God comes with elders, builders

BETWEEN the Broadway musical playing on Walnut Street and the 60,000-square-foot granite temple going up on Vine Street at Logan Circle, it's been a big summer for Mormons.

That's the nickname, of course, for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And, yes, it's a nickname they're OK with. "It's not offensive," assures Corinne Dougherty, regional spokeswoman for LDS.

What they're less OK with: the notion that Mormons have multiple wives. "We don't believe in polygamy. We haven't for more than 150 years," she said. "You're excommunicated for that."

As the Mormon temple reaches critical mass (the basic structure is up, minus the steeples), we reached out to Dougherty for an update on the construction and a primer on the faith. Milan F. Kunz, a Downingtown resident who's the elder (clerical leader) to Mormons throughout the Northeastern U.S., joined in to address the spiritual items on our "Where We Worship" punch list.

Who we are: LDS members number about 15 million internationally, with about 25,500 in the Delaware Valley. The nickname Mormon comes from the Book of Mormon, which is one of the church's sacred texts, along with the Bible.

Where we worship: On Sundays, Mormons go to church in their home "wards" (congregations). There are 50 Mormon churches in the region, including one each in West Philly, North Philly and South Philly.

For major sacraments like weddings, LDS members attend larger regional temples, like the one that's being built here. Temples are closed on Sundays "because we're all at our church houses going to church," Dougherty said.

Staying together to pray together: Church meetings last three hours, starting with a one-hour worship service where members take their sacrament (bread and water) that's followed by a one-hour Sunday school session. In the last hour a women's group, men's group, teen girls' group and teen boys' group meet separately.

"We don't have clergy, so everyone is assigned an opportunity to speak in front of the congregation," Dougherty said. "We all have opportunities to prepare and give talks."

Members only: Once a temple is dedicated as a place of worship, it's off-limits to nonmembers, Dougherty said. "We consider it the holiest place on earth."

The Philadelphia Pennsylvania Temple, as it's officially called, will host an open house for curious nonmembers before it's dedicated. The building should be done in 2016.

What we believe: As Christians, Mormons believe that Christ is their savior. They also believe in God and the Holy Ghost. They believe that both the Bible and the Book of Mormon are God's word.

In addition, they believe that the American prophet Joseph Smith was called by God in a vision in 1820 and led to discover the scriptures known as the Book of Mormon, written on gold plates in an ancient language that God gave Smith the ability to translate.

Mormons believe that when someone reads this book or the Bible prayerfully, they are receiving a message directly from God, Elder Kunz said. "We believe that prayer is two-way."

Something that might surprise people: It's fairly well-known that Mormons tithe - one reason the church has money for ambitious projects like the temple site here, which will include a meeting house and a 32-story apartment building nearby.

Less well-known is that they fast the first Sunday of each month and donate what they would have spent on meals. LDS runs a market called the Bishop's Storehouse, in Bridgeport, N.J., where people facing financial hardship can shop for free.

Something else you might not know: Newscaster Vai Sikahema is an LDS member and president of the church's Cherry Hill "stake" (a group of wards comparable to a diocese), overseeing about a dozen congregations.

Good works: The average LDS member spends about 90 hours a year doing community volunteer work - about double the average American, Dougherty said.

The church also mounts large-scale disaster-relief efforts globally. "We can at the drop of a hat pull together truckloads of goods or tents for earthquake victims or things like that," she said. They coordinate with Catholic Charities and Islamic Relief to distribute the goods abroad.

God is . . . "a loving, heavenly father who loves us more than we can comprehend," Elder Kunz said. "He is who we pray to. . . . He cares for us individually and knows us personally.

Words of hope: God loves us and wants to communicate with us," Elder Kunz said. "God answers our prayers directly."