Temples and Temple Work

One of the most distinguishing characteristics of the Mormon Church is its temples.  Temples are sacred buildings, set apart from the world.  They are not ordinary church buildings like chapels.  Mormons have both churches and temples.  In temples, Mormons perform sacred ordinances that strengthen us in this life and prepare us for the life to come.  Also in temples, families can be sealed together for all eternity and faithful Mormons can perform ordinances like baptism for those who died without the chance.

The Holy Endowment

One of the most sacred and defining moments in the life of a member of the Mormon Church comes when they receive their endowment.  An endowment is a gift; in this case it is a gift of knowledge and spiritual power from God.  Jesus referred to an endowment of power when he commanded his disciples to “tarry [...] in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49).  Endue is an older form of the word endow.  In the endowment a person learns more about their place in the world and their relationship to God and the Savior, Jesus Christ.

In the endowment, a person is first symbolically washed and clothed to symbolize becoming a new creature through Christ.  Secondly, through a serious of symbolic presentations, a person learns about the purpose of this world and the mission of Jesus Christ.  A person then makes covenants and receives great promises.  A covenant is binding promise between two people, in this case the covenants are between God and man. Finally, a person enters the Celestial Room which symbolizes salvation and God’s presence.  In this room, which is reserved for quiet prayer and meditation, a person can feel the power and spirit of God’s presence more than anywhere else in the world.  Many people return time and again to pause and pray here seeking for answers to their problems.  As a symbol of the covenants made in temples, Mormons wear sacred undergarments for the rest of their lives.  This garment serves to remind them of those promises and covenants which they have made.

Celestial Marriage and Sealing

For Mormons, one of the highest goals is have their family united forever through Celestial Marriage, which takes place only in temples.  This ceremony is called a sealing.  In a sealing ceremony a couple is married for time and eternity.  Time refers to the duration of this life and eternity to the life to come.  A family that knows they can and will be together forever becomes stronger as they realize the importance of their ties to one another.  This eternal perspective allows us to tolerate and express patience toward one another’s shortcomings.  (See The Family in God’s Plan).

Family History and Temple Work

The prophet Malachi gave the following prophecy from the Lord: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Malachi 4:5-6).  This promise has been fulfilled.  On April 3, 1836, the prophet Elijah appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple (see Doctrine and Covenants 110:13-16).  He gave them power to seal families and generations together.  Without this power and the strength it gives to families, the Lord says that the earth would be struck with a curse.  Everywhere you look today, you can see the dangers that come from broken families.

Not only should our families be united together, but past generations can also be brought closer to the Lord.  Through genealogy, sometimes called family history, you can find out who your ancestors were.  In Holy Temples, there is a place provided where living persons can be baptized on behalf of deceased persons.  This is called baptism for the dead.   The Apostle Peter taught that Jesus visited the souls of people in spirit prison:

"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." (1 Peter 3:18-20)

In the next chapter, he explains the purpose of Jesus visiting these souls:

"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)

All those who have every lived and died without a knowledge of the Gospel will be taught it in the Spirit World and they will have the opportunity of either accepting or rejecting this baptism done for them in the temples.  Mormons consider this one of the most supreme acts of service since we do something for others that they cannot do for themselves.