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Timeline of changes to temple ceremonies in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

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In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS church)—there have been numerous changes to temple ceremonies over time in the church's over-200-year history. Temples are not churches or meetinghouses designated for public weekly worship services, but rather sacred places that only admit members in good standing with a recommendation from their leaders.[1] LDS Church members perform rituals (termed ordinances) within temples. They are taught that God has deemed these ordinances as essential to achieving the faith's ultimate goal after death of exaltation (i.e. becoming like God).[2] They are also taught that a vast number of dead spirits exist in a condition termed spirit prison for whom (by proxy) when the temple ordinances are completed will have the option to accept the ordinances and be freed of their imprisonment.[3] These temple ordinances are performed by a living church member for themself and "on behalf of the dead" or "by proxy".[4][5]

Ordinances performed in the temple include:

Baptismal font in the Salt Lake Temple c. 1912.

Previous rituals no longer performed in the temple include the following (ordered chronologically by year of discontinuation):

Below is a timeline of changes to these ordinances.

Early 1800s

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  • 1831 – Smith "endowed" followers with power by ordaining them to the Melchizedek Priesthood.[15]: 140 [16]: 97–98 
  • 1836 – By the mid-1830s, Smith was teaching that a further endowment was necessary, this time requiring the completion of the Kirtland Temple as a house of God where God could pour out his Holy Spirit. The Kirtland endowment included a ritual ceremony involving preparatory nude washings and anointings in a tub,[7]: 39  followed by a gathering in the temple in which many reported spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues and visions.[17] Black church member Elijah Abel was allowed to participate in the Kirtland ceremonies, but no Black members participated in the Nauvoo temple ordinances during Smith's lifetime (1805—1844) or after, until the ban was lifted in 1978. Scholars disagree concerning whether Smith or his successor Young who formed the LDS Church introduced the Black temple ban.[18][19]
 
Original Red Brick Store c. 1840s where the first Nauvoo endowments were performed.
  • 1840 – Baptisms for the dead began to be performed for the first time. They were initially performed outdoors in the Mississippi River.[20]: 141, 145 
  • 1841 – The outdoor practice of baptisms for the dead was halted until a month later when they were first administered indoors in the Nauvoo Temple.[20]: 145 
  • 1842 – Joseph Smith prepared the second floor of his Red Brick Store, in Nauvoo, Illinois, to represent "the interior of a temple as circumstances would permit".[21]: 2  The next day, May 4, he introduced the Nauvoo endowment ceremony to nine male associates. This close circle of adherents was expanded and later termed the Anointed Quorum.[21] By the time of his death on June 27, 1844, it had more than 50 persons.[22]
  • 1843 – Women begin receiving the endowment.[7]: 48 
  • 1843 – Sealings were performed for the first time. Possibly even in 1842.[23]
  • 1843 – The second anointing was performed for the first time. The first recipients were Smith and one of his wives, Emma.[15]: 189 [8]: 22 [24]
 
The Nauvoo Temple c. 1847
  • 1845 – The Nauvoo endowment ceremony was introduced to the church at large in the Nauvoo Temple. A spacious hall in the temple's attic was arranged into appropriate ordinance "rooms" using canvas partitions. Potted plants were used in areas representing the Garden of Eden, and other areas were furnished appropriately, including a room representing the celestial kingdom.[25]: 366–374  Over 5,500 persons received their endowments in this temple.[26]: 361 
  • 1845 – Brigham Young added the oath of vengeance to the endowment in the Nauvoo Temple following the death of Joseph Smith.[13]: 53 

Late 1800s

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  • 1852 – Between 1852 and 1978, most Black people were not permitted to participate in ordinances performed in the LDS Church temples, such as the endowment, celestial marriages, and family sealings. These ordinances are considered essential to enter the highest degree of heaven, so this meant that Black church members could not enjoy the full privileges enjoyed by other Latter-day Saints during the restriction.[27]: 164 [2]: 296–297  Non-Black spouses of Black people were also prohibited from entering temples.[28] An exception to the temple ban for Black members was that (except for the complete temple ban period from the mid-1960s until the early 1970s under McKay)[29]: 119  Black members had been allowed a limited use recommend to act as proxies in baptisms for the dead.[30]: 95 [27]: 164 
 
The Endowment House stood in Temple Square, Salt Lake City, Utah from 1855 to 1889.
  • 1855 – The first building specifically designed for conducting temple rites with ordinance rooms was constructed and called the Endowment House.[31]
  • 1870s – Second anointings began to be performed vicariously for deceased members of the church.[8]: 30 
 
The St. George Temple
  • 1877 – Shortly after the dedication of the St. George Temple, Young became concerned about the possibility of variations in the ceremony within the church's temples and so directed the majority of the text of the endowment to be written down. This document became the standard for the ceremony thereafter.[7]: 110 
  • 1877 – Young began including the Adam–God doctrine (the belief that Adam is God) in a new "lecture at the veil" during the endowment ceremony.[32]: 32–34 [7]: 100–113 
  • 1877 – The first endowments for the dead were performed.[7]: 108 
  • 1893 – Minor alterations are made to the endowment ceremony.[citation needed]

Early 1900s

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  • 1902 – The Adam–God doctrine was removed from the endowment ceremony.[32]: 34 
 
Full washing and anointing ceremonies in a bathtub like this one in the Salt Lake Temple were discontinued in the 1920s.[33]: 1, 6 
  • 1920s – A shield begins to be used to partially cover the participants during parts of the washing and anointing previously involving nudity, and the actual washing in a bath tub was discontinued in favor of a symbolic washing while seated.[33]: 1, 6 [7]: 107 
  • 1921 – Abstinence from tobacco and from drinking coffee, tea, alcohol became a requirement for participation in temple ceremonies.[7]: 188–189 
  • 1922 – Church president Heber J. Grant discontinued the practice of baptisms for health in the church.[12]
 
Before 1923, all temple garments had full-length sleeves and legs like the one depicted here.[7]: 197 
  • 1923 – While wrist- and ankle-length temple garments continued to be required for temple ceremonies, shorter garments that only went to the elbow and knees were approved for use outside the temple walls.[7]: 197 [34][35]
  • 1927 – The oath of vengeance was removed from the endowment.[13]: 105 [7]: 139–140 
  • 1936 – An explanation of the garment symbols is added to the endowment.[7]: 201 
  • 1945 – The endowment is administered in a language other than English for the first time.[7]: 201 

Late 1900s

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  • 1953 – The first film versions of the endowment ceremony were used.[7]: 213  A scene with lava from the Disney movie "Fantasia" was used in part of the endowment presentation depicting the creation of the earth.[36]
  • Mid-1960s – David O. McKay instituted a complete ban on Black people participating in any temple ritual.[29]
  • 1960's – Live-action endowments are fazed out in most temples in favor of film versions.[13]: 108, 112 
  • 1960's – The preacher's Protestant hymn in the endowment is discontinued.[7]: 227 
  • Late 1960's – Wording was removed from the endowment ceremony describing Satan as having black skin.[37]: 28 [13]: 113 
  • Early 1970s – The complete ban on Black people in temples ceremonies was partially lifted so they could once again participate in baptisms for the dead again.[29]
  • 1975 – The requirement for wrist and ankle length garments for in-temple use is removed.[7]: 201 
  • 1978 – The temple ban on Black people participating in most temple ceremonies was fully removed.[27]: 117 
 
In 1979, two-piece temple garments like those shown here began to be permitted for recipients of the washing and anointing ceremony.[35]
  • 1979 – Two-piece temple garments began to be permitted for recipients of the washing and anointing ceremony.[35]
  • 1990 – The penalties and their oaths were removed from the endowment.[14] The administration of the five points of fellowship at the veil is also removed.[14] The recitation of the Adamic language phrase "Pay Lay Ale" is removed from the prayer circle at the altar.[38] Women no longer covenant to obey their husbands.[14] The preacher character is eliminated from the endowment ceremony.[39] The lecture at the veil is discontinued.[40] Wording faulting Eve for the Fall is removed.[citation needed]

2000s

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A woman in white and green ceremonial temple garb[41][42] showing the veil positioning used at times in endowment ceremony before 2019.[43][44]
  • 2005 – The partially nude portions of the washing and anointing are ended as participants begin the ceremony already wearing the temple garments. The water and oil are applied only to the head instead of various parts of the body (e.g. the breast and loins).[33]: 6 
  • 2008 – Participants are no longer made to stand while making covenants in the endowment.
  • 2019 – Endowment wording where women were previously urged to be a priestess "unto her husband," while men were promised they will be priests to God[45] was altered, and more lines were added for Eve.[46][47] Additionally, women were no longer required to cover their faces with the veil during certain portions of the ceremony.[43][44]
  • 2023 – The parts where participants each gave the token (a form of handshake) was removed such that the only touching happened at the end of the ceremony. Additionally, the ceremony now opens with a list of the five covenants that individuals will be making in the temple during the ceremony before asking if participants want to leave or remain. A ritual performance was added depicting the War in Heaven in the premortal life. The ordinance was streamlined with less clothing changes and sitting and standing. There is no longer a live witness couple at the altar. The warning to participants to avoid loud laughter and light-mindedness was removed.[36]

References

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  1. ^ Simmons, Brian (December 2017). Coming out Mormon: An examination of religious orientation, spiritual trauma, and PTSD among Mormon and ex-Morman LGBTQQA adults (PDF) (PhD). Athens, Georgia: University of Georgia. p. 65. [A] current temple recommend [allows one] to participate in temple ordinances. In order to hold a current temple recommend, a person must attest to their ecclesiastical leaders that they maintain faith in the LDS Church, and live according to the standards (including no sexual activity outside of heterosexual marriage and abstaining from coffee, tea, alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drugs).
  2. ^ a b White, O. Kendall Jr. (March 1995). "Integrating Religious and Racial Identities: An Analysis of LDS African American Explanations of the Priesthood Ban". Review of Religious Research. 36 (3): 296–297. doi:10.2307/3511536. JSTOR 3511536. 'Celestial' or 'temple' marriage is a necessary condition for 'exaltation' ... Without the priesthood, Black men and women ... were denied complete exaltation, the ultimate goal of Mormonism.
  3. ^ McCombs, Brady (December 21, 2017). "Mormon baptisms of Holocaust victims draw ire". Associated Press News.
  4. ^ Givens, Terryl L. (August 31, 2017). "Sacramental Ordinances—Salvific". Feeding the Flock: The Foundations of Mormon Thought: Church and Praxis (1 ed.). New York City: Oxford University Press. p. 144. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199794935.003.0006. ISBN 978-0-19-979493-5 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ Hammarberg, Melvyn (July 1, 2013). "Endowed from on High". The Mormon Quest for Glory: The Religious World of the Latter-Day Saints. Oxford University Press. p. 180. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199737628.003.0008. ISBN 978-0-19-973762-8 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ Quinn, D. Michael (1992). "Mormon Women Have Had the Priesthood Since 1843". In Hanks, Maxine (ed.). Women and Authority: Re-emerging Mormon Feminism. Salt Lake City: Signature Books. p. 377. ISBN 1-56085-014-0 – via Google Books. Currently some women have received this 'fullness of the priesthood' with their husbands. In the Salt Lake temple, the second anointing still occurs in the 'Holy of Holies' room which James E. Talmage wrote 'is reserved for the higher ordinances in the Priesthood...' The second anointing for both men and women is distinct from ordination to church priesthood offices.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Buerger, David John (1994). The Mysteries of Godliness: A History of Mormon Temple Worship. Signature Books. ISBN 978-1560851769 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ a b c Buerger, David John (1983). ""The Fulness of the Priesthood": The Second Anointing in Latter-day Saint Theology and Practice" (PDF). Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 16 (1). University of Illinois Press: 10–44. doi:10.2307/45225125. JSTOR 45225125.
  9. ^ Garrett, H. Dean (1992). "Rebaptism". In Ludlow, Daniel H (ed.). Encyclopedia of Mormonism. New York: Macmillan Publishing. p. 1194. ISBN 0-02-879602-0. OCLC 24502140 – via Brigham Young University.
  10. ^ Quinn, D. Michael (April 1978). "The Practice of Rebaptism at Nauvoo". BYU Studies. 18 (2). Brigham Young University: 228, 232.
  11. ^ Stapley, Jonathan; Grua, David W. (2022). "Rebaptism in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints". BYU Studies. 61 (3). Brigham Young University.
  12. ^ a b Stapley, Jonathan; Wright, Kristine (2008). "'They Shall Be Made Whole': A History of Baptism for Health". Journal of Mormon History. SSRN 1664180 – via Utah State University.
  13. ^ a b c d e Buerger, David John (1987). "The Development of the Mormon Temple Endowment Ceremony". Dialogue. 20 (4). University of Illinois Press.
  14. ^ a b c d Dart, John (May 5, 1990). "Mormons Modify Temple Rites Ceremony: Woman's vow to obey husband is dropped. Changes are called most significant since 1978". Los Angeles Times.
  15. ^ a b Prince, Greg (August 15, 1995). Power from on High: The Development of Mormon Priesthood. Salt Lake City: Signature Books. ISBN 978-1560850717. Archived from the original on August 17, 2022 – via Internet Archive.
  16. ^ Phelps, W.W., ed. (1833), A Book of Commandments, for the Government of the Church of Christ, Zion: William Wines Phelps & Co., LCCN 08025600, OCLC 29133525 – via Joseph Smith Papers
  17. ^ Arrington, Leonard J. (October 1972). "Oliver Cowdery's Kirtland, Ohio, 'Sketch Book'". BYU Studies. 12 (6). Brigham Young University: 416–422.
  18. ^ Homer, Michael W. (2006). "'Why then introduce them into our inner temple?': The Masonic Influence on Mormon Denial of Priesthood Ordination to African American Men". The John Whitmer Historical Association Journal. 26. John Whitmer Historical Association: 245–247, 252–254. ISSN 0739-7852. JSTOR 43200245.
  19. ^ Esplin, Ronald K. (July 1979). "Brigham Young and Priesthood Denial to the Blacks: An Alternate View". BYU Studies Quarterly. 19 (3): 398–399.
  20. ^ a b Stephenson, Johnny; Marquardt, H. Michael (Spring 2017). "Origin of the Baptism for the Dead Doctrine". John Whitmer Historical Association Journal. 37 (1). John Whitmer Historical Association: 132–146. JSTOR 26316896 – via JSTOR.
  21. ^ a b Anderson, Devery S.; Bergera, James, eds. (2005). Joseph Smith's Quorum of the Anointed, 1842-1845: A Documentary History. Salt Lake City: Signature Books. ISBN 1-56085-186-4. OCLC 57965858.
  22. ^ Anderson, Devery S. (Fall 2003). "The Anointed Quorum in Nauvoo, 1842-45". Journal of Mormon History. 29 (2): 137–157 – via Utah State University.
  23. ^ Bergera, Gary James (October 2002). "The Earliest Eternal Sealings for Civilly Married Couples Living and Dead" (PDF). Dialogue. 35 (3). University of Illinois Press: 50—51. ISSN 0012-2157. JSTOR 45228384.
  24. ^ Diary of Joseph Smith. September 28, 1843. p. 110 – via Joseph Smith Papers.
  25. ^ Brown, Lisle G. (1979). "The Sacred Departments for Temple Work in Nauvoo: The Assembly Room and Council Chamber". BYU Studies. 19 (3). Brigham Young University. Archived from the original on March 13, 2014.
  26. ^ Brown, Lisle G. (2006), Nauvoo Sealings, Adoptions, and Anointings, A Comprehensive Register of Persons Receiving LDS Temple Ordinances, 1841-1846, Salt Lake City: Signature Books, ISBN 1-56085-198-8, LCCN 2005049999, OCLC 60835589 – via Internet Archive
  27. ^ a b c Harris, Matthew L.; Bringhurst, Newell G. (2015). The Mormon Church and Blacks. Chicago: University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-08121-7 – via Google Books.
  28. ^ Anderson, Devery S. (2011). The Development of LDS Temple Worship, 1846-2000: A Documentary History. Salt Lake City, Utah: Signature Books. p. xlvi. ISBN 9781560852117 – via Google Books.
  29. ^ a b c Reiter, Tonya (October 2017). "Black Saviors on Mount Zion: Proxy Baptisms and Latter-day Saints of African Descent". Journal of Mormon History. 43 (4). Champaign, Illinois: University of Illinois Press: 119. doi:10.5406/jmormhist.43.4.0100. JSTOR 10.5406/jmormhist.43.4.0100 – via JSTOR. Presidents of the Church, with their counselors, consistently gave permission for this level of temple service to be extended to members of African descent, while also forbidding their participation in the endowment ritual. By the mid-1960s, it appears that ... President McKay seems to have agreed that vicarious ordinances should only be done by white proxies, a practice that seems to have been instigated earlier. By the early 1970s, records indicate that black members, once again, had free access to temple fonts in Utah.
  30. ^ Prince, Greg; Wright, William Robert (2005). David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism. Salt Lake City, Utah: University of Utah Press. ISBN 0-87480-822-7 – via Internet Archives.
  31. ^ Brown, Lisle G. (Fall 2008). "'Temple Pro Tempore': The Salt Lake City Endowment House". Journal of Mormon History. 34 (4). Champaign, Illinois: University of Illinois Press: 20. JSTOR 23290829 – via Utah State University.
  32. ^ a b Buerger, David John (1982). "The Adam-God Doctrine" (PDF). Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 15 (1). University of Illinois Press: 14–58. doi:10.2307/45225052. JSTOR 45225052. S2CID 254403590.
  33. ^ a b c Duffy, John Charles (2007). "Concealing the Body, Concealing the Sacred: The Decline of Ritual Nudity in Mormon Temples". Journal of Ritual Studies. 21 (2). University of Pittsburgh: 1–21. JSTOR 44368772.
  34. ^ "Temple Garments Greatly Modified, Church Presidency Gives Permission, Style Change Optional With Wearer". The Salt Lake Tribune. June 4, 1923. p. 12 – via University of Utah.
  35. ^ a b c Hamilton, Jean A.; Hawley, Jana M. (1999). "Sacred Dress, Public Worlds: Amish and Mormon Experience and Commitment". In Arthur, Linda B. (ed.). Religion, Dress and the Body. New York City: Berg Publishers. p. 44. ISBN 1-85973-297-6. OCLC 40646911 – via Internet Archives.
  36. ^ a b Riess, Jana (February 15, 2023). "More Jesus, less touching — new changes to the LDS temple endowment ceremony". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on January 26, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  37. ^ Bush, Lester E. (1973). "Mormonism's Negro Doctrine: An Historical Overview" (PDF). Dialogue. 8 (1). University of Illinois Press.
  38. ^ Naifeh, Steven; Smith, Gregory White (June 9, 2015). The Mormon Murders: A True Story of Greed, Forgery, Deceit and Death. St. Martin's Press. p. 69. ISBN 978-1-250-08742-3 – via Google Books.
  39. ^ Steinfels, Peter (May 3, 1990). "Mormons Drop Rites Opposed by Women". The New York Times. p. A1. ISSN 0362-4331.
  40. ^ Bruno, Cheryl L.; Swick, Joe Steve III; Literski, Nicholas S. (August 9, 2022). Method Infinite: Freemasonry and the Mormon Restoration. Greg Kofford Books. pp. 329, 447 – via Academia.edu.
  41. ^ 'Mormon Underwear' is the Temple Garment and is Sacred to Latter-day Saints. LDS Church. October 22, 2014. Event occurs at 1:55 – via YouTube.
  42. ^ "Temple Garments" (Press release). LDS Church. September 16, 2014.
  43. ^ a b Fletcher Stack, Peggy (January 29, 2019). "On heels of temple changes, faithful Latter-day Saint women no longer need to be veiled before burial". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023 – via Internet Archive.
  44. ^ a b Riess, Jana (January 25, 2019). "Commentary: All this over a twisted temple veil — getting beyond Mormon judgment". The Salt Lake Tribune. Religion News Service. Archived from the original on December 1, 2023 – via Internet Archive.
  45. ^ Hammond, Elizabeth (2015). "The Mormon Priestess: A Theology of Womenhood in the LDS Temple". In Brooks, Joanna; Steenblik, Rachel Hunt; Wheelwright, Hannah (eds.). Mormon Feminism: Essential Writings. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0190248031 – via Google Books.
  46. ^ Riess, Jana (January 3, 2019). "Major changes to Mormon temple ceremony, especially for women". Religion News Service. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
  47. ^ Fletcher Stack, Peggy; Noyce, David (January 2, 2019). "LDS Church changes temple ceremony; faithful feminists will see revisions and additions as a 'leap forward'". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on January 26, 2024 – via Internet Archive.
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