Airing a Mormon Temple Endowment ceremony by HBO is certainly unprecedented. The Mormon temples are considered the most sacred of spaces on Earth. Within the temples, several “saving ordinances” are performed, which are required to enter the highest levels of the Celestial Kingdom, including the Endowment and marriage sealings.
It is a significant breach of Mormon law to discuss details of the temple ceremonies outside of the “Celestial Room” within the temple, and the church defends the secrecy of these details passionately, claiming that they need to be confined within the temple due to their highly sacred nature.
Big Love, the HBO series about a family within a polygamous sect (an offshoot from what is known as the Mormon church), is going to be airing an episode which will show the details of the ceremony, from the ritual attire to the rituals themselves.
I’ve never watched Big Love, but I’ll be tuning in to this one. Having gone through the Mormon Endowment ceremony, I’m curious to see how accurate the portrayal is. The advertisement (link above) shows the temple clothes of a woman, and it seems spot on… with the exception that the apron ought to be green, not blue.
I have highly mixed feelings about this, however, which may be a remnant of the Mormonism I was raised with. It was this very ceremony that, due to it being almost entirely foreign in style from the rest of the church, shook my faith to the point that I was able to investigate the church rationally. It is now my opinion that the church has its members go through the ceremony either immediately before serving a mission or getting married as a retention technique.
So… how do I feel about this?
Legally:
I am definitely of the opinion that HBO and the team of Big Love are well within the law. It would be a horribly oppressive act and in complete violation of the First Amendment for the government to step in and censor the broadcast, as some LDS folks are currently advocating. The legality of the situation is hardly questionable - the right to offend is a fundamental piece of free speech.
Effects:
HBO may have awakened a slumbering giant here. In November, the US (and California in particular) witnessed the ability of the LDS Church to politically mobilize, to devastating results. Without question, this will instill vitriol within the Mormon community, the likes of which have never been seen. HBO is broadcasting one of the most sacred of Mormon rituals to a wide audience, and hardly in a sympathetic light at that.
In a sentence, HBO just “pantsed” Mormonism, and like anyone who just got “pantsed,” they’re going to be embarrassed, hurt, and pissed.
If I were still Mormon, I would find myself entrenched in a new battle. Prop 8 envigorated and energized the youth of the church politically, and that was an indirect affront. This could give the same a banner to wave, a new and more righteous cause, and will further reinforce the persecution complex that has been fostered in the church since its inception. This will further “prove” that the powers of the world, driven by mammon (Babylon, Satan, take your pick), are out to destroy the church.
Morally:
The question of the morality of broadcasting the sacred ceremony of someone else’s beliefs is a tricky one. Honestly, I have many conflicting opinions regarding it, and I’m not entirely certain where I stand. Immediately and nearly simultaneously, I can’t help but think:
- Go for it! Perhaps if the absurdity of their faith is brought to light, it’ll marginalize and retard the growth of the church.
- This is inappropriate - there’s no reason to slaughter another man’s sacred cow unless you’ll die of starvation otherwise.
Reprinted from Secular Students' Union of University of Washington.
The above story represents the views of a single SSU member, and does not necessarily represent the views of the SSU as a whole
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Comments
#1 No Longer LDS but still respectful
I do find it hard to believe that with all of the problems we have in this world that people have to pick on churches. Not just the LDS church but others also. I no longer go to the LDS church although I have been through the temple. There are promises or covenants that you make with God and, whether it be right or wrong, you still made those covenants. It has been 11 years since I was there and still to this day, I have kept my promise to God that these things, would not be spoken of outside. I hope that whoever told of these things, knows what they are doing.
Katherine
#2 MORMON TEMPLE RITUALS ARE BARBARIC/ FRIGHTENING
SECRET - NOT SACRED!
The temple ceremonies involve a string of unethical brainwashing practices that leave a person very little opportunity to change their mind.
1. You are not informed prior to first attending what is going to happen.
2. Without any information you are asked if you want to change your mind before the doors are shut not to be reopened until the ceremony is over.
3. The doors are closed and presumably locked.
4. You have all of the pressure of family and friends surrounding you who would be very disappointed in your "unfaithfulness", "rebellion", and "unworthiness" if you were to not follow through by performing the entire ceremony.
5. The expectancy of a mission or a wedding in the following days. You would need to cancel your mission or wedding if you did not follow through with all that entails. This would include contacting all of the wedding guests. Many people would suspect "immoral behavior" because you were not marrying in the temple. The same would be true of not serving a mission after backing out of the temple ceremony. This would greatly influence the person’s standing in the Mormon community, their prospects for marriage, and many friendships would be strained.
6. During the ceremony you swear before god, angels, and witnesses under threat of death pre-1990 and currently under threat of eternal punishment not to reveal what you have learned.
7. Many people feel disoriented after the washings and anointings particularly in the past when you were naked other than a poncho with no sides.
8. You are subjected to the identity masking practice of dressing identically in white with everyone else in the room.
9. You are subject to the disempowering practice of dressing in odd temple robes, faux fig leaf aprons, and unusual hats.
10. Many people are confused and disoriented by the fact that their family and friends in attendance have participated in these bizarre ceremonies repeatedly in the past and have been pressuring you participate too.
11. Many people are also dismayed or concerned that they are participating in secret oaths and combinations that are forbidden by the Book of Mormon.
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GOBS OF VIDEOS AND DETAILS OF SECRET - NOT SACRED MORMON TEMPLE RITUALS
Check out this information and let us know what you think.
Reading through this information and watching the videos brought back a lot of memories of my visits to the temples - YUCK!
Here are the great links....
http://www.mormoncurtain.com/topic_temples_section1.html
http://how2becomeachristianinfoblog.com/2008/11/22/the-secret-mormon-temple-ritual-secret-or-sacred/
Check out my blog to see the Mormon cartoon that depicts the afterlife where Mormon men will have multiple wives with whom they have eternal sex so as to populate their own planets:
http://glasschimes.wordpress.com/2008/10/13/mitt-romney-just-keep-this-in-mind-for-the-future/