prophet went himself," remembered Heber C.
Kimball, "and worked at quarrying stone like the rest of
us."
Franklin D.
Richards observed of the Prophet, "When the Spirit prompted him
that his life's work was drawing to a close, and when he saw
that his earthly days might be ended before the
completion of the temple, he called a chosen few and
conferred upon them the ordinances of the holy endowments, so that the
divine treasures of his mind might not perish from the world
with his death."
The Prophet
dedicated four temple sites during his lifetime—in Kirtland,
Ohio; Independence, Missouri; Far West, Missouri; and
Nauvoo, Illinois. Of these temples two were
completed—Kirtland in 1836 and Nauvoo in 1847. As
Joseph explained, "We need the temple more than anything
else."
ordinances
Sacred rites and ceremonies. Ordinances consist of acts that have spiritual meanings, such as covenants with the Lord (The Guide to the Scriptures, "Ordinances," 184–85).
Spirit
The third member of the Godhead (see 1 John 5:7; D&C 20:28). He is a personage of Spirit, not having a body of flesh and bones (see D&C 130:22). The Holy Ghost is often referred to as the Spirit, or the Spirit of God. The power of the Holy Ghost can come upon a person before baptism and witness that the gospel is true. But the right to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost, whenever one is worthy, is a gift that can be received only by the laying on of hands by a Melchizedek Priesthood holder after authorized baptism into the true Church of Jesus Christ (The Guide to the Scriptures, "Holy Ghost," 113–14).
endowments
In a general sense, a gift of power from God. Worthy members of the Church can receive a gift of power through ordinances in the temple that gives them the instruction and covenants of the Holy Priesthood that they need in order to attain exaltation. The endowment includes instruction about the plan of salvation (The Guide to the Scriptures, "Endowment," 73–74).
