The Lincoln Myth by Steve Berry Page B

Copenhagen.
    “Excuse me.”
    He checked the display.
    A text message.
FOLLOWING KIRK. ON THE MOVE .
    “Problems?” Cassiopeia asked.
    “On the contrary. Good news. Another successful business effort.”
    “I’ve noticed that your family’s concerns have prospered,” she said. “Your father would be proud.”
    “My brothers and sisters work hard in the company. They do theeveryday work, and have for the past five years. They understand that the church now commands my full attention.”
    “That’s not required for a member of the Seventy.”
    He nodded. “I know. But I, personally, made that choice.”
    “In preparation for the time when you’re sustained as an apostle?”
    He smiled. “I have no idea if that will ever happen.”
    “You seem ideal for the job.”
    Maybe he was. He hoped so.
    “You shall be chosen, Josepe. One day.”
    “That,” he said, “will be a decision for Heavenly Father and the prophet.”

FOURTEEN

    S ALT L AKE C ITY
    R OWAN HELPED P ROPHET S NOW UP THE STONE STEPS AND through the east entrance. Four days after the pioneers first entered the Salt Lake basin Brigham Young had stuck his cane into the ground and proclaimed, Here we will build a temple to our God . Construction began in 1853 and continued for forty years, most of the work donated by those first Saints. Only the finest materials had been used, the quartz monzonite for the two-hundred-foot-high walls carted by oxen from quarries twenty miles away. The finished walls were nine feet thick at the base, tapering to six feet at the top. Two hundred and fifty-three thousand square feet lay under the roof. Four stories, all topped by a gold statue of the angel Moroni that, together with its distinctive spires, had become the church’s most recognizable image.
    Symbolism abounded.
    The east side’s three towers represented the First Presidency. The twelve pinnacles rising from the towers implied the twelve apostles. The west side’s towers reflected the presiding bishops and the church’s high council. The east side was purposefully built six feet higher, so to make clear which was superior. Its castle-like battlements illustrated a separation from the world and a protection of the holy ordinances practiced within, a statement in stone that noone would destroy this mighty edifice, as had happened before that time to the temples in both Missouri and Illinois.
    Atop each of the center towers were eyes, which represented God’s ability to see all things. The earth stones, moonstones, sun-stones, cloud stones, and star stones each told a story of the celestial kingdom and the promise of salvation. One of the early elders said it best when he proclaimed, Every stone is a sermon .
    And Rowan agreed.
    The Old Testament taught that temples were the houses of God. The church now owned 130 around the globe. This one anchored ten acres in the center of Salt Lake, the oval-shaped tabernacle building just behind, the old Assembly Hall nearby, two modern visitor centers nestled close. A massive conference center, which could accommodate more than 20,000, stood across the street.
    Access inside any temple was restricted to those members who’d achieved “temple recommend.” To gain that status a Saint must believe in God the Father and Jesus as Savior. He must support the church and all of its teachings, including the law of chastity that mandates celibacy outside of marriage. He must be honest, never abuse his family, remain morally clean, and pay the required yearly tithe. He must also keep all of his solemn oaths and wear the temple garments, both night and day. Once granted by a bishop and a stake president, the recommend remained valid for two years before being reviewed.
    To have a temple recommend was a blessing all Saints desired.
    Rowan went through the temple at nineteen, when he served his mission. He’d kept a temple recommend ever since. Now he was the second-highest-ranking official in the church, perhaps only a few