Doctrinal Criticisms
Changes in the Temple Ceremony
(c) Copyright Michael R. Ash 1999. All rights reserved
Because of the sacred nature of this topic, I will not deal with the details of the temple changes, but rather address the issue: “Are changes possible if we subscribe to the belief that the temple ceremony is revealed from God.”
Critics seem to think that any changes in the LDS Church (whether these changes involve scripture, practices, beliefs, or procedures) somehow demonstrate that the LDS Church is false. They often ask, “Does God change?” The answer, of course, is “No,” God does not change. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). God’s directives, and how He deals with His people often vary, however, according to His people’s understanding and needs. We know that major changes in practices took place during Christ’s ministry. Christ fulfilled the Law of Moses and practices associated with that law were no longer necessary.
Lest our critics claim that all gospel changes were overseen by Christ during his mortal ministry, we must remember that Christ originally taught the gospel only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel (Matt. 15:24) and forbade his apostles from going to the Gentiles (Matt. 10:5-6). Later, however, after Christ’s death, Peter was commanded by an angel to take the gospel to all people (Acts 10, 11; Matt 28:19). Following Christ’s mortal ministry the practice of circumcision also became unnecessary (Acts 15, Gal. 6:15). Changes in the church are not only common, but often necessary. Such changes, however, must be done by inspiration or revelation from the head of the Church, which is Christ.
Many people fail to understand that there are absolute truths and relative truths. Absolute truths (such as: God lives, Jesus is the Christ, the reality of the Atonement) do not change. Relative truths (such as: circumcision, plural marriage, age of priesthood ordination) do change (see Spencer W. Kimball’s, “Absolute Truth”). Many relative truths deal with procedural issues, and how absolute truths are presented, rather than the absolute truths themselves. For example, in my article on Book of Mormon Changes, I discussed some of the grammatical changes made to later editions of the Book of Mormon so that it reads more clearly. The truth of the Book of Mormon is absolute. The grammar, or language used to convey the contents of the Book of Mormon, is relative. The same can be said for changes in the Doctrine and Covenants (article forthcoming). As new truths are revealed, previous revelations are modified to accommodate additional light. “But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, [and] there a little....” (Isaiah 28:13; D&C 98:12.) “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.” (D&C 50:23-24.)
It is not strange that many truths are revealed in stages or degrees. Brigham Young once said:
“I do not even believe that there is a single revelation, among the many God has given to the Church, that is perfect in its fulness. The revelations of God contain correct doctrine and principle, so far as they go; but it is impossible for the poor, weak, low, groveling, sinful inhabitants of the earth to receive a revelation from the Almighty in all its perfections. He has to speak to us in a manner to meet the extent of our capacities.” (JD 2:314.)
Like children, we are sometimes only capable of receiving revelations in part, or in basic form, and often in concepts which are familiar to us in our surroundings.
Behold, I am God and have spoken it; these commandments are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding. (D&C 1:24.)
The Lord expects us to put forth our own efforts, and He will assist as needed. When the brother of Jared approached the Lord concerning the need for light in their barges, the Lord asked: “What will ye that I should do...?” (Ether 2:23.) It was after the brother of Jared thought of a solution (shining stones) that the Lord assisted the brother of Jared by making those stones shine. Although the righteous will be prompted in correct directions by the Spirit, I believe that we (and the prophets) are often expected to figure things out first, after which the Lord will intercede we needed. And thanks to continuing, modern, revelation we have the blessing of hearing the Lord’s word on the subject as the work progresses.
That the temple ceremony has undergone changes, improvements, and refinements, should come as no surprise to Latter-day Saints. Most Latter-day Saints know that the temple presentation has gone from live performances, to movie; from large temples to smaller temples; from ankle-length garments to shorter garments. Modifications in various aspects of the temple have evolved with the living Church. Temple ordinances have evolved as well. Joseph Fielding Smith has noted that the “work of salvation for the dead came to the Prophet like every other doctrine—piecemeal. It was not revealed all at once.” (Joseph Fielding Smith Jr., 2:168.)
What in the temple ceremony has changed? I think it’s more important to understand what has not changed. The need for the endowment is an absolute truth. But what is the endowment? Brigham Young said:
Your endowment is, to receive all those ordinances in the House of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to enable you to walk back to the presence of the Father, passing the angels who stand as sentinels, being enabled to give them the key words, the signs and tokens, pertaining to the Holy Priesthood, and gain your eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell. (JD 2:31)
The endowment is designed to give “a comprehensive view of our condition and true relation to God” (TPJS, 324) by way of instruction and covenants. As noted by Brigham Young, important elements of the endowment include the key words, signs, and tokens. These elements are used to convey absolute truths although they may do so by way of relative truths which are subject to change. Thus, the means by which these important elements are expressed, as well as other components of the endowment– such as penalties, and the dramatic presentation of the endowment– are less essential (relative truths). The significance and purpose of the endowment (an absolute truth) remains unchanged. How God chooses to reveal the message and meaning of the endowment can change according His direction. Thanks to continuing revelation, the endowment can be modified as our understanding changes.
Although Joseph Smith received the principles of the endowment by revelation, he recognized that the presentation of the endowment could, and would, change. In May 1842, after the first endowment was given, the prophet Joseph turned to Brigham (one of the original nine who received their endowments that day) and said:
“Brother Brigham, this is not arranged perfectly; however, we have done the best we could under the circumstances in which we are placed. I wish you to take this matter in hand: organize and systematize all these ceremonies.”
Brigham Young later said:
“I did so. And each time I got something more [meaning that each time he worked on systematizing he had not only his memory and the records kept by Wilford Woodruff and others but also the light of revelation], so that when we went through the temple at Nauvoo [and without Joseph] I understood and knew how to place them there. We had our ceremonies pretty correct.” (Nuttal, 7 February 1877; thanks to Michael Parker for pointing out these quotes.)
In succeeding years, Brigham Young suggested that the presentation of the endowment could further evolve. On April 6, 1845, in a Nauvoo Conference Brigham Young said:
Joseph in his life time did not receive every thing connected with the doctrine of redemption, but he has left the key with those who understand how to obtain and teach to this great people, all that is necessary for their salvation and exaltation in the celestial kingdom of our God. We have got to learn how to be faithful in a few things; you know the promise is, if we are faithful in a few things, we shall be made ruler over many things. If we improve upon small things, greater will be given unto us. (Millennial Star No. 8, October 1, 1845, vol. vi, pp. 119-123; thanks to Alma Allred for pointing out this quote.)
The dramatic presentation of the endowment has undergone changes. Up until the dedication of the St. George Temple in 1877 “the endowment teachings had been communicated from one person to another in oral form only. President Brigham Young, however, as the lone survivor of the original group receiving the endowment from Joseph Smith in 1842, was concerned that this ordinance be preserved in a perfect form. He therefore spent much time during the early months of 1877 working with two members of the Twelve, who wrote these ceremonies from beginning to end and then taught them to the temple workers.” (Cowan [1995], 240.) The “two members of the Twelve,” who wrote the endowment ceremony were Wilford Woodruff and Brigham Young, Jr. (Buerger, 50.) Wilford Woodruff recorded in his journal: “‘President Young has been laboring all winter to get up a perfect form of Endowments as far as possible. They having been perfected I read them to the Company today.’” (Ibid.) That Brigham Young labored to perfect the endowment “as far as possible,” indicates that it may have varied slightly from the endowment of Joseph Smith. Wilford Woodruff said in reference to temple ordinances:
You have acted up to all the light and knowledge that you have had; but you have now something more to do than what you have done. We have not fully carried out those principles in fulfillment of the revelations of God to us, in sealing the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers. I have not felt satisfied, neither did President Taylor, neither has any man since the Prophet Joseph who has attended to the ordinance of adoption in the temples of our God. We have felt that there was more to be revealed upon this subject than we had received. Revelations were given to us in the St. George Temple, which President Young presented to the Church of God. Changes were made there, and we still have more changes to make, in order to satisfy our Heavenly Father, satisfy our dead and ourselves. (Woodruff [1964], 154; thanks to Alma Allred for pointing out this quote.)
Sixteen years later, Wilford Woodruff met with the Quorum of the Twelve and four temple presidents to harmonize the various and “different” modes of endowment ceremonies. (Woodruff [1985], 9:267.) As the prophets have recognized, a living Church with continuing revelation, will expect the Lord to add further light, correction, and modification, as the needs of His people, and their understanding changes. Richard Cowan explains:
The process of unfolding the Saints’ understanding of temples and temple service has continued. Vicarious endowments for the dead were inaugurated with the completion of the St. George Temple in 1877. For the first time the Saints had the privilege of returning to the temple and, while officiating in behalf of others, renewing their own understanding and appreciation of the great teachings contained in the endowment. In 1894 a revelation through President Wilford Woodruff directed the Saints to trace their genealogies and be sealed to their own progenitors as far back as possible. Then, in 1918, President Joseph F. Smith received a remarkable vision, expanding our understanding of how the gospel is being preached in the spirit world. (D&C 138.) Paraphrasing the ninth article of faith, we accept all that God has revealed concerning temples and their ordinances, and we eagerly look forward to whatever more he may yet reveal on this important subject. (Cowan [1989], 27.)
Although the doctrine concerning baptisms for the dead was revealed and preformed under the direction of Joseph Smith, it wasn’t until January 11, 1877, in the St. George temple that the first endowments given in behalf of the dead were preformed. “Not long before,” notes Cowan, “President Young had told some temple workers that he had just learned by revelation ‘that it takes as full and complete a set of ordinances for the dead as for the living.’” (Cowan [1995], 240.)
To answer the critics’ charge that the endowment ceremony has changed, we reply: So what? Christ oversaw changes while in His mortal ministry. The Apostles, by revelation, oversaw changes after Christ’s death. And modern day prophets have made changes under the direction of He who stands at the head of this same Church– Jesus Christ. Many anti-Mormons belong to evangelical churches which have also experienced changes. And, as we have already noted, change itself is not wrong. But since evangelicals deny modern-day revelation through prophets, we must ask: Who has directed such unwarranted changes? We might ask the same question they ask of us: “Does God Change?” To quote Stephen Gibson:
Why did God have apostles, prophets, and teachers in His Church (Eph. 4:11) during the New Testament times and now they are no longer needed according to many of the professors of other faiths.
Why did the Lord love the church so much (Eph. 5:25) that He gave Himself (died) for it, now God doesn’t care what church you attend just so long as you accept Christ?
Why does the Bible mention baptism more than 75 times and being “born again” only twice, yet now according to most evangelical ministers one need only to profess Jesus (being born again) to go to heaven while baptism is optional? (Gibson [1986], 31.)
Michael R. Ash
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