The Mysteries of Godliness
The Mysteries of Godliness

Author: David John Buerger

Publisher: Signature Books

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781560851769

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A veil of secrecy surrounds Mormon temple worship. While officially intended to preserve the sacredness of the experience, the silence leaves many Latter-day Saints mystified. What are the derivation and development of the holy endowment, and if these were known, would the experience be more meaningful? Modern parishioners lack context to interpret the arcane and syncretistic elements of the symbolism. For instance, David Buerger traces the evolution of the initiatory rites, including the New Testament-like foot washings, which originated in the Ohio period of Mormon history; the more elaborate Old Testament-like washings and anointings, which began in Illinois and were performed in large bathtubs, with oil poured over the initiate's head; and the vestigial contemporary sprinkling and dabbing, which were begun in Utah. He shows why the dramatic portions of the ceremony blend anachronistic events--an innovation foreign to the original drama. Buerger addresses the abandonment of the adoption sealing, which once linked unrelated families, and the near-disappearance of the second anointing, which is the crowning ordinance of the temple. He notes other recent changes as well. Biblical models, Masonic prototypes, folk beliefs, and frontier resourcefulness all went into the creation of this highest form of Mormon Temple worship. Diary entries and other primary sources document its evolution.

Life in Utah, Or the Mysteries and Crimes of Mormonism
Life in Utah, Or the Mysteries and Crimes of Mormonism

Author: John Hanson Beadle

Publisher: Forgotten Books

Published: 2016-07-23

Total Pages: 586

ISBN-13: 9781332951062

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Excerpt from Life in Utah, or the Mysteries and Crimes of Mormonism: Being an Expose of the Secret Rites and Ceremonies of the Latter-Day Saints, With a Full and Authentic History of Polygamy and the Mormon Sect From Its Origin to the Present Time The vast majority of our people have founded their religious belief on theories not inimical to the public good; and the scores of varying sects which arise from year to year, generally do so only to run a brief and meteor-like race, and sink like dissolved exhalations in the bogs and mire of ignorance from which they arose. But occasionally we see one of these parasitic growths upon the body of religious freedom, which, from peculiar and special causes, extends its existence beyond what we would naturally look for; and a few, originally transplanted from Europe where the parent organiza tion has long since expired, maintain a sort of sickly life through two or three generations in America. Of such are the Shakers from England, and the Har monists from Germany. But where in contact with vital Christianity, they must sooner or later yield; their wild enthusiam is sufficient for rise and growth, but lacks the virtuous energy to direct and continue. To such, comparatively innocent and harmless, the public direct little attention. But there are a few. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works."