Church leaders offer sneak peek of DC's Mormon Temple before public tours.

[elleng]

For the first time in nearly 50 years, the public can visit the temple before it is re-dedicated.

KENSINGTON, Md. — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' Washington D.C. Temple may be a beacon of hope for tens of thousands of members in the DMV, but for people on the outside, the structure reaching nearly 300 feet has been shrouded in mystery for decades.

The temple, known for its towering spires and gold-covered angel overlooking the Beltway, recently completed mechanical and electrical renovations that began in 2018. Before the 156,000-square-foot building is set to be re-dedicated, church leaders decided to open their doors to the public for the first time in its 50-year history.

The open house is set to begin on Thursday, April 28 until June 11. Prior to the public tours, high-ranking elders from Utah flew in to provide members of the media a tour of the property.

They hope by providing an open invitation, non-members will see what happens in the temple is not a secret, but more so sacred.'>>>

https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/local/maryland/wusa9-offered-tour-inside-washington-dc-temple-following-renovations/65-db8eb656-92cc-4db9-885c-fd0196f66d4f?

[Effete Snob]

1. The classic

?t=20170517

[I_UndergroundPanther]

3. I remember the bridge

Where somebody painted Surrender Dorothy. The mormon temple in the background when you read it.

Funniest graffiti ever.😹

[qwlauren35]

2. I've been inside.

I don't remember if my mother took us, or it was a school trip. But we got to go in when it was finished, before it was closed to non-believers.

It's BEAUTIFUL.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. It's no "Surrender Dorothy."

Effete Snob has already posted the classic image. Here's an article about graffiti on the B&O bridge over the years.

Mon Dec 29, 2014: It's no "Surrender Dorothy."

First, this is not a safe practice. CSX doesn't want you out on its bridge, especially in the dark, spray painting. Second, if you fall, you're in big trouble. That said:

Go Home Already: In On The Graffiti Tagger



Some context... Surrender Dorothy

It's in the Washington Post this morning:

Fugazi, a standout from D.C.’s musical past, pops up in an unexpected place



Someone has painted "Fugazi" -- a famed Washington post-hardcore punk band -- on a railroad overpass over the Beltway in Kensington, Md., seen on Sunday. (John Kelly/The Washington Post)

Here's the reference:

Surrender Dorothy’ painted on a Beltway overpass — what’s the story?



A 1986 photo shows the Beltway overpass, close by the glistening spires of the Mormon Temple in Kensington, with the graffito. (United Press International)

The adjacent footbridge gets tagged too:



D.C. Temple graffiti prank won't die

Compiled by Michael De Groote, Deseret News
Published: Tuesday, July 26 2011 1:55 p.m. MDT
@degroote or @DeGroote
[e-mail]
degroote

WASHINGTON D.C. — Who did it?

Who played the part of the Wicked Witch of the West and was the first in the early 1970s to spray paint the message "Surrender Dorothy" on an overpass on the Washington D.C. Beltway right where the Mormon Temple comes into view? The mystery is now, at least partially, solved.

Christine Mulligan of Germantown, Md., wrote to "Answer Man" John Kelly at The Washington Post last month to see if he knew the orgin of the painted prank.

He didn't — at first.

{snip}

Several people responded to The Washington Post's Answer Man's request for information.

{snip}

[packman]

5. My working years in D.C. area - drove by and under that bridge

Many a time on the Chevy Chase Loop -