I agree with Gomez on this one, perhaps not to the extent of holding dances. :) I certainly think we might be going a bit too far when we equate a picnic lunch with fraudulent and usurious money-changing on temple grounds. I can’t see Jesus overturning picnic tables and spilling the potato salad, and it could be argued that (subject to the idea of moderation), eating is a holy purpose.

People are holy, or have the potential to be so. Once you’re inside the temple, there’s plenty of time to speak in a reverent whisper and you can no longer hear the people walking and talking. Enforcing an extended “sacred silence zone” around the exterior of the building seems like just another gospel hobby horse to me.

Actual security, and preventing violence and vandalism, is a different story entirely.

“We forget too quickly that temple grounds are dedicated for a holy purpose.”

And I think we forget too quickly that the sterile decor and hushed tones of today’s temples are modern phenomena. In both Kirtland and Nauvoo, dances were actually held inside those temples. A family picnic on temple grounds sounds quite lovely to me.

One Sunday morning my sister visiting from Salt Lake (who is generally a very pious and stalwart member of the church) was escorted onto the forbidden temple grounds by my then teenage daughter. My sister was so taken by the sight and smell of the beautiful magnolia blossoms that she had to have one. My daughter pointed out the numerous security cameras and refused to get one. My sister handed over her camera and purse while she climbed the tree in a dress to pluck one. My daughter took a picture of her Aunt stealing a magnolia flower from the temple grounds and told her she should pay double tithing next month as punishment for robbery.

I find it odd how we Mormons tend to think of the temple as almost like our own personal property. My sister would never stoop to stealing a flower from her neighbors or from a gardening store. But the temple? Well, that is an entirely different matter.

The LDS church owns the temples and does with them as they see fit and we have no more say in the matter than how our bank controls access to its buildings. And we shouldn’t expect any consideration of our opinions either. If we don’t like it then we need to find something else or somewhere else to go and do our thing.

Mesa also has a cafeteria, although I’ve never eaten there. My family has also enjoyed several meals on the temple grounds, although we never bring in a huge meal with a blanket and a basket. We’re more of a brown bag type anyway though…. We do try to be respectful of the grounds though.

There’s a park adjacent to the Spokane Temple. The nearby stake center is frequently open with access to the nursery and gym. Not optimal, but certainly doable.

Must be a cultural thing. Families here drive down to the temple with their children. One parent will go in whilst the other looks after the kids and then they swap around. We’ve done it. It isn’t unusual, and indeed is quite lovely to see members picnicking in the grounds on a sunny day. Also groups of primary children visiting the temple grounds as a primary outing.

The grounds of the London temple include a formal garden with benches for sitting, a wildlife/woodland area, and a meadow (it’s even been known for games to be played in the meadow).

I’m not in love with the temple grounds as a park space. I think it detracts from the sacred ground and holy nature of the temple. Quite frankly the idea of having a picnic lunch on the grounds of any temple seems quite sacrilegious. I think it needs to remain a space where it is kept apart for quiet and reverent reflection.

I think that visitors centers are marvelous and should be built, especially in areas where traffic is high and would attract visitors. They offer an important opportunity to share the gospel and the important nature of the temple.

One enters the Los Angeles temple in degrees, first pulling off a major road into the temple grounds, then walking through the courtyard formed by the main structure and the west and east wings. Entering at dusk or leaving at night gives a beautiful view of West LA which always made me mindful of separating from the ordinary world for a few hours of worship and then coming back into it to live; in no place were my feelings more routinely drawn out in love toward the world (meaning the people I shared the city with). The elevated, slightly isolated position, something like God’s, was part of that feeling.