Temple Square in Salt Lake City came to life Friday, November 29, 2019, at 5:30 p.m. mountain standard time as hundreds of thousands of colorful LED bulbs light up, marking the season of Jesus Christ’s birth.
The Christmas season is celebrated on Temple Square with several activities, including the Christmas light display, the First Presidency’s Christmas devotional, concerts performed by the Tabernacle Choir, Nativity displays, other musical performances and movies in the Legacy Theater in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.
The 2019 Legacy Theater lineup includes five movies:
- The Christ Child
Released this year, “The Christ Child” is a new depiction of the nativity detailing the sacred events surrounding the birth of our Savior found in the Bible.
- Christ in Our Lives
A compilation of uplifting, Christ-centered messages.
- Mr. Krueger’s Christmas
A film starring Academy Award-winning actor, Jimmy Stewart and what was then known at the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (now The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square). It premiered as a television special in 1980 and was produced by the Church.
- Book of Mormon Videos
A Church-produced series of short videos shown back-to-back that portray the events recorded in the first portion of the Book of Mormon with Nephi and his family leaving Jerusalem and traveling to the Americas.
- The Tabernacle Choir Christmas Video Showcase
This 28-minute collection features five Christmas videos produced by The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square. Included are “Silent Night” starring Kevin Sorbo, “O Come, Little Children,” “The Wexford Carol,” “What Shall We Give?” and “Infant Holy, Infant Lowly.” Each video has an engaging cast with a Christmas story line set to music from the Choir and Orchestra that shares the message of hope in Jesus Christ.
A schedule for the Legacy Theater can be found on ChurchofJesusChrist.org. An update to the schedule includes a Christmas Eve opening from 12:00 to 8:00 p.m. Information on other seasonal activities on Temple Square can be found on Churchofjesuschrist.orgTemple Square events.
A young boy seems to be more taken with the deep snow on historic Temple Square than the Christmas lights around him. The lighting takes place the day after Thanksgiving.
The reflecting pond, located between the Salt Lake Temple and the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, mirrors the beautiful Christmas lights.
Visitors to historic Temple Square are dazzled by the Christmas lights.
The Christmas lights are turned on every day from 6:00 a.m. until 7:30 a.m. and from 5:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. mountain standard time through January 1, 2020.
Sister missionaries spread the music of Christmas. Their melodic voices add to the festive mood at historic Temple Square.
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Visitors show their excitement when the Christmas lights are turned on at Temple Square.
An infant gets her first look of the colorful Christmas lights with mom and dad at Temple Square.
Christmas lights surround the Salt Lake Temple, the centerpiece of historic Temple Square.
A boy is fascinated by the Christmas lights at Temple Square.
Families gather on historic Temple Square for the annual Christmas lighting.
Little does dad know that his daughter is preparing to knock snow on him from a low-hanging branch on Temple Square.
Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pose for a Temple Square visitor during the Christmas lighting on Temple Square.
The Christus statue in the North Visitors’ Center overlooks the life-size nativity. The story of the birth of Jesus Christ, in the Bible’s second chapter of Luke, is read by Church President Russell M. Nelson.
A couple reflects on the Salt Lake Temple in the midst of the Christmas lights.