I went to the temple Friday. I met a couple of Tribune co-workers there and we walked right in without showing our recommends or anything. In fact, one of us wasn't even Mormon.

The occasion was a press tour of the new LDS Draper temple. The church's latest temple will begin hosting public visits this week. After the dedication in March, the doors will only swing open to the card-carrying faithful.

Friday was probably the last time the Draper temple would host a bunch this scruffy. There were several dozen journalists from various television stations and newspapers. Some were LDS, and some weren't. The devil was definitely there, though, in the form of KTVX Channel 4's Chris Vanocur.

Elder M. Russell Ballard of the church's Quorum of the Twelve personally led our tour, candidly explaining Mormonism's most reverent forms of worship.

We visited ordinance rooms, sealing rooms, and the baptismal font. Because Mormons believe temples are literally the houses of God, quality construction is stressed. The Draper temple features granite from China, floor tiles from France, and polished hardwood from Africa.

Despite our various personal beliefs and collective reputation, my colleagues behaved themselves admirably. When I quietly dared KUTV Channel 2's Dan Rascon to throw a penny into the baptismal font and make a wish, he wouldn't.

Nothing appeared to be held back. We saw places normally reserved for the most faithful of Mormons. In fact, we wandered through a place that only half of all recommend holders will ever get to see -- the women's locker room.

Such a level of openness regarding Mormon temples has been occurring since the dedication of the Las Vegas temple in 1989, when the church hosted its first open house before the official dedication.

On Friday, we were only denied access to one place. A door leading off of a hallway turned out to be locked. Elder Ballard explained that it was just a storage room for audio-visual equipment.

Because journalists are naturally suspicious, the casual explanation instantly produced furrowed brows. I could see my colleagues wondering what was really behind the locked door -- temple virgins, sacrificial altar, blood-soaked Mormon idols?

I used to be a cop, so I'm twice as suspicious as any journalist ever born. Elder Ballard's explanation made perfect sense to me. AV equipment is relatively small and easily pawned. Only an idiot wouldn't lock up that stuff around the likes of us.

For most people, Mormon temples are places of uneasy mystery. They don't understand the graduated scale of worthiness Mormons believe in and the corresponding difference between temples and regular meeting houses.

There are a number of differences between the two, but let's keep it simple. On the most basic level, meeting houses have basketball standards in them and temples don't.

Robert Kirby can be reached at rkirby@sltrib.com