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The sacred Latter-day Saint temple ceremony known as the “endowment” has once again undergone revisions, this time removing repetition from the script.
The result: a shorter ritual, which depicts a reenactment of the creation, Adam and Eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden, and humankind’s earthly journey and heavenly return.
All told, roughly 15 minutes have been cut, bringing the experience closer to an hour flat.
Diane Smith, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a frequent temple attendee living in Salt Lake City, said “redundant phrases” had been pulled from the newly “streamlined” version.
“I am always amazed at how each change brings an individual closer to the Lord,” said Smith, when asked about her impressions of the most recent edition of the endowment. “I’m grateful for continual revelation.”
When asked Wednesday about the latest iteration, church spokesperson Irene Caso pointed to a July 2020 statement by the faith’s governing First Presidency “in response to changes that were authorized to the temple endowment ceremony at that time.”
In it, church President Russell M. Nelson and his two counselors noted the “sacredness of the temple ceremonies” and asked “our members and friends not to engage in speculation or public discussions about these changes.”
Still, top Latter-day Saint leaders have issued previous statements publicly emphasizing the evolving nature of the faith’s most sacred rituals. Temple ceremonies have undergone at least four sets of significant changes in the past 5½ years.
(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) An ordinance room in the Manti Temple, where faithful members receive instruction and make sacred promises to God.
In that 2020 statement, for instance, the First Presidency explained that “through inspiration, the methods of instruction in the temple experience have changed many times, even in recent history, to help members better understand and live what they learn in the temple.”
About 17 months ago, the church rolled out other revisions to the ceremony, placing a greater emphasis on Jesus Christ, further boosting gender equity and providing more explanations of the promises participants make to God.
That 2023 update offered an explanation of the vows, or covenants, attendees make as part of the ceremony earlier in the experience, allowing for greater informed consent among those engaging in the ritual for the first time. It also included a nod to a more diverse racial representation than in times past.
And, in a 2019 move widely lauded by Latter-day Saint feminists, the church unveiled changes to the endowment that gave more lines to Mother Eve and made it so women and men entered into the same covenants, rather than separate ones. A portion in which women covenanted to “hearken” to their husbands, meanwhile, was dropped altogether.
From their beginnings in the 19th century to today, temple ceremonies “have been adjusted periodically, including language, methods of construction, communication, and record-keeping,” the First Presidency said in 2019. “Prophets have taught that there will be no end to such adjustments as directed by the Lord to his servants.”
Unlike regular church meetinghouses, where Sunday services are held, temples are viewed by members as Houses of the Lord, places where they take part in their religion’s highest rites, including eternal marriage.
There are 350 existing or planned Latter-day Saint temples scattered across the globe. Since he became president, Nelson has announced the construction of 168, or 48%, of the total tally.
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