Development of LDS Temple Worship, 1846-2000: A Documentary History Rating :
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22 of 23 people found the following review helpful.
Invaluable Resource
By Richard Thomas
Devery Anderson has provided an invaluable resource to those interested in LDS temple ordinances, policies and related practices. I was not sure what to expect in a "documentary history" but I was soon fascinated by Anderson's extensive compilation of resources that collectively provides a chronological history of the evolution of LDS temple worship. The sources ranged from the personal diary entries of various members and church leaders to official Church bulletins and circular letters. To fully appreciate the context and value of these myriad resources, a personal knowledge of LDS temple ordinances and a history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are very advantageous and sometimes essential. Much of the temple ordinances and associated practices are of such a sacred nature that they cannot be discussed in detail in the book. Without the experiential education that comes from personal temple worship, a naïve reader would miss some of the wonderful insights that this history provides.
I finished the book with several important perspectives that I would never have gained without this book and it documentary approach. First, LDS temple worship has been and continues to be a regular and important subject of discussion for those sustained by LDS Church members as prophets, seers and revelators. The attention to detail and the time and resources spent by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church on temple related matters is remarkable. Anderson amply documents their concern with maintaining the integrity of the endowment ceremony and other temple ordinances. At the same time, in order to offer these ordinances to every worthy LDS member who desires to receive them, these leaders have developed and approved changes that have enhanced the experience and made temple worship available to members in many lands and in many languages. I found the documentation surrounding the switch from a live dramatization to a film based presentation particularly fascinating.
Second, the history describes the evolutionary changes in the qualifications of those members wishing to enter an LDS temple and the process to receive a recommend to do so over time. Having a context of LDS Church history is important to appreciate such requirements in the current recommend interview as living the Word of Wisdom, providing spousal support in the cases of divorce and being honest in ones dealings with one's fellow man. The emphasis on "worthiness" has been a constant but this documentary history gives a chronological perspective that helps today's members understand the increasingly detailed standards of behavior that are required to gain honest entrance to an LDS temple. Anderson's book also how the administrative process of issuing recommends has changed over the past century and a half. Temple recommends were once valid for only six month intervals, issued only by stake presidents and were left on file at the local temple. With the increase in temples, church membership and modern technology, the recommend process has changed dramatically to accommodate the mobility of members who can attend multiple temples in increasing numbers.
Third, the associated practices of the temple such as the wearing of special undergarments and the actual clothing worn in the temple have been the result of careful consideration and thoughtful decisions over the 150 years covered by this book. The documentary provides the background and reasons for the changes that have occurred including the design and construction of this special clothing, its distribution, care and disposal. Members have faced special situations over time that have required adaptations and modifications of this clothing to accomodate those in military service and those who have physical handicaps. The attention to detail in the entries in the book regarding this subject is consistently impressive.
Lastly, the continuing application of the doctrine of eternal families to the sealing ordinances performed in LDS temples has seen progressive changes as evidenced by the book's documentation of general policies as well as responses to specific requests for complicated family relationships. Questions and answers about adoption, divorces, second and third marriages and cancelation of sealings are well described in the selected entries from the beginning of such practices in Nauvoo to the year 2000. Over time, some policies have changed while others are the same today as they were in 1846. Anderson's history not only documents the application of this doctrine of eternal families to the living but also to the dead. Anderson provides interesting regarding how the use of computer technology and a new vision for the order in which the temple ordinances are peformed revolutioned the way modern temples operate and the role and functions of the Church's Department of Family History. Throughout all of the changes, the personal involvement of those at the highest level of Church government are consistently protrayed as being actively interested in the the lives of everyday Church members and their attempts to perform temple ordinances for themselves as well as for their ancestors.
This book is not for those that are interested in a light, quick read about LDS temple worship. The introductory chapter is helpful but I would recommend reading it twice, once at the beginning of the book, and again after the entire book has been completed. It is even better the second time around. A time line with major events would have been helpful at the end of the book to provide the reader with a visual representation of the many events reported in the history as well as to keep them in temporal perspective. A few times I was a little uncomfortable with some of the more detailed descriptions of the sacred events of LDS temple worship. However all entries were drawn from publically available resources or with permission of the LDS Church's Historical Department. They were not treated irreverently but the quotes were in more detail than I expected.
I am glad that I took the time to read this 400-plus page documentary history. I am in awe of research that must have been necessary to complete this historical work. It has given me a much greater appreciation of LDS temple worship and its associated doctrines and practices.
19 of 21 people found the following review helpful.Great Insight for LDS Historians
By Bill McGee
This book gathers together an amazing collection of personal correspondence between LDS Church leaders, from Brigham Young to today, on the LDS temple - ordinances, protocols, changes, etc. There are wonderful historical insights, surprising developments, and an insider's look at the development of LDS temple theology. Highly recommended for anyone interested in real LDS history. The documents speak for themselves as there is virtually no intrusion or commentary by the author/editor, however this requires that the reader have some basic understandings of LDS personalities and events to keep things in their historical and theological perspective. The perfect antidote for folks tired of the sanitized histories usually available from the LDS faithful, or the overly sensationalized histories told by LDS detractors.
21 of 24 people found the following review helpful.Great Read
By Bryan Kerr
I bought this book the day it came out from a bookstore, not from Amazon. This is one of those books that you cannot put down. It was a great read. The book has an interesting structure to it. The first chapter is an overview of the history of the development of the LDS temple experience, not just the endowment. The remaining chapters contain primary sources taken from diaries, letters, and other correspondences. The chapters are ordered chronologically. I loved the book. Highly recommended.
Product Description
In LDS theology, temple rites do more than inspire meditations on eschatological themes. Ideally they provide stability and comfort in the temporal world out of the belief that families can be sealed together for eternity. This is not without theological complications. For instance, early in Mormon history, the question was asked regarding which man a child should be attached to in the afterlife: his biological father or the man who murdered his father but was married to his mother? Another question raised in frontier Utah was whether to seal orphans of African descent to their adoptive Caucasian parents. Mormon bishops asked whether a woman could attend the temple after marrying a non-Mormon. The Church s First Presidency also puzzled over how to handle posthumous sealings for nineteenth-century polygamists in Mexico for whom the records had been destroyed. Since 1846 when the first temple with private rituals was completed in Nauvoo, much has changed regarding the content of the ceremonies, policies, and practices: who is married to whom, for instance, and standards regarding temple garments for soldiers and nursing mothers. The documents assembled in this collection include excerpts from leaders diaries, minutes of Quorum of the Twelve meetings, pastoral letters, sermons, and official publications. They include both carefully crafted statements and less formal, behind-the-scenes deliberations.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #205224 in Books
- Published on: 2011-03-24
- Original language:English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.09" h x6.42" w x1.73" l,2.21 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 500 pages
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