The gold statue on top of many Mormon temples is a representation of the Angel Moroni. Mormons do not worship or pray to the statue. It is merely a reminder of the angels in Heaven who will welcome Jesus Christ to the earth again some day.
Moroni was the last prophet in The Book of Mormon. He is the prophet who finished up the writings of many other ancient prophets and then hundreds of years later, as an angel, appeared to Joseph Smith and gave him the record of the Book of Mormon, which Joseph Smith then translated.
Why Do Mormons Have the Statue Up There?
Actually, not all temples have an Angel Moroni statue on there. It’s not essential for a temple to have it, but most temples do.
The statue is simply a reminder of what the temple is all about–preparing us to be better people so we can receive Jesus Christ again on the earth some day.
Why Is It Gold?
The gold color on the statue is merely a stylistic element–perhaps reminiscent of the color of the gold plates, on which was written the text of part of The Book of Mormon anciently.
Tell Me More About the Angel Moroni
The Book of Mormon is a record of prophets who taught of Jesus Christ in the Americas between approximately 4,000 B.C. and 430AD. Just like how there were many prophets in the Bible (Noah, Abraham, Moses, etc), there were also many prophets in the Americas that taught the same principles. In fact, the prophets in the Book of Mormon frequently quoted the writings of Isaiah.
The people in the Americas were sometimes faithful and obedient to God, and at times they were not. When they strayed from God, prophets would teach repentance and the 10 Commandments.
Mormon was a central prophet because he took the writings of many prophets who had come before him in keeping the record of the history of the people, and he summarized them into one book. Mormon’s son was named Moroni (yes, like the statue on top of the temple).
In Moroni’s time, the people were very wicked and had killed most of the believers in Christ in that area. God commanded him to take the writings of the prophets and to hide them so they would not be destroyed. Moroni later died.
In the 1800s, Joseph Smith was visited by God and Jesus Christ and told that he was to receive and translate the writings of these ancient prophets. Moroni (as an angel) was the one who directed Joseph Smith to find the writings of the prophets. By the gift and power of God, he translated them into what we now can read as The Book of Mormon.
The Book of Mormon is a vital book for Mormons. We believe it is every bit as important as the Bible, and we study both books daily. To me, The Book of Mormon gives me greater faith in Jesus Christ because I can read about how he taught the people in the Bible and died for me on the cross, as well as how he visited the people in the American continent as recorded in The Book of Mormon.
In the Book of Mormon, Jesus visits the people and teaches them about how He died for the people, shows them there ceremony of the bread and water (called the sacrament) to remember Christ’s atonement, and heals the little children.
What Does the Angel Moroni Statue Have to Do With the Temple?
The purpose of our temples is to provide a place separate from all the distractions and cares of the world where we can learn about Jesus Christ and worship Him.
As a devout Mormon, I attend the temple a few times a month–in addition to my weekly church attendance. What do I do in the temple? Well, when you walk in, you go to a dressing room (separate for men and women) and you change into white clothing to symbolize purity. It’s just a regular white long pants and a white dress shirt and white tie.
Then, you go into a room where you learn about the history of the world and God’s dealings with man. You learn about Adam and Eve, Jesus Christ dying for us on the cross, and the teachings of the prophets. We also make special promises to serve God and keep God’s commandments.
The temple interior has a special room called the Celestial Room. It represents living with God again some day after we die. It’s a beautiful room where you can just quietly sit, pray, and think. The temple really is just a nice, peaceful place. However, it’s more than that too.
To me, the temple provides an opportunity to make promises to God and receive his blessings that will help me to be prepared to one day receive him on the earth as the Savior of the World–returned again.
Why is the Statue of the Angel Moroni Holding a Trumpet?
In the scriptures, it says that an angel will play a trump and call forth the children of God from all dispensations to his second coming on the earth.
Trumpets are used frequently in scripture to show a calling of the faithful to gather in God’s family, and this is how the trumpet is used in the statue.
Conclusion
So that’s the full explanation behind the gold statue on our temples. Hopefully this article was helpful. If you’d like to learn more about why I’m a Mormon and believe in Jesus Christ, read this article.
The grandiose obsession of the lds is more like a pile of shit.
All that money that they have wasted on stake centers and temples could have build medical clinics, education centers, manufacturing centers, farms things that would bea benefit to us.
Their priesthood is not biblical. Their temples are not biblical.
They are a group of disgusting people.
Social media will be the end of the lds and all religions.
“THEY are a group of disgusting people.” Just think what you’re doing here, John. You just lumped every person from a religion–even though you have never met even 1% of them–and just said they are all disgusting. This is bigotry. Religious bigotry has been the cause of countless wars, genocides, and other tragedies throughout history. It is wrong to hate a religious group simply because they are different from you.