Endowment (Mormonism)

's Roughing It. The meaning and scope of the term endowment evolved during the early Latter Day Saint movement, of which Mormonism is a part. The term derives from the Authorized King James Version, referring to the spiritual gifts given the disciples of Jesus on the day of Pentecost, in which they were "endowed with power from on high," Christians generally understand this endowment to refer to the gift of the Holy Spirit, which the Latter Day Saints believe is given at the Confirmation ceremony. In 1831, however, Smith began teaching that the elders of the church needed to be further "endowed with power from on high" in order to be effective proselytizers. He therefore gathered the elders together at a general conference in June 1831 and "endowed" them with this power by ordaining them to the High Priesthood. 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. Upon the completion of the Kirtland Temple after three years of construction (1833–1836), the elders of the church gathered for this second promised endowment in early 1836. The Kirtland endowment included a ritual ceremony involving preparatory washings and anointings with oil, followed by a gathering in the temple in which many reported spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues and visions. The Nauvoo endowment Overview The Nauvoo endowment consists of two phases: (1) an initiation, and (2) an instructional and testing phase. The initiation consists of a washing and anointing, culminating in the clothing of the patron in a "Garment of the Holy Priesthood", which is thereafter worn as an undergarment. The instructional and testing phase of the endowment consists of a scripted reenactment of Adam and Eve's experience in the Garden of Eden (performed by live actors—called officiators; in the mid-20th century certain portions were adapted to a film presentation). The instruction is punctuated with oaths, symbolic gestures, and a prayer around an altar, and at the end of instruction, the initiate's knowledge of symbolic gestures and key-words is tested at a "veil." The next day, May 4, he introduced the Nauvoo endowment ceremony to nine associates. Throughout 1843 and 1844 Smith continued to initiate other men, as well as women, into the endowment ceremony. By the time of his death on June 27, 1844, more than 50 persons had been admitted into the Anointed Quorum, the name by which this group called themselves. The LDS Church has never commented officially on these similarities, although certain features of the two rituals have been called "analogous" by one official Church Historian and the apostle Jeffrey R. Holland stated in a BBC interview that endowment ordinance vows to secrecy are "similar to a Masonic relationship." The LDS Church apostle John A. Widtsoe downplayed the similarities, arguing that they "do not deal with the basic matters [the endowment] but rather with the mechanism of the ritual." One LDS Church educator, however, was censured in the 1970s by the Church Educational System for arguing that the endowment ceremony had a dependent relationship with the rituals of freemasonry. Later modifications by the LDS Church After Smith officiated in Brigham Young's endowment in 1842 Smith told him, "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". Over 5,500 persons received their endowments in this temple. Young introduced the same ceremony in the Utah Territory in the 1850s, first in the Endowment House and then in the St. George Temple. During this period the ceremony had never been written down, but was passed orally from temple worker to worker. Shortly after the dedication of the St. George Temple, and before his death in 1877, 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. The committee also removed the violent language from the penalty portions of the ceremony. Prior to 1927, participants made an oath that if they ever revealed the secret gestures of the ceremony, they would be subject to the following: Each temple president received a "President's Book" with the revised ceremony ensuring uniformity throughout the church's temples. the role of the preacher, and all reference to Lucifer's "popes and priests" were dropped. The lecture at the veil was also cut. In the temple endowment, women were previously urged to be a priestess "unto her husband," while men were promised they will be priests to God. In January 2019, that topic was removed from the endowment process, in accordance with other changes that included more lines for Eve in their ritual performance of the Book of Genesis. Also in 2019, a letter from the church's First Presidency stated that "Veiling an endowed woman's face prior to burial is optional." It had previously been required. The letter went on to say that such veiling, "may be done if the sister expressed such a desire while she was living. In cases where the wishes of the deceased sister on this matter are not known, her family should be consulted." The Church announced in 1988 that 100 million vicarious endowments had been performed on behalf of deceased persons. ==Modern endowment as practiced by the LDS Church==

used during the modern LDS endowment and sealing marriage ceremonies. For men, a cap and pants are worn instead of a veil and dress. The most well-known Mormon endowment ceremony is that performed by the LDS Church in its temples. This ceremony is open only to members of the church deemed worthy and given a "temple recommend" by their priesthood leaders after one or more personal interviews. It comprises four parts: • An initiatory composed of the preparatory ordinances of washing and anointing • An instructional portion with lectures and representations • The making of covenants (i.e. oaths) • A testing of knowledge The initiatory The "initiatory" is a prelude to the endowment proper, similar to Chrismation, and consists of: • Instruction • Symbolic washing and anointing ordinances • Being clothed in the temple garment • Receiving a "new name" in preparation for the endowment. The instructional portion , where part of the instruction occurs The endowment focuses on LDS belief in a plan of salvation and changes to the ceremony in 2023 included more discussion of Jesus. Parts of the doctrine of the plan of salvation explained include: • The eternal Nature of God, of Jesus Christ, and their divinity • The pre-mortal existence and eternal nature of man (mankind lived with God before mortal life) • The reality of Satan, who is Jesus' and Adam's rebellious spirit brother • The fall of Adam and the reasons for mortality, trials, and blessings • The Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the need for the Atonement • The relationship of grace, faith, and works • Death, the literal resurrection, and qualifying for one of the three kingdoms of glory (or Outer Darkness) • The need for personal righteousness, covenant keeping, and love of God and fellow man • That Heavenly Father loves humanity as his children and wants people to become like he is, to receive joy • The sanctity and eternal nature of the family – cap or veil, robe, sash, green apron, and slippers. At the end of the ceremony, the participant is "tested" at the veil on their knowledge of what they were taught and covenanted to do, and then admitted into the celestial room, where they may meditate and pray, but are discouraged from lingering. At the conclusion of the covenant portion of the ceremony a prayer circle around the altar is conducted using all the tokens' names, and signs. Testing portion {{Annotated image| image = LDS Endowment infographic.pdf| image-width = 850| image-left = -175| image-top = -545| width = 485| height = 33| float = right At the end of the endowment ceremony the participant is tested at a physical veil by a man representing the Lord on the signs and tokens just learned. Transgender individuals who gender transition (even if just by changing their name, pronouns and gender presentation by clothing and hairstyle) are also barred from temple ordinances as of 2020. These restrictions have received criticism from both outside, and inside the LDS church. Held sacredness and perceived secrecy In the modern endowment ceremony, recipients explicitly agree to a "covenant of non-disclosure" to keep some content such as the ceremony's signs and tokens (and formerly penalties) confidential. The apostle David A. Bednar said temple ceremonies are "not secret; they're sacred." Many Mormons hold the making of these covenants to be highly sacred, Adherents promised they would submit to execution in specific ways should they reveal certain contents of the ceremony. In the ceremony participants each symbolically enacted three of the methods of their execution. Aspects of the ceremony held confidential have been published in various sources, unauthorized by the LDS Church. This information includes, in the initiation and instructional/testing phases of the endowment ceremony, certain names and symbolic gestures called tokens and signs. The endowment ordinance, as presented in LDS temples, has been referred to as a "ritual drama" presented in a "theatrical setting". By the fourth century CE, Christian baptism had adopted a more complex set of rituals accompanying it, including washing ceremonies, physical anointing with oil, being signed with a cross on the forehead, and receiving white garments and a new name, all which paralleled the Jewish initiation for priests and kings. The Coptic Book of 1 Jeu describes Jesus instructing the apostles in the hand-signs, names, and seals that they must use before the guardians of heaven would remove the veils of heaven to allow them passage. The temple garment has been compared to the modern tallit katan, a religious undershirt of Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox Judaism. Both the temple garments in Mormonism and the tallit katan are meant to be worn all day under regular clothing as a constant reminder of the covenants, promises, and obligations the wearer is under. Latter-day Saint scholars interpret a biblical scripture in Luke as instructing the apostles to wait for both the pouring out of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost and the endowment ceremony before going out to evangelize. == Notes ==