Somehow we are prevented from seeing and knowing our own domination, even when its clearly and openly documented in our sacred books, and happening in our relationships and church and temple practice. During his Sunday afternoon remarks in October 2021 general conference, President Nelson spoke about the importance of temples, saying, As I emphasized this morning, please make time for the Lord in His holy house. Everyone should know what they are before they go to the temple. I too am a believer and supporter of temple work and the church. In July, a groundbreaking was also held in the Philippines for the first FSY camp in Asia. News of the changes in the ceremony was pick up by wire services and received nationwide coverage including a front page story in the New York Times, comments by Paul Harvey, and a report in Time magazine. Temple Square in Salt Lake City before the Saturday morning session of October 2021 general conference. By. Each had turned 70 years old and was granted emeritus status. I have questions, but I also know that I am not smart enough or spiritual enough to know better than the prophet, or know better than God. Your email address will not be published. But until this week, the covenants themselves were not described beforehand, prompting many to note that its unfair to expect people to decide whether to stay or leave when theyre not told in advance what the promises will be. . And like many of you, I didnt love the experience, but the prophets and my local leaders said God wanted me to go often, so I did, and felt good about being obedient to God. The initiatory consists of four main components: washing, anointing, clothing, and finally, naming. The missionaries received a week of online instruction from home before their in-person training. New temple ceremony changes announced. I wonder if this means - Reddit Ive long complained that in the narrative of the endowment, Christ is at best a minor character who does little more than delegate instructions. Responsibility is to Covenant as Obedience is to Commandment. If you are going to look at roles, you might consider Eves position of questioning and considering on her own, rather than obeying, and then exercising her own spiritual authority to disobey God, and then to lead Adam to follow after her. The point is that they are given the presiding position and women are not in the presiding position. Jana Riess. Without fertilized land, there is no grass, herbs, flowers, orchardsno garden. You may also like:Reminisce over bygone Church pageants and try out for the Nauvoo cast. Nowhere in our sacred works does it say that women are born with more sense than men, or that men need the priesthood and we dont. There are powerful social constraints put upon us to consent to our position in the hierarchy, and even to be unable to see the hierarchy and its effects on us. But others are also correct in saying that the fig leaf is sacred and should be worn throughout the entire endowment. Learn how your comment data is processed. More sanitized, more sterile, more boring. He said no. As COVID-19 restrictions diminish in various areas and temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continue to increase operations, Latter-day Saints are reminded of previously announced adjustments to temple ceremonial clothes and the availability of new styles. As for the apron, whats funny is that I always saw that as a beautiful part of the temple to me, the apron represented our humanity as imperfect as it was, yet we got to keep it with us throughout. I have no idea what prompted the changes, but based on my experience I suspect part of the reason was to help those participating in the rite to understand it better. Thats what it means to be a good girl/woman, to quietly support this structure and not even see it. Were obeying a Lawand that Law (of obedience) is taught in conjunction sacrifice so that we might draw it out of the abstract and make it tangible. Our Church is structured, intentionally, as a patriarchy in which the men lead and the women follow. rules, Utes seeing transfer portals impact on college gymnastics, revisions last week to the temple endowment ceremony, David Bednars refreshingly open General Conference talk in 2019, Dialogue article for a history of those shifts, temple building during church President Russell M. Nelson. In possessing a land [Canaan], the meat [Shepherds, flocks] go first to traverse and fertilize the land. It was not a comfortable experience. I had a friend in 1990 who promised me everything had been fixed and I HAD to give it another chance. Why, then, have changes been made to it several times since it was first revealed? I work hard every week and at home to build something wonderful. Not only is it important that we receive an inheritance of flesh and boneit is also crucial that we take our first steps as life givers. Taken further, Cains infamous allegorical response Am I my brothers keeper? identifies the breaking of the covenant with refusing responsibility of one another. Anyway, long response, but hopefully its helpful. Of the fact that weve made mistakes and sinned, just as Adam and Eve did. I thought it was a nice comment on the beauty of our flawed humanity. Likewise, were asked explicitly to stand in here. We all can enter the celestial glory despite our sins. His deep concern for children and youth must continue to be our deep concern.. (1) D&C 22 refers to a new and an everlasting covenant. The flower blossoms inwardly, within the fruit, never seeing sunlight (blind, perverse). Perhaps that is what we women are doing today when we ask the men of the church to step down from presiding and protecting, and let us be fully equal in leading the church and our families. Just because your experiences are different doesnt mean my experiences are non existent. Enjoy! Im really surprised theyve made the endowment longer and not shorter thats pretty crazy to me. (Be comforted, though: it once lasted between three and nine hours.). Admit it. When you go through the temple you make many implied promises and agree to submit to harsh punishments (and Im not talking penalties). Visiting the sites is a great way for individuals and families to enhance their understanding of Church history.. The LDS Church announced changes to its temple endowment ceremony, but has not yet specified what those changes are. To me, the fig leaf is one of the only symbols in the temple of the Goddess Wisdom, who is our mother in Heaven. Promising to obey my husband doesnt match my values. I have real life experience with this both with my husband and bishops. Pretty easy exercise if you are sincere about what you wrote. I experienced the changes this week (and will do sealings tomorrow and see if theres any improvement on gender parity there?). It sounds plausible but still doesnt satisfy my thinking that it came to Joseph by way of revelation. The temple, the covenants I make there, and every single thing I am taught in the temple are absolutely sacred to me. Even then many members there sacrifice greatly just to buy (then eventually replace) their own temple garments, buy food for the trip, etc. (Hey 2019 bloggers, update your posts, THE TEMPLE IS STILL SEXIST.). (2) how would you explain that men are to become priests and kings to God but women are to become queens and priestesses in the new and everlasting covenant? I lost my trust. Yes, The World, not the Church, is leading the way yet again. I never said to my husband: lets go! My recommend expired in 2020 and I decided not to renew it. Or are they just wearing the robes over top their coats of skins? Its still manipulative and coercive; these changes feel more like a half hearted concession to advocates for change. I suggest you read the three articles Elisa posted in her first response to your comments. Was it kinda weird having someone put stuff on your body? As far as I can tell, the temple ceremony is something Joseph Smith came up with, after becoming a Mason, and he used it as a loyalty test for followers and a way to launder his secret plural marriages. The Church's announcement emphasizes how much more efficient the renovated temples are going to be. Present the basis of your statements. Even when I barely allude to those differences Im labelled a sexist. Ill admit that it felt a little weird the first time, but I knew the guy very well, so we pressed ahead. Re: The Law of Obedience: I wouldnt get too fussy over the seeming double talkits just one of those things. I have no issue with them. This summer, missionaries arrived at the Provo MTC for the first time since the pandemic. I bought a wedding dress with sheer sleeves, not knowing it was a little unacceptable. What operations does a woman do nearer the center? Or teach literacy skills to children. They said there were gender equity changes. The following is the 1984 transcript of the endowment with the appropriate changes marked to indicate where differences between this version and the current endowment. It also creates a two-tiered membership for those who can and cannot or dont want to attend for whatever reason. In sum, these seem like tiny changes that I suppose are positive-ish (other than A&Es clothes) but not meaningful. I want a re-do on my wedding! @ Travis But thats another can of worms. By the way, many of us (myself included) have in fact spent a lot of time in other countries wheee temple attendance is more difficult. Open House - April 29, 2023 - May 13, 2023. Patriarchy in and of itself is not evil. Adam and Eve in temple clothes. In addition to sacred garments worn every day, adult members of the Church wear ceremonial clothing inside temples as part of these sacred ordinances, or ceremonies. Those are the three categories that I have in my mind right now, Leavitt told LDS Living in an interview. Its long been said that men hold Priesthood offices because they need that to learn, while we dont. I look forward to attending and seeing how they did with that. One possibility is that they will remove or lessen physical touch in. For example, I would love nothing more than to be a stay-at-home mom, but our family situation doesnt allow for that. If they had happened 10 years ago, when I was regularly attending each month, they would have had more of a positive impact. I may have rushed to judgement a bit. Ive very happy with it, despite ongoing questions. There is no reason for the covenants to be a secret. And Carol Lynn Pearsons book goes into the problems with current spiritual polygamy practices: I also loved Jennifer Finlayson-Fife LDS marriage & family therapist thoughts on polygamy: https://finlayson-fife.com/blog/post/jennifers-thoughts-polygamy. I used to teach that class and after a few years I decided to include the covenants they will make. I think the church could easily increase temple attendance by having a ceremony that is 1 hour or less. What if we had a second income from a second wife? Lawyer. So when my sister was married in 1987 in Manti, I experienced a mostly live ceremony with a couple of parts a soundtrack. Israel was placed under covenant to be the Lords peopleand what did he require of them in order to live up to that covenant? so that sounds more like something man has created. The whole chapter begins with Joseph asking questions about polygamy. Literally google leaving [Religion X] and youll see it. My earlier response and appreciation was for you. In total, the Church has 45 stores throughout Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, California, Washington, Oregon, and Texas. The biggest improvement Ive read about is the informed consent. 3 & 4) no witness couple is fine I guess, although the participatory elements (including the other ones eliminated) will probably make it more likely people will snooze through the whole thing, esp with 13 extra minutes of REM cycle 1) Im not dissatisfied with my temple experience, though I do wish it were closer. I really appreciate it! He also has two counselors, L. Whitney Clayton and Gary B. Porter. I think its going to be a terrific help for folks new to the temple. What Im longing for is a double speed version, or a streamlined express version for those of us who have been dozens or hundreds of times and no longer need repetitive explanations I did appreciate the Christ focus and added prequel. Read the statement from the First Presidency and see renderings of the renovated Salt Lake Temple at LDS Living. I have enjoyed hearing how you interpret the symbols and I agree with you on some and learned a new perspective on others. So theres that. As the project has progressed, we have learned a great deal about the condition of the temple and its surroundings. @not a cougar, I thought there was some weird rule that elders and sisters couldnt pair up for the prayer circle. 4) Is there any plausible argument remaining that the temple ceremony is of ancient, unchanging origin? . Read it. Elisa, thanks for your civil response. As weird as all of the signs and tokens business was, I think moving towards a presentation-only mode where we are just shown things rather than symbolically receiving them by someone who received them down on from God and then Adam & Eve and then us as participants (which the live sessions made more clear thats what was happening) completely eviscerates the embodied ritual aspect of it. You ask, Where in the D&C does it distinguish between polygamous sealings and monogamous sealings? It doesnt, and thats exactly my point. Study. The letter was addressed to General Authorities, General Officers, Area Seventies, stake, mission, district and temple presidents, and bishops and branch presidents. If anything, I anticipate this being weird, as it will make Adam and Eve look even more modern (or at least 19th century). For more information, refer to the following resources: Style Guide Note:When reporting about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please use the complete name of the Church in the first reference. A Big problem. I also disagree that the church certainly doesnt treat women as equal. Of course any decisions a woman makes in the church can be vetoed by a man over her, but the same goes for any decisions a man makes in the Church. And promise not to tell this secret handshake or forfeit my life.um, shades of the Gadianton Robbers and werent they the bad guys? The Salt Lake temple will be able to have double the number of patrons, and can host. It is gender normative in a weird way, though, and one thing I found disturbing is that if there are not enough male patrons, they will pair up two women, but I dont believe they will ever pair up two men. They are a vigorous exercise for the mind and spirit. @lws, that whole series (I think its in 6 parts) is really good and eye-opening. Just one month later, he announced the Ephraim Utah Temple. It is interesting to see how folks on both sides of the Great Woke Divide experience these things.). The hoped for light and knowledge, even after hundreds of sessions and effort on my part, never really came. More recently, first as a widow in 2015, then later remarried, I spent 2 years in the Caribbean on Church missions. In what may be my favorite change, theres no longer a warning for temple attendees to guard themselves against loud laughter and light-mindedness. It need not be replaced by the new style, according to the letter. Anyone familiar with LDS doctrine should easily equate Jehovah in the endowment with Jesus, so I dont know what some pictures of Jesus are really going to add. I used to be taught that Joseph Smith restored the ancient temple ceremony, but now I hear more of the sentiment that we will keep refining the temple ceremony until we have a beautiful gift to present to the Savior at His return (I cannot cite the source for this line of thought, anyone help here?) Maybe thats true, maybe it isnt, but it really seems to be the case, I just dont think we should be denigrating men for needing training we dont! The broadcast included music and activities, with two Primary children hosting and two children as field reporters who learned about covenants from Elder Ulisses Soares. LDS Church changes policy about civil ceremonies and temple sealings, making way for more family members to be part of weddings 'Mormon Land': NAACP president discusses the unlikely alliance . I had initially thought some changes were designed to shorten the ceremony to encourage more people to comeif my stake and regional communications are any indication, I think temple attendance is still way down and nowhere near pre-pandemic levelsbut apparently thats not the case as some are reporting it is now 13 minutes longer. I know this because my non-heathen spouse is teaching the course in our ward at the moment and is constantly looking for better material. What do you think their impact will be? Their stake president is their ecclesiastical leader. Satan also makes no mention of wearing an apron himself. Turns out there was a meaning and it wasnt a nice one. The linked site has its own terms of use, privacy policies, and security practices that differ from those on our website. What is certain is that the temple ceremony has evolved significantly in the past (see this important Dialogue article for a history of those shifts, like dropping blood oaths and the law of retribution in 1927 to incorporating the lava scene from the Disney movie Fantasia in the 1950s as part of the creation story). I love to follow Jesus Christ and study his gospel. Mom. IMO, the most profound meaning of the fig leaves is that of fertility and fecundity. The argument that Joseph aligned the temple more with Kabbalah has been made by scholars such as Harold Bloom, Lance Owens, Hugh Nibley, and Hartley Lachter. When reporting about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please use the complete name of the Church in the first reference. As for polygamy, I think there are a lot of serious misunderstandings about it. If that be the case, Im very sorry to hear that; but Im honestly not sure how that would be possible. The last few years of changes have not moved the needle at all for me because of the polygamous (and therefore sexist) undertones throughout the entire thing that make it rotten to the core for me. Even the Lord Himself said it in Doctrine & Covenants 121:3637: the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, but when we undertake to exercise control or dominion or compulsion it is withdrawn [and] Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.. This so-called covenant, which obligates the ego to obey obedience, is a neurocognitive construct for mind-washing. I had one couple call me and say they didnt want more lessons. Not explaining what the symbols stand for is a problem. The Choir, Orchestra, and Bells on Temple Square are tested for COVID-19 every time they rehearse. Find out more about senior missionary opportunities at ChurchofJesusChrist.org. For me, it didnt matter how much the ceremony wording changed over the years, my first experience always played through my mind when I went to the temple. I stood there in shock thinking, The book was dead right. The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released the following message on Monday, July 20, 2020, about changes to the temple endowment ceremony: The sacred teachings, promises, and ceremonies of the temple are of ancient origin, and point God's children to Him as they make further covenants and learn more about . Announced Open Houses and Dedications. Previously, senior service mission assignments were available only to members living in the US and Canada. As for same sex prayer circle pairings, while I have wondered about the possibility, I dont recall ever seeing any. God decides to send his son. I may change my mind, or not. If you are dissatisfied with your temple experience, do these changes move the needle for you? I dont know that *early* church leaders were that way, but I certainly know men that have felt slighted by when they see as the Churchs maltreatment of men. Joseph Smith did not get the temple from Masonry. And to know that this would be our first foray into participating in that creative effort meant that we would be on the high road of becoming like them. It seems to me that everything leads to the ultimate ordinance: sealing of a couple into the new and everlasting covenant, i.e., polygamy. I personally mean you no harm. Detroit Michigan Temple In Phase 4 and a gradual return to normal operations, as of April 20, 2022. They have completed or are no longer attending high school, secondary school, or the equivalent. No, I suppose Adam would have sprung for a nice pair of white shoes. Is there a decibel limit? The motions of how my life would be taken if I revealed anything was just so cultish. They will no longer feel special. Im not a big fan of all of these changes. I felt really bad, but better they know before they are there. Sometimes my accent wasnt understood I couldnt even order food alone, just had to point. To skip the meat offering is unrighteousness. Ive been an Episcopalian for 55 years. The fact that I dont care after spending so many years scrutinizing every single word and motion and symbol in the temple is probably the most significant thing to me about the change. The fig is a telestial order, the vine is a terrestrial order, and the olive is a celestial order. The church immediately switched to the slide show, and then in April 2019, Van Wagenen was charged with sexual abuse of another child. A womans psyche can be harmed by her husbands poor choices (as can a husband by his wifes), but there are pros and cons to any situation. A couple comments for example: That is kind of anti-atonement, then we can add a picture of Jesus with a certificate saying you have been forgiven, charge $50 for small sins, $1,000 for big sins and of course have a better quality picture of Jesus, maybe with a guided frame, and now selling indulgences is what Jesus would do. What use does he have for a temple ceremony? To me the only part of the endowment ceremony I really looked forward to were the movie scenes with great underwater shots, soaring fjords, and exotic animals. When I attended the temple recently I was asked to witness a sealing. By the end, I felt tricked: Okay, so you folks got me to watch a poor quality video starring satan, and got me to walk around with this satanic symbol on my waist, and make covenants with this symbol (green amulet dark magik imagery), and these clothes are universally uncomfortable shopping bags. Too much satan in the previous endowment for my tastefreaks me out that most LDS were cool with it that much satan. Primary General President Joy D. Jones also shared a message of love and encouraged Primary children to serve others. The 2019 version? In an effort to keep temples open, the First Presidency asked members to wear face masks in the temple. We know people are anxious to visit and the missionaries are eager to welcome them. If the temple ceremony has been changed to allow more instruction and consent prior to entering into a covenant that will be a great improvement. Maybe it got throughhence the cover up. But if you could get past that (and I understand many couldnt), there was actually something quite beautiful as a woman to receive a kind of literal blessing and anointing by another woman. Setting aside that the changes were actually not changes, without apology and explanation there can be no healing. Law of Tithe You dont physically touch anyone until you cross the veil (probably a covid change). it at least places her at the center of creation Why does the women need to be at the center? If the bishop were a woman, would it be sexist for her to release a man that thought differently? @dot, is that when they switched to the slide show? There are certain prerequisites that need to be met in order for us to successfully navigate sacred space. Like several of you commenting, I was a dedicated temple-goer for several decades, attending on average once a month. @Elisa, when I first experienced the presentation of the endowment, I was waiting for the point to get rid of the green apronI understood the symbolism, and so I couldnt imagine wearing the symbol throughout. No other arrangement will do. 2) Im assuming these Jesus pics are all going to be Nordic Tinder Jesus, but its still an improvement over Supercuts Adam I like the idea of persisting to the end in a journey with a wonderful end, a patient line-upon-line journey. [pause] . What I cant see is how they can be coregents while one presides. We covenant to live be covenant; were not truly loving until we love to love, and so forth. Following that talk, this man became suicidal and begged his mission president to release him. Updated: July 1, 2021, 1:09 a.m. Therein, Mormons are instructed that the knowledge, tokens, and signs obtained within the temple will provide passage through the veil into . This couples job was to demonstrate the signs and tokens for other people. Check out Viewpoint on Mormonism's 10-part series on the temple that originally aired from July 26-30, 2021: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Participation in what is called the temple "endowment" ceremony is an important facet of the LDS faith since it is in this ritual where Mormons learn secret "key words," "signs" and "tokens" that . I could also say that now where is it proclaimed in our doctrine that only women are to bear children. As for why they werent made in 2019, I can think of two possibilities: either a) the people werent ready for them yet; or b) the prophets hadnt thought of them yet. None are excluded from accessing heaven vis-a-vis the ordinances. Learn more about FSY conferences at ChurchofJesusChrist.org. Sure, it *could* be, but it shouldnt be the default assumption. In the hierarchy of the church we women are only gifted with the choice to submit and consent, or to withhold our consent and be seen as disrespectful (and be destroyed). As you said, A textual reading [of Doctrine & Covenants 132] is quite clear, but I feel that that clarity proves that the new and everlasting covenant is *not* plural marriage. As I have been thinking more about Heavenly Mother, I longed to see Her included in the ceremony. The evening before we went out together to watch a movie Murder By Decree. Conversely, when a man gets baptized, he has all the Priesthood authority he needs to go to the bathroom. In addition to the images of Christ, there are more spoken references to him, including at the beginning, when an announcement makes it clear that the recent changes in the temple liturgy are in alignment with the churchs doctrine of Jesus Christ. What a totally different culture. @jack, if women are so amazing, I recommend we just let them decide how they want to be treated instead of men telling them how they should want to be treated. How interesting for you to have had that direct experience with Masonic ritual! My parents have a marriage based on equality and my mother worked for the YWCA at a safe house for battered women and told me all about her job. My last trip to the temple was probably in 2017ish. Women ran for public office while their sister wives raised their kids. I remember looking at my mother feeling shocked and betrayed. Then again I may not.