Center of Higher Learning

Topped by a 258-foot spire and a trumpet-blowing statue of an angel covered in gold leaf, the Mormon Temple is one of the most dramatic landmarks of Los Angeles. But few outside the ranks of devout Latter-day Saints know what goes on inside the sanctuary that looms above a steep, wide lawn overlooking Santa Monica Boulevard.

Not a place of worship--it is closed on Sundays and Mondays--the temple is the site of rites intended to “seal” spouses to each other and their children for eternity, to offer baptism to the spirits of the dead, and for lectures about esoteric aspects of Mormon theology.

There is also a genealogical research center nearby that attracts 5,000 visitors a month, three-quarters of them non-Mormons. The center offers computerized access to the church’s data bank of more than 2 billion names.

Opened in 1956, the temple compound sits on 22 acres of prime real estate. The church bought the property from silent film star Harold Lloyd in the 1930s, but construction was delayed by World War II. The site, which cost $175,000, was earlier the headquarters of the historic Wolfskill Ranch.

The temple, one of 45 in the world, serves an area of central and southern California with a Mormon population of about 350,000. There are also temples in Oakland and San Diego.

Its high-ceilinged interior is furnished with huge crystal chandeliers, plush carpets, overstuffed furniture and a desk where attendants check visitors into the sanctuary.

There is a huge baptismal font mounted atop 12 statuary oxen in the basement. The ground floor is devoted to offices and changing rooms. There are lecture rooms with elaborate wall murals of the Garden of Eden and other scenes on the second floor, ceremonial rooms on the third floor and meeting rooms on the fourth floor.

Entry to the sanctuary is restricted to Mormons who carry the laminated plastic card called the “recommend,” which is issued by local bishops and attests to good standing in the church.

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In addition to the temple itself, the compound includes offices, a chapel, classrooms, a baseball field, a visitors center, apartments for temple workers and a store that sells sacred undergarments and other ritual clothing.

Although it is located atop the Santa Monica Fault, the temple suffered little damage in the Jan. 17 earthquake.

Weekly worship services and Sunday school classes are held at local meeting houses across Southern California.