I met Anthony Hargrove when he was 23 and I was 25. I invited him to attend The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often inadvertently called the Mormon Church, with me. Several of Anthony’s employees were Latter-day Saints (“Mormons”) and he was interested to see what Mormons believed. After the first church service, he scheduled an appointment with the Mormon missionaries to learn more. Anthony sought answers to questions about where he would go when he died and why God created family relationships on earth if those relationships wouldn’t continue after death. The Gospel of Jesus Christ restored fully in our times in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints answered his questions. Soon after his meeting with the missionaries, Anthony prayed to know if the Church was true. His prayers were answered affirmatively and my father baptized Anthony a member of The Church of Jesus Christ. Our relationship progressed and we determined to marry in the temple.

Mormon Temples

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ, Anthony and I believe that the temple is the House of the Lord. Temples are sacred buildings where ordinances–special acts or ceremonies that have spiritual meanings–are performed. One of those special ceremonies is a wedding. We believe that when married through God’s proper authority in a Latter-day Saint temple the marriage is bound on earth and in heaven. It’s called a ‘sealing’. Marriages performed without proper authority and outside the temple are bound only until the couple is parted by death.

Why Can’t I Enter a Mormon Temple?

Because temples are so sacred, strict standards are maintained regarding entrance. In reality, temples are accessible to every person willing to conform to the commandments of God. That standard includes exercising faith, repenting, being baptized by immersion by one holding proper authority into The Church of Jesus Christ, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and continuing a path of faithfulness by believing in God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost, supporting Church leadership, maintaining appropriate family relationships, practicing chastity, honesty, and refraining from tea, coffee, tobacco, alcohol, and drugs. Living this standard qualifies us for a Temple Recommend, which is a small certificate signed by local ecclesiastical leaders recommending worthiness to enter the House of the Lord. Youth can enter the temple to perform baptisms for the dead after they turn twelve years old. To participate in other temple ordinances, an adult must have been a member of the Church in good standing for at least a year. Before a temple is dedicated, it is open to the public for viewing. Everyone in the community is invited to attend the temple’s open house. 

Weddings in temples are held in a lovely room without pomp and fanfare. Typically a bride and groom’s most intimate family and friends who have a temple recommend are invited to the wedding itself and then the couple holds a reception elsewhere for all other well wishers to attend.

Obeying God’s Commandment

While wonderful, faithful members of other Christian faiths, Anthony’s parents and brothers were not members of The Church of Jesus Christ. We explained that, for us, being married in the temple by someone having authority to marry us for eternity was a commandment from God and critical for us to obey. His parents offered their support to our union, but were very disappointed at not being able to attend the wedding of their youngest son. We lived in Lubbock, Texas, and his parents agreed to travel with us to the nearest temple in Dallas, Texas.

On our wedding day, Anthony and I brought our families to the temple. His parents waited outside of the temple with five of my siblings who were too young to attend the sealing. Anthony’s father asked my teenaged sisters if they were upset at not being able to attend the wedding. My sisters, who were 18 and 16 at the time, explained that they understood why they couldn’t participate and accepted it. While difficult to know parents felt excluded, the commandment to be married in the right place by someone with the right authority has blessed our marriage!

Anthony and I promised God and each other that we would be faithful to our marriage covenant. Because I know Anthony continues to be committed to live the standard to enter the temple, I can trust him implicitly! We are willing to work through hard things together and believe that because of the Savior’s Grace our marriage relationship will remain intact after we die.

If you would like to learn more about how your relationships can be blessed through the ordinances performed in Mormon Temples, I invite you to contact the missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Mormon genealogy work is associated with temple work.   “It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance” (Doctrine and Covenants 131:6).  This verse of scripture needs explanation.  Millions of people have lived on this earth without ever hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The Lord has taught us through modern revelation that these are not held accountable for that which they don’t know.

And these are those who have part in the first resurrection; and these are they that have died before Christ came, in their ignorance, not having salvation declared unto them. And thus the Lord bringeth about the restoration of these; and they have a part in the first resurrection, or have eternal life, being redeemed by the Lord (Mosiah 15:24).

This is ultimate justice.  Members of the Mormon Church have been commanded by the Lord to provide ordinances (which can only be performed with a physical body) for those who have passed away without learning the gospel.  They are taught the gospel as spirits as they await resurrection.  In the Spirit World, people have the same personalities they had while on the earth.  They have volition and can make choices.  They can choose to accept or reject the ordinances performed for them.

Joseph F. Smith had a vision of the spirit world.  He saw that Christ organized a ministry in the world of spirits during the three days between His death and resurrection.

“I opened the Bible and read the third and fourth chapters of the first epistle of Peter, and as I read I was greatly impressed, more than I had ever been before, with the following passages:

“’For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:   By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;   Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.” (1 Peter 3:18–20.)

“’For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.’” (1 Peter 4:6.)

“As I pondered over these things which are written, the eyes of my understanding were opened, and the Spirit of the Lord rested upon me, and I saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great (138: 6-11).

“…While this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance from the chains of death, the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful; “And there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance (138:18, 19).

“…And as I wondered, my eyes were opened, and my understanding quickened, and I perceived that the Lord went not in person among the wicked and the disobedient who had rejected the truth, to teach them; But behold, from among the righteous, he organized his forces and appointed messengers, clothed with power and authority, and commissioned them to go forth and carry the light of the gospel to them that were in darkness, even to all the spirits of men; and thus was the gospel preached to the dead.  And the chosen messengers went forth to declare the acceptable day of the Lord and proclaim liberty to the captives who were bound, even unto all who would repent of their sins and receive the gospel.  Thus was the gospel preached to those who had died in their sins, without a knowledge of the truth, or in transgression, having rejected the prophets” (138:29-32).

Thus, Mormon genealogy is meant to seek after those ancestors who still need to hear the gospel of Christ.  Since this is a huge work, a great deal has been done by the Mormon Church to make family history easier for all.  The Family History Library in Salt Lake City is the largest of its type in the world, and its resources are open to the general public.  The Mormon Church also sponsors small family history centers in church buildings all over the world.  These are also open to the public, and there are volunteers there to help.  These small family history centers are connected by computer to the Family History Library and to the Church’s online resources.  One of those resources is New Family Search.  New Family Search has millions of genealogical files online for anyone to use free of charge.  Mormons also volunteer their time to digitalize genealogical records all over the world.  One project that took many thousands of hours was the digitalizing of the records of Ellis Island in New York, the entry point for millions of immigrants into the U.S.

Mormon genealogy work blesses the lives of millions of people.  If you would like to locate a family history center near you, go to “maps” on the lds.org website.

Additional Resources:

The Mormon endowment session takes about 90 minutes and is always the same.  Temple patrons arrive in Sunday best dress and change into white clothing to participate in the endowment ceremony.  Each temple-worthy person goes through one endowment session for him- or herself and from then on in behalf of a deceased ancestor.  The session takes place in a beautiful room with auditorium seating.  Much of the session is devoted to instruction.  The instruction is centered on the Plan of Salvation.  A film is shown about the creation and God’s dealings with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  Mormons believe that Jesus Christ is the center of the Plan of Salvation, and that God revealed to Adam that Jesus Christ would be the Savior of the world.  In turn, Adam taught his children about Christ and was the first in a long line of prophets who taught the Plan of Salvation.

In the endowment session, patrons learn what God expects of us as followers of Jesus Christ.  They also covenant to follow Christ and to keep His commandments.  These covenants, if kept, bring promised blessings from God.  As such, they are called ordinances.  These are “higher ordinances,” while baptism is considered a foundational or beginning ordinance.  At baptism one is cleansed from sin, and takes upon him- or herself the name of Christ.  Higher ordinances continue with that idea, and are entered into by people who desire to consecrate themselves to Christ’s service.

It may sound boring that the Mormon endowment session is always the same.  Patrons are counseled to stay awake and alert during the session.  With spiritual preparation and prayer, the patron may notice something different each time, and through personal revelation, gain a new awareness of the principles of heaven.  The temple is the House of God, and a place full of peace and light.  By attending, patrons may receive answers to their personal prayers and personal revelation meant specifically for them to help them to meet the challenges of life.  “Endowment” means gift, and the Mormon endowment provides empowerment through the grace of Christ to help us through this difficult sojourn in mortality.

At the conclusion of the Mormon endowment session, patrons go into the most beautiful room in the temple, the Celestial Room, which represents the highest kingdom of heaven.  There, patrons can meditate and pray, or quietly discussed what they have learned in the temple.

The tabernacle which Moses and the Children of Israel were commanded to construct was a portable temple. It was constructed to meet very specific qualifications, which the Lord had revealed to Moses. The tabernacle itself was surrounded by a large fence. In the courtyard of the tabernacle there was a larger altar on which the sacrifices were placed. There was also a large brass basin in which the priests were required to cleanse themselves before entering the tabernacle. In addition to being practical, the ritual washing of hands and feet was symbolic of an inner cleanliness that was required of the priest before entering the Lord’s House.

The tabernacle was covered with a fabric of skins, and upon entering the first room, or Holy Place, the viewer would find three objects. On one side of the room was the menorah. The menorah is a candelabra with seven candles, three on each side of a seventh in the middle. The menorah was a very important symbol in the temple. One of the principle characteristics of deity is higher intelligence; the glory of God is intelligence, and intelligence is light.

On the opposite side, the viewer would see a table of shewbread (or showbread). “The Israelites knew God didn’t eat anything,” said Laurence H. Schiffman, director of Judaic Studies at New York University. “By giving [him] these beautiful breads, eventually shared with the priests, it was a kind of showing that we want to give the best of what we have to the god” (Schiffman, Between Heaven and Earth).

Finally, there was the Altar of Incense. According to the Bible Dictionary, the altar of incense was  similar to the altar in the courtyard, “…but smaller and overlaid with gold. On it incense was burned morning and evening…and on its horns was put once a year, on the day of atonement, the blood of the sin offering (Exodus 30:10).” The scent of the incense would ascend up to the presence of God.

Across the room extended a large piece of fabric referred to as the veil of the temple. It separated the Holy Place from a room called the Holy of Holies, or the most holy place. In that room was the Ark of the Covenant. Seated on top of the ark were two cherubim, or winged angels, their wings facing each other. This area of the Ark was known as the Mercy Seat. Here it was that God would appear to speak to his people, and therefore it was the most hallowed and sacred place in the temple. It was in essence a throne room. In addition to the blood of the sin offering being put on the altar of incense, it was also placed on the mercy seat on the day of atonement. The Jews believed this act cleansed them collectively of their sins from the past year.

Solomon’s temple was built with the same basic concepts in mind, simply on a much grander and more elegant scale. It was unfortunately destroyed during the Babylonian captivity in 600 B.C. It was rebuilt almost 100 years later by Zerrubabel, but was burned in the Roman captivity. Later on, in 17 B.C., Herod rebuilt the temple yet again in an effort to gain favor with the Jewish community. From this history, we see that rebuilding the temple was of the utmost importance to the Jews, as was its sacred nature. Mormon temples are of comparable importance to Latter-day Saints today.

Temples exist to bring light and revelation to God’s people, to help them draw nearer to Him, and

Next – The New Testament and the Christian Temple

‘Mormon’ Temples: A Little Enlightenment The concept of temples is not new; there is a biblical connection between ancient and modern temples, and there are surprisingly simple answers to the questions about the Mormon temple. (Read more)

Global Temples Temples are more than a Mormon religious idea. And not only do temples have a place in Judaism and Buddhism (among others), they have a strong place in Christianity. (Read more)

The Tabernacle What was the importance of the tabernacle in Ancient Israel and how does it align with the idea of temples? (Read more)

The Christian Temple What does Christ and Christianity have to do with temples and why do Mormons use them today? (Read more)

Temple Ordinances The essential ordinances Mormons perform inside the temple are baptism for the dead, endowment, and eternal marriage. What are these ordinances and why are they essential? (Read more)

Entering the Temple Only worthy members of the Mormon Church can enter the temple. Why is this – and how do we become worthy? (Read more)

Mormons believe that marriages can last forever – thus the phrase “eternal marriage.”  More formally, the eternal marriage ceremony is called a “sealing” or a “sealing ordinance.”  The bride and groom are not married in a Mormon church building, but in one of the Mormon temples. (See Inside Mormon Temples to see a “sealing room.”)

When a bride and groom are married in the temple, they are sealed together – they are married not only for this life, but for the life after.  Jesus Christ taught that “What God has joined together, let no man put asunder” (Matthew 19:6).  The idea of eternal marriage informs the Mormon’s view of death—that death is a temporary separation of loved ones; they can be together again in the eternities.  Elder James A. Cullimore said, “Marriage in the temple for time and eternity should be the goal of every member of the Church, for marriage is ordained of God. Marriage is a commandment. Marriage was instituted by divine edict.”

God promised the Prophet Joseph Smith in a revelation,”If a man marry a wife by…the new and everlasting covenant…by him who is anointed…it…shall be of full force when they are out of the world.”  Therefore, those sealed in a Mormon temple have the promise that their relationship will continue on forever.  However, they must honor the covenants they made to each another and to God when they married.  Only disobedience can break the eternal bond of a husband and wife.  It is necessary to continue in love and respect in the relationship, and to keep the commandments of Christ, enduring to the end in righteousness.  Those who are married for eternity by the proper authority and endure to the end in righteousness, repenting when necessary,  will inherit the highest level of heavenly glory.
An eternal marriage not only blesses the husband and wife, but their children.  The couple is sealed together, and any children they have are sealed to them.  An eternal marriage is not only an eternal marriage, but the basis of an eternal family.  The blessings of God will come upon each of them individually and jointly.

Remember that God told Adam and Eve to “multiply and replenish the earth.”  Marriage is companionship – beyond and above that, it is the beginning of a family.  In The Family: A Proclamation to the World it states,

“the first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife. Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to care for each other and for their children.”

What Mormons believe about marriages, indeed, is that they need to be strong, and the families need to be strong with them.  Infidelity and indifference can easily be fatal to a marriage and a family.  Family Home Evening, family prayers, family scripture reading are all strengthening activities, and every day should be a reminder that the family is eternal, the marriage is eternal – everyone should be friends, and everyone should love each other.   Elder F. Burton Howard said this about marriage,

“If you want something to last forever, you treat it differently. You shield it and protect it. You never abuse it. You don’t expose it to the elements. You don’t make it common or ordinary. If it ever becomes tarnished, you lovingly polish it until it gleams like new. It becomes special because you have made it so, and it grows more beautiful and precious as time goes by. Eternal marriage is just like that. We need to treat it just that way. I pray that we may see it for the priceless gift that it is.”

As the Tabernacle was a hallowed place, so were the later constructed temples of Solomon, Zerrubabel and Herod.  Christ was born after the reconstruction of the latter.  When Jesus was thirty days old, Joseph and Mary brought their son to the temple, in accordance with the Law of Moses.  At the age of twelve, Jesus and his parents returned to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover, an annual tradition in his family (Luke 2:41-42 KJV).  Jesus Christ knew as a boy where to go to speak of holy things, and his parents found Him teaching the elders in the temple.  His later cleansing of the temple shows that Jesus upheld its sacred nature, even as Jewish leaders were corrupting the Law of Moses and ignoring the identity of Jesus Christ as the true Messiah.

Temples, therefore, must play a role in Christian worship.  This urges other important questions, such as who has the authority to build a temple, how should it be built, and what happens inside once it’s built?  David and Solomon were given specific charges by God to build the temple or perform temple building related tasks.  Clearly, one just can’t just build a temple and stamp Gods’ seal of approval on it without being given the authority to do so.  Yet the scriptures are plain on the necessity of modern temples.  Isaiah said,

And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above all the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths, for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2: 2, 3).

This scripture is referring to the time just prior to the return of the resurrected Jesus Christ.  It is clear that if the symbol of a mountain is referring to a temple, then there must be a restoration of temple worship in modern Christianity before Christ comes again.

To draw connections between ancient temples and modern Mormon temples, in order to go forward, one must first go back.  Let us therefore step back into the time predating Herod or Solomon’s temple-back to the days of the portable Tabernacle. To more fully understand temples, and why a restoration of temples might be necessary, it is important to know what the Tabernacle was like and what happened inside of it.

Next – The Tabernacle

The tabernacle was a holy place, it was sacred.  The priests had to perform ritual washing before even they were allowed to enter.  Aaron, and all who were chosen to perform temple ordinances, repented and dedicated themselves to live God’s commandments.  They wore special, symbolic clothing.  They were careful to do all things according to the dictates of God, down to the very last detail.  God’s spirit dwelt in the wilderness tabernacle and was apparent to all the Israelites; it was literally the house of God on earth.

Such is the temple in modern times a continuation of the temples of old.  Animal sacrifice, which anciently was performed in the outer courts of the temple, has been done away with.  Now, Christ requires a broken heart and a contrite spirit to be placed on the altar.  We sacrifice our sins and worldliness to know Christ.  The modern temple is the house of God, and no unclean thing can enter.

Only worthy Mormons can attend the temple.  Those who attend must be clean inside and out.  Who determines whether a member is worthy to attend?  The member himself.  There are two interviews with ecclesiastical leaders.  They ask questions regarding how the member conducts his or her life and what he or she believes.  Mormons worthy to enter the temple profess a belief in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.  They believe that the Mormon Church is God’s church on earth.  They pay an honest tithe on their income.  They keep “the Word of Wisdom, or law of health.  They are kind to their families and honest in their business dealings.  However, the final question is, “Do you consider yourself worthy to enter the temple?”

Friends of other faiths also inquire, ”Can’t I go anywhere to be close to God?” The answer is, of course.  Some profound spiritual experiences take place out in nature.  However, there is something set apart and special about the temples that is different from just personal closeness to God, although that is a benefit often received by serving there.  In the Mormon temples, we do for others what they cannot do for themselves, and we work out our own salvation too.  That is something that needs to happen in a holy place set apart from the world for just such a purpose.  Temple ordinances are necessary for exaltation.  Mormons go to the temple for their own ordinance work and then on behalf of the deceased.  The deceased live on and can make choices, just as they did on earth.  For those who would choose to have temple work done, but who don’t have earthly bodies to perform that work, proxy work is done by people on earth.  The dead can accept or reject those ordinances at will.

Friends of other faiths sometimes ask, “How can I go inside a Mormon temple?”  Temples are open to the public for a short time before they are dedicated to the work of the Lord.  Guided tours include explanations of what takes place in the Temple.  Many who attend these tours are inspired to talk to the Mormon missionaries.  Some missionaries serve at  Mormon temple visitors’ centers.  There are sister missionaries serving there who are constantly studying and ready to answer questions.

Inside Mormon Temples

By the time Jesus was born, the temple had been corrupted.  Roman soldiers guarded the courts, and money changers set up shop there.  Even so, Jesus spent time there teaching, reading the law, and cleansing the temple.  At the moment of Christ’s crucifixion, the veil of the Holy of Holies was rent, and the Lord’s spirit withdrew from the Jews’ central place of worship.  In 70 A.D. the temple was completely destroyed.

As recorded in the New Testament, Jesus Christ restored and taught the gospel.  He called apostles and gave them priesthood authority to preach the gospel and, most importantly, perform saving ordinances like baptism.  However, Jesus Christ was crucified for the sins of men.  His apostles were rejected and killed, and without revelation through a prophet, the doctrine of Christ, and the ordinances he taught, were changed.  This falling away, or apostasy from the original gospel Jesus Christ taught was prophesied by the very apostles he chose.  In 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-3 it states:

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

1. That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Jesus Christ is at hand,
2. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come [the second coming of Jesus Christ] except there be a falling away first…

This falling away was the result of the philosophies of men being mingled with and corrupting true doctrine.  Mormons call this falling away the Great Apostasy.  It was a time of religious confusion, intellectualizing, and superstition.

As the history books reveal, there was a period of religious reformation in the 1600-1700’s, followed in the United States by a time known as the Great Awakening.  It was during this time that a young boy named Joseph Smith was searching for Christ’s church.  There was so much confusion between the different churches regarding doctrine that Joseph, like many of us, was unsure if the truth was even discoverable. However, he prayed in faith to know what to do, and in answer he saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  He was called to be a prophet, and it is through revelation, and a restoration of the gospel again through one having authority that we have temples on the earth today.

The sacrifice one brings to the Christian temple is a broken heart and a contrite spirit.  The temples are buildings of light and peace.  There, one is protected from outside strife and temptation, for once a temple is dedicated to God, no unclean spirit can enter.  There, one can receive saving ordinances and knowledge of the Plan of Salvation.  One can be sealed for eternity to family members who have passed on.  One can sit in peace and receive inspiration to guide him.  The Christian temple is a place where one can know Christ.