How would you convey the message of the temple?

[Archaea]

The difficulty of the temple for some members, not all, is it is rooted in a tradition that most members don't understand.

Most members have not studied masonic ritual, Egyptian ceremony, or even Middle Eastern symbolism.

What genre would be most convincing?

How does one focus upon file leadership, oganization and rendering order from chaos while embuing the members with authority and sense of need relative to the atonement and return to our Heavenly Father?

How would you achieve this?

[MikeWaters]

what did the Egyptians do?

[Tex]

I would send a revelation.

[Requiem]

Originally Posted by Archaea

How does one focus upon file leadership, oganization and rendering order from chaos while embuing the members with authority and sense of need relative to the atonement and return to our Heavenly Father?

How would you achieve this?

Terrific question. From my experience I was not at all prepared and still remain confused about the literal vs. non-literal aspects. The temple prep classes lack substance, and first timers need more orientation and follow-up. Becomes even more confusing when the older generations talk about the many changes since 1927. I would have surmised that, of all practices, this would have been pure doctrine as originally revealed.

[Sleeping in EQ]

One thing that needs to improve is Temple Preparation. Some Temple Prep instructors do better than others, but the class as packaged stinks.

People should be prepared to interact with the issues of ritual form long before they get those six lessons (or however many it is). They should come expecting to participate in certain ways (theater and architecture as main ones), and should be introduced to how to get the most out of them. You can put it in the bank that my kids will have this discussion with me.

The fact that people are sitting in the Endowment and having entertainment-based assumptions (this is boring, etc.), or simply confusion about the presentation suggests that we're failing on this front (and our consumer culture makes this a tough job). It's as though they're being offered sacrament bread and are wondering where the roast beef and mayo are.

They should be thinking at least a little about the revelatory forms of the written word, the voice, and gesture. They should be taught a little about how to discern meaning in architecture, and the importance of coordinated movement to the "meaning" of ritual.

I also wish that the temples didn't look so 1950s office-like in the interior. There are valuable architectural things going on, but more members would cue into them, and cue into them more powerfully, if they had a more ancient feel. It would help members get out of consumer mode.

[Sleeping in EQ]

Originally Posted by Adam

The best book on point is The Mysteries of Godliness: A History of Mormon Temple Worship. I highly recommend it.

It turns out that Joseph would hardly recognize our current endowment. And that is ok. But interesting. It certainly isn't like what Joseph revealed at all.

That is a good book. A polygamist gave me a copy some years ago.

[Sleeping in EQ]

Originally Posted by Adam

I agree with all of this. If we are going the ancient ritual route, we should prepare people and go all the way.

But there is another option that might be more successful. And that is make it a technological wonder that would blow the Lord of the Rings movies away--make it so you actually feel the hot breath of the Lord literally blowing you back when you stand at the veil and so forth. Make it a harrowing and unforgettable adrenalin and emotional experience. That would pack them in---the covenants wouldn't change.

Then you enter the peace of the Celestial room--I envision my in a Frank Lloyd Wright-craftsman style with a warm fireplace and comfortable couches where you can actually kneel and pray and reflect on the covenants you have made.

I'd prefer this latter option--but agree if we are going the ancient ritual route, we should do it right.

This would be the other way to go.

And while I'm at it, two other issues:

1. If we're going to have films, I'd like the actors in the temple films to reflect a broad ethnicity or racial mix. In the Tokyo Temple, members shouldn't have to always see themselves represented as being white. If there were actors in the Tokyo Temple, most of them would not be.

2. The Celestial Room is a place for both prayer/meditation and sacred conversation. A reminder to the Church about being polite to people involved in both activities would be good. If it's a couch where two people can sit, a quiet conversation about temple stuff should not be shushed. If it's a chair off on it's own, people shouldn't stand next to it to have their chat.

[All-American]

Might as well throw in one voice to say that it's fine the way it is.

I don't particularly like the architecture of church buildings, but I recognize that thriftiness allows for other buildings to be built, so I accept it.