Lessons on the Temple
Lesson No. Eighty-Seven

 The Veil is Thin in the Temple

Introduction –  While serving as president of the Louisville Kentucky Temple, I was performing the sealing for some members of the Petty family.  Petty was my mother’s name.  My ancestor, Ralph Petty, was a Baptist minister in Hitesville, Bourbon County, Kentucky.  His son Albert moved to Tennessee and was baptized by Wilford Woodruff.  Albert, Catherine and their family were some of the first converts to the Church in the South.  Albert later lived in Nauvoo Illinois, Salt Lake City and Manti Utah; he died in Springdale Utah.

The veil is thin in the temple – At this sealing session I had proxies for the parents and their two sons and three daughters around the altar.  Sister Short, who was a spry 85-year-old ordinance worker from Richmond Kentucky, was representing one of the daughters.  The Spirit in the room was strong.  After the sealing session Sister Short told my wife Susan, who was the matron of the temple, that a daughter for who she was proxy appeared at the sealing.  Sister Short said she had never seen such expressions of love and joy on anyone’s face as she saw on the face of this daughter as she was sealed to her family.  I invited Sister Short into my office and asked her to tell me more of this experience and of her life. 

The Holy Spirit bore witness to Susan and me that Sister Short experienced exactly what she said.  At that very moment I remembered Ether 12:19:  “And there were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong…who could not be kept within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things they had beheld with the eye of faith, and they were glad.”  Sister Short’s faith allowed her to see “within the veil.”

The Lord will wipe away all tears – Sister Short went on to tell us that some of her family did not live as they should and this weighed heavy on her heart and brought many tears.  But when she came to the temple it was not uncommon for her to get glimpses beyond the veil.   I knew that this is was a “tender mercy” from the Lord given to a choice daughter who worships and serves in the temple.

Revelation 7 came to my mind.  In this chapter John sees our dispensation.  He “beheld a great multitude…of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, who stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes” (Vs 9).  The question was asked: “Who are these who are arrayed in white robes and whence came they?  Answer:  “These are they that came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (13-14).

This includes those who come to the temple and are worthy of a temple recommend.  They are cleansed and experience the full redemptive power of the atonement. (My comments are in italics)

“Therefore, they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple:  and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them” (Vs 15).

Serving in the temple day and night foretells of the day when temples will be open most of the time.  This is already taking place in many temples where the first ordinances are performed early in the morning and the last ones late into the evening.  Temples will be open more and more.  It also applies to what is taking place right now with temples being located in time zones around the earth, and therefore are open day and night

“They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.  For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes” (Vs 15-17, emphasis added).

Testimony – The tears we experience in mortality will certainly be wiped away in the next life.  However, I know that in this life the Lord wipes away the tears of people like Sister Short with custom made tender mercies given in the temple as He parts the veil for righteous deserving sons and daughters. 

As we serve him the Lord will also give us custom-made tender mercies suited exactly for our needs.