Anticipation is one of the special qualities of the Christmas season, Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin said in his address at the Christmas Lighting Ceremony on Temple Square before he closed the electrical switch and illuminated more than 300,000 lights on Nov. 24.

"Regardless of how we understand this sacred season, no matter how we might have celebrated it, there was always a special aura that surrounded and permeated this time of the year," Elder Wirthlin, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, said.Elder Wirthlin's brief Christmas message in the Tabernacle marked the beginning of the 31st Christmas light display in the heart of Salt Lake City.

Music for the program was provided by the Mormon Youth Chorus and Symphony, under the direction of Robert C. Bowden. They performed "Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful," "Cantique de Noel," "Silent Night" and the "Hallelujah Chorus" from "The Messiah."

Temple Square missionary Sister Cheri Reid, from Pago Pago, American Samoa, offered the prayer.

Elder Wirthlin said that beginning around the first of December the days progressively seem to be marked with anticipation toward Christmas Day. Young children, he explained, look forward to receiving gifts and as they grow older anticipate giving gifts.

"Beloved and important as these experiences are, the receiving and giving of gifts are, in reality, a shadow or a symbol of even greater gifts," he remarked.

Christmas is that occasion when we can celebrate the giving of the greatest gift that has ever been presented - the gift of Jesus Christ, he explained.

"Has there ever been a greater or more valuable gift - or one so dearly bought - than the gift of eternal life?" Elder Wirthlin questioned. "Has any father given a more precious gift to his children than the gift which our Father in Heaven has given to us - His only begotten Son?

"As the gifts that lie beneath the Christmas tree become the source of so much expectation, so does the true gift of Christmas. This should be a source of even more profound and joyful anticipation," he noted.

Elder Wirthlin said Church members should look forward with an "eye of faith" to the glorious day when they will be able to receive the greatest gift - eternal life.

"The great anticipation - the hope - of Christmas is Jesus Christ Himself. He has come. We can look forward to His coming again; and we can look forward to that wonderful day when we will be reunited with Him and our Heavenly Father."

Elder Wirthlin said the illumination of the lights on Temple Square reminds Church members of the Christmas season. He added that after the Christmas lights are extinguished, members should not let the spirit of the Christmas season fade from their lives.

"He has come! Elder Wirthlin concluded. "That gift can never fade, unless we allow it to slip away from us."

After Elder Wirthlin completed his comments, the Tabernacle doors were opened. A hush came over the audience as Elder Wirthlin switched on the lights.

As Temple Square was illuminated, cheers from thousands, enjoying the warm late fall evening with temperatures in the low 60s, were heard from outside the Tabernacle.

Many spectators, who had listened to the program both inside and outside the Tabernacle, said that hearing Elder Wirthlin's comments and seeing the lights were worth braving the incredible crowds on the Square.

Chris and Jamie Ravsten, from the Clarkston Ward, Benson Utah Stake, drove 90 miles south to Salt Lake to get into the Christmas spirit. "It took my breath away," Brother Ravsten said, referring to the moment the entire Square lit up. "The weather is not Christmas so this puts me in the Christmas spirit."

Lynnette Hanson, Lake Ridge 6th Ward, Magna Utah South Stake, has made watching the lights being turned on an annual event. "I even enjoy the crowds once a year," she remarked. "For me it is Christmas."

Sister Hanson has special memories of Temple Square and Christmas time and said walking through the 10-acre block makes her feel like she is "walking in heaven."

Kay Hymas, Rexburg 12th Ward, Rexburg Idaho Center Stake, agreed, calling Temple Square at Christmas a "fairy land."

"It is just like being in another world - it always gives me a real thrill," Sister Hymas said.

The lights, which annually attract hundreds of thousands of people to the Square, will remain lit in the evenings through Jan. 1.