Why are Mormons so into temples?

Do Mormon's have temples?
Yes, there are now 129 temples in the world, with more being built all the time.

Are they the same as the buildings other churches build for their weekly worship services?
No. Mormon's have chapels for weekly church services. Church services for Mormons consist of 1) a sacrament meeting where members take the sacrament and renew their covenant to follow the Lord's commandments, to always remember him, and to have His Spirit with them. 2) Sunday School, about an hour long, where we have a person from the congregation study and teach directly from the scriptures, and 3) we divide into the women's organization, the Relief Society, and the men meet together in a meeting for priesthood holders.

Can anyone go into a Mormon temple?
When construction is finished on a temple, an open house is held so anyone wanting to see the inside is welcomed to come and see. After the open house, the temple is dedicated to the work of the Lord. After the dedication, only Mormon's who are keeping the commandments and following the Savior and his teachings qualify to enter the temple. Mormons who are not living the commandments, and those who are not members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also called Mormons, Latter-day Saints and LDS) are not allowed to enter these dedicated temples.

Are there "secret" things that happen in the temple?
There are experiences in the temple that we consider sacred because of the covenants or promises we make to the Lord. We are asked, because of their sacred nature, not to talk about them outside of the temple. That may sound like the same thing as secret to some people, but to us they are precious and sacred.

So what happens in the temple.
1. Baptism's by proxy for the dead.
Jesus Christ said, "except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." He was talking about being baptized by immersion. Even he was baptized by immersion and "came up out of the water" to show that all people, even he, needed to be baptized to return to God's presence.

Also, in 1 Corinthians 15: 29, it states, "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead?" Members of the Church during Christ's day were also baptizing by proxy for those who had died.

So what does "by proxy" mean? It means that a person stands in the water in a baptismal font in the temple, and baptizes another person for a person who is dead. They use the dead person's name during the baptism.

Do we believe we are forcing baptism on every person who has died? No. We believe that every person has the ability to accept or reject the baptism done in their behalf. No one is ever forced to follow Jesus Christ. We are just following the Lord's direction to help all God's children.

2. Individuals make promises to follow Christ and the commandments, to help others and to dedicate their lives, time and efforts in helping others and following the Savior Jesus Christ.

3. Men and women are married for this life and "sealed" for eternity. Children born to them are included in this "forever family." Those who were not married in the temple and are worthy, can enter the temple and be sealed for eternity as husband and wife and have their children sealed to them.