Cwic Show- Recent Changes to LDS Temples

temple imagery & drama temple work the 4 interpreters Mar 22, 2021

The LDS Church Announces new LDS Temple Changes!

The LDS Church just announced that the Salt Lake Temple and the Manti Temple would no longer continue live sessions after their remodeling. In addition, the murals from the Salt Lake Temple are being removed. LDS Temples house core doctrines, wisdom, ordinances, and rituals for members of the church. This episode, while supporting the changes, talks about what we are losing and missing in our temple experiences. Primarily, participation and drama!

Raw Transcript

a few days ago the church made an

announcement about changes in the salt

lake city

and manti temples they are removing the

murals in the different rooms in the

salt lake temple

and ceasing the live sessions in both

the salt lake temple

and the manti temple this episode is

about

understanding and supporting the moves

forward but talking a little bit about

well what we might be missing

[Music]

the lds temple endowment has gone over

several changes

since its inception by joseph smith in

1842 if we even want to call that

the inception there was actually an

awful lot going on in kirtland

before the saints ever even went to

nauvoo

but as we've gone through those changes

for the better

right if we're sustaining the brethren

and sustaining the leaders of the church

and looking at all of these changes

we need to sustain them and say that

this is about moving forward and

progressing

but that doesn't mean that there aren't

things that are lost

in the temple ceremony things that are

important as as

as the leaders of the church move

forward and they try and bring us

forward with it with the temple ceremony

that doesn't mean that it doesn't come

at a cost a cost of good

things for better things perhaps

so this episode is about some of those

good things that are

being lost this episode is not

about the idea of going back in time to

some point where we can

reset things to to a previous date kind

of like you would an operating system on

your computer and eliminate all of those

changes

like i said it's it's there are things

that when you move forward

and you make changes for the better that

at times does come at a cost and so i

want to talk a little bit about those

costs

it's so easy today to go to a temple

ceremony

and even if you've been going for a long

time but especially to those that are

going brand new

and going through the endowment

especially and just be completely lost

on on what is this what is happening

there's reasons for that it was never

meant to be like that

originally the temple is built as a

drama that is really important to to get

right it's built as a drama with

characters

in that drama where the audience

participates

the changes that we've had as we've

we've

tried to become a global church and

utilize

technology and try not to be

too abrasive with culture

moving forward have put us more and more

into a position of being an observer

as if we're going to a movie theater

that is not what the temple was

originally

right the temple originally is a drama

that you have specific characters

that are played by different people it's

always been this way

and that the audience is

a participant right each individual in

the audience is a participant

in that event in that drama and those

dramas might last a full day or two days

or more

and tell a very large

story a profound story an

epic story about each of us individually

and about the plan of salvation

even with the early endowment with

joseph smith and brigham young

these were often times a a full day

event

and and because it's a full day event

and you're going through all of these

things

you're very much a participant in going

through this

and guess what you get context as to

what the meaning

is of all of these things today

i think it's less than a two-hour

ceremony

and a lot of that context has been lost

it's been pulled out

so that we can do more temple work

so that we can we have a much more

elderly

population because of medicine and we

want to accommodate them

we have many many many different

languages we want to make it

uniform for everybody the same text

didn't used to be that way and we want

to use

technology where we are using basically

a movie or now

it seems something more like a

powerpoint

and again these are all positive things

if if you think about

all the intelligence global intelligence

that the brethren get right the leaders

of the church get from around the world

in the church

and difficulties with people in their

temple experiences

and difficulty with people in their

temple experiences

you know we're trying to be it's hard

right we're trying to be one size fits

all for everybody and bring everybody

together bring that unity together of a

global church

and so these things help us to

accomplish those things but

we are losing a number of things and i

think that that idea

of being a participant is the number one

thing we're losing

this is a drama a drama that should be

opening our eyes to the entire plan of

salvation and

our role in it we are not

watching adam and eve right we're

watching a drama where

we are playing the character even if

we are sitting in the chair

all of us are adam and eve that's what

that is about it's not

watching a story about adam and eve it's

a watching a story about us

and in the old times in the old days

we would have a much larger role in

participation

showing that we're adam and showing that

we're eve

let's go through some of these changes

that we've we've had since

we'll call the inception of this again

in in may 4th

1842 in nauvoo but again there were

there were other things that were going

on prior to this

and we ought to look back to kirtland

right you know section 110 when we get

there later this year and come follow me

you'll see in the kirtland temple when

elias

elijah moses all appear with the keys

right of the the of their stewardship

and their priesthood stewardship and

what they're over they only appear

after there are certain ordinances given

in what

the the brethren called at the time

in what the saints called at the time an

endowment

and there were ordinances as it wasn't

complete

right but there were ordinances in the

kirtland temple

and once they those last ordinances were

given

from what they had at that time from

what jose had been revealed to joseph

smith at that time in kirtland

then that's when the outpouring of the

spirit came like pentecost

that's when moses and elias and elijah

appeared

so there is precedent to this well

before

nauvoo but if we look to nauvoo

in may 4th 1842 in that red brick store

where a little more of what we would

think of are the ordinances

of the endowment were given right

there's been a lot of changes since then

at first it was it was more and more

revelation that

added to what was done in those

ordinances and built around the

ordinances

but it was just a beginning here's

here's a quote

uh out of the journal of

l john nuttle uh quoting joseph smith

where he's speaking to brigham young he

says brother brigham this is not

arranged right

talking about after after they had been

working with these ordinances in 1842

but we have done the best we could under

the circumstances in which we are placed

we could still say that about ourselves

today right

we're doing the best we can and i wish

you to take this matter in hand and

organize

and systematize all these ceremonies

right so jose or brigham young had a

very big part in

for example it's him that actually

dramatized the endowment

which is the exact place you would want

to go that's the way it was done

anciently

you go back to the feast of tabernacles

in the old testament

right in sukkot right where everybody

puts together their

their booths their tents

and or representing what were tense in

the wilderness

for the wandering children of israel and

they participated

in a drama that was given to them where

you would have the king and many other

characters the queen

and other characters that would play the

parts

of for example jehovah and others

we can see this very clearly

in the story of king benjamin where

he is there to coronate his son mosiah

right this is a natural place to do this

at a feast of tabernacles setting

for the coronation because it's about

royalty just like the temple ceremonies

about a

royal priesthood and you read in there

thinking oh

they they were really all the people

there were really filled with the spirit

and so they all spoke in one voice as

we're told

think about what that really probably

means

why are they all speaking in one voice

because it's a

chorus right it is it is a response to

the things that the king are saying they

know what they're supposed to say

maybe it's given out to them in

pamphlets but but there's something said

it's

dramatized it's a drama and the people

are

participants in that and what we have

there in the book of mosiah at the

beginning of mosiah

is probably just a very small sliver of

that entire

drama that took place that day with a

coronation

but it's a temple drama

so in 1845 brigham young dramatizes the

endowment

he has a creation room there is a garden

room a telestra room

a terrestrial room and a celestial room

and and that's another thing that we've

lost right in in this and keeping it

short and and

helping the elderly so they don't have

to move around so much and

um you know all really good things

but as you moved from room to room you

understood more and more

where each room was lit a little lighter

and a little lighter and a little

lighter

right and the murals had different

different scenes on them like we've had

in the

salt lake temple that are now being

removed

you got the sense that you were

traveling through the plan of salvation

and and we've lost a little bit of that

context

and an understanding of the progression

that that

the the again the the grandiose epic

style

drama and story that we all are living

through

in 1877 the first recorded endowments

for the dead are performed

and we get the first written text for

for for making the the ceremony

making sure we get it more uniform right

when you've just got

one or two or three temples manti st

george salt lake kind of easy to

to keep tabs on the taps on all that but

but once you start spreading out a

little bit more

you can see how things can change a

little bit and supervision becomes an

issue and

and so it becomes uniform for us in 1877

in 1904-1906

there is the hearings of senator elect

reed smoot

in dc and and the temple comes to light

at that point because they are very

concerned

about the oaths that

senator elect smoot has given to the

church it became a very big

issue and it's like well wait a minute

how dedicated are you to the church as

compared to

the united states how can you fill a a

seat in government

if you are that dedicated to your

religion

you know it's like there's it's it's a

great example of of

state and religion right and how you

have to try and mix those two

in 1936 they added the explanation

at the veil so that was kind of a that

added more

didn't take anything away right that's

kind of nice

i wish we had more and more that was

added in that sense

in 1945 for the first time the endowment

is given in a different language it's

given in

spanish in the mesa arizona temple we're

starting to grow globally and there are

going to

be changes that are they're required

in the 1950s after building several

international temples now

lds temples there is a film

that is created so prior to that point

in the 50s

it was all live presentation where you

had an

actor filling each role that changes

your mindset as to what you're watching

you again it brings you one step closer

when you're talking about a live a live

session

to understanding your role and people's

role as a pre as

as participants and not as watching a

movie

right not watching a story for somebody

else

so understandably the movie what does it

do it makes it so that

everybody easily it makes everything

more uniform

on the feel that you get and it allows

you to have dubbing

right into different languages with the

same movie

again it's it's the drive of progress

for the church

and as we reach out globally and grow

globally

that is driving a lot of this

but it still comes at a cost and then we

can look at some other things that have

been removed right we can talk about

the temple choir there used to be a

temple choir where the participants

would actually sing

a hymn that was removed in the early

20th century

now why is that a big deal well again it

it's

it's the idea of participation that we

lose

that's that's to me is the big thing

you're a part of this

so the congregation sings the hymn as

part of not just a break like we have in

in sacrament meeting but actually is

part of the drama

it's part of what you're doing you're

involved

singing with one voice just like with

king benjamin in his speech

let me start dropping some ideas here of

how that helps you understand scripture

differently

think about when you you hear something

about

con courses of angels or you hear about

the singing and praising right these are

rooted in likely in in temple type

ceremonies anciently they're rooted in

drama and so when you have a temple

experience like that where you are

very clearly participating

you are inserting yourself more into the

scriptures

as that participant especially in the

visions

in the scriptures you become a part of

again it's not a movie that's being

rolled in front of your eyes

and you understand the scriptures

differently

if you were to go through a an ancient

live

presentation of the temple about adam

and eve and the garden of eden story

i promise you you're going to identify

with the movie or the powerpoint

differently

when they're talking about the garden of

eden story you're not going to be

watching history because that's not what

you're supposed to be doing

you're going to be watching your story

and when i say your story i don't mean

your ancestors who are adam and eve

i mean you you that's you

it it's so hard to get that into

people's heads

sometimes i think because it's because

of the change in what we've

done with with the temple again i fully

support it

i fully support it i want us to move

forward i

i want to make sure that we get this uh

get get a a unified church

globally but it doesn't mean i can't be

concerned about what we lose

giving up the good for the better the

temple drama has

always been about you and your

participation

in the great epic story the great temple

drama early in the 20th century there

used to be another oath called the oath

of vengeance

that was removed that was basically

saying you know that a prayer for god to

avenge the blood of the prophets

of course in brigham young's mind that

was probably very close to him with

joseph smith

but think about all of the scriptures

that talk about

the lord hearing the cries of the blood

from the the dust of the earth

right even abel that that's by the way

probably closer to a temple story than

you might think

or the day of atonement where the high

priest would pour the blood

of the ox and the goat down at the base

of the altar

what is that right pouring out your

spirit so to speak it's pouring out life

it's the blood being spilt onto the

ground and crying up to the lord

you might understand those scriptures a

little bit differently in that context

i talk a lot about my interpreter of

temple imagery and drama

and that is something that is very lush

that's why i put that in there because i

think it's important for us to see the

scriptures through that lens

so many of the scriptures are rooted in

the temple experience

both in the imagery of the temple

which is everything from the objects

that would be in the temple the design

of the temple the architecture of the

temple

the journey of going through the temple

the sacrifices that are made

the different altars all of that is

temple imagery and it's really important

to understand all those things because

the scriptures are rooted in those

things

and then the drama right there is

drama there has always been a temple

drama more than likely

there certainly was anciently and the

biggest key about temple drama is

understanding that it's about you and

you

are the participant you are playing a

role of yourself

in a grand theater in a drama

like you are on stage in in one of

shakespeare's plays

that's what the temple drama is

and in many ways many of the great

dramas anciently

probably came out of the temple or those

temples

whether they were of the church or they

were of other ancient civilizations that

that had temples and dramas that went

along with them

the great temple drama is the temple

draw or the great drama is the temple

drama

it's good against evil it's falling down

in a way and then coming back and

overcoming

that that's that's the drama

so i'm grateful for the leaders of the

church that are guiding us forward

and and moving us in a direction that is

going to make things easier for members

of the church

but i think that we also need to try and

hang on to

in one way or the other the idea of

temple imagery and drama

and understanding what those ordinances

are rooted in the context the drama

gives the ordinances context and

understanding

i've got someone that's going through a

new convert that's going through the the

temple next month

and i i mean i just the experience that

she's going to have even for the

difference from what i had

is going to be pretty large there's it's

going to be that much more confusing

right because the context much of the

context is lost

and i think we need to talk about that

more that needs to be

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Cwic Show- Recent Changes to LDS Temples

"I Take This Every Day!"

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Checkout our weekly Cwic Study Group!

Delve deeper!

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Be a part of our mission! Help us help others increase their understanding of the scriptures and increase their faith.

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