“Sacred, not secret.”
For the next month or so, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is welcoming visitors to the 30,000-square-foot temple recently completed in Yorba Linda — only the ninth to be built in California — before a dedication ceremony declares it a “house of the Lord” and it becomes exclusive to members for special ceremonies and worship.
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“The idea is to keep this space as sacred as possible. Only members who have prepared themselves will be able to enter,” Elder Mathias Held said during a Monday, April 27, temple tour, one of many that will be offered through June 7. “But before the temple is dedicated, we want as many people as possible to come here and see everything so that they understand what happens in these temples.”
More than 185,000 people reserved tours in 2005 when the church’s first temple in Orange County opened in Newport Beach, marveling at its architecture and workmanship, according to news reports at the time.
The temples are not sanctuaries for regular Sunday services, but instead a sacred space for ceremonies such as sealing a marriage for eternity, performing proxy baptisms and teaching the Mormon faith.
As Elder Takashi Wada put it: “Life outside of the temple is busy, full of decisions, competition. People in here, we’re all equal.”
There isn’t one large sanctuary in the temple, but instead a labyrinth of rooms, each about the size of a large living room, and each with a dedicated function.
The baptistry — superlatives such as “grand” and “ornate” don’t capture its magnitude — is one of the temple’s core rooms, where members can get baptized, sometimes on behalf of their ancestors who died without undergoing the sacred ritual.
A full-immersion baptismal font sits in the center of the room, raised at least 15 feet in the air and resting on the backs of 12 golden oxen, a scene “as described in the Old Testament, representing the 12 tribes of Israel,” Held said. Sunlight flooding through the room’s towering glass windows illuminates the scene.
Chrissy McClintock, a church member and Yorba Linda resident who toured last week with her family, called the new temple “striking” — an impression made quickly upon “just first coming in the front door and seeing the grand painting of Jesus.”
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That’s by design, Held said. The painting looms in the center of the entrance, encased in a gold frame mounted on a wooden arch.
“The first thing that you will notice is Jesus Christ,” he said, “because he stands really at the center of everything that happens here.”
Visitors enter the new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The baptistry of the Yorba Linda California Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In the temple, faithful Latter-day Saints can be baptized on behalf of their deceased ancestors, who can choose whether to accept this baptism. (Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
The new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A sealing room inside the Yorba Linda California Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A husband and wife who are sealed in the temple make sacred covenants with the Lord and with each other. These covenants assure them that their relationship will continue after this life if they are true to their commitments. (Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
Siblings Maxwell McClintock, left, Caroline McClintock and Margot McClintock, joins their parents, Chrissy and Brandon McClintock, during a briefing before the open house for the new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The baptistry of the Yorba Linda California Temple. In the temple, faithful Latter-day Saints can be baptized on behalf of their deceased ancestors, who can choose whether to accept this baptism. (Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
Chuck Henry leads a briefing before the open house for the new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Elder Raymond Egbo speaks during a briefing before the open house for the new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The celestial room of the Yorba Linda California Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
The new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The recommend desk of the Yorba Linda California Temple. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe that we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father and He has a plan for each of our lives. (Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
The new Yorba Linda California Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, April 27, 2026. The 30,000-square-foot temple is the second in Orange County and ninth in California. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The temple’s artwork, all encased in golden frames, depicts scenes of deep reverence toward Christ or of the California landscape; most are prints, but the church enlisted some local artists for a few landscape portraits.
The temple’s blue stained-glass windows, floral details and hues of muted greens, brown and yellow throughout imitate California’s natural palette, Held said. The temple’s exterior also alludes to the region’s historic Spanish mission architecture, with palm fronds adorning the exterior stone carvings and stained glass.
Details are meant to depict “a little bit of our passage through life,” Held said.
A Celestial Room symbolizes “passing from mortality to immortality,” with chairs facing a central round table and a grand chandelier, designed to elicit introspection. Golden mirrors face each other, their reflections multiplying the chandelier’s droplets into thousands, evoking the room’s namesake and alluding to “eternity.”
The new temple will serve approximately 21,500 Latter-day Saints in north and central Orange County, as well as Norco, Corona, Chino, and into Whittier, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Pico Rivera and Santa Fe Springs.
Temple tours are free and will be offered daily, excluding Sundays, through June 7. They will last about 30 minutes. For reservations, visit yorbalinacaliforniatemple.org.
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