The sacred clothing of Latter-day Saint temples, and why it's significant

Found at the Saints Unscripted episode, "The sacred clothing of Latter-day Saint temples, and why it's significant" 

"Unlike today, clothing in ancient times was very costly and difficult to make. The hand spinning and looming process could take possibly hundreds of hours for a single piece of clothing. Thus, the giving of clothing, especially ceremonial clothing, represented a significant bestowing of authority and power."

("The Laver and the Washing and Anointing of Priests", Oct 2019, Daniel Smith)

To Enable Us to Confront and Conquer the World of Evil

“Our participation in temple worship is a sacred privilege, not an entitlement, or simply part of our established routine. We do not come to the temple to hide from or escape the evils of the world. Rather we come to the temple to receive the power of godliness through priesthood ordinances that enable us to confront and conquer the world of evil.” (Elder David A. Bednar: Returning to the Temple, 4:11, https://youtu.be/_97I5BG4EGM?t=251) 

Being in the path and the Temple

A great analogy

https://youtu.be/2b8pIhU66eE

Covenants permit divine influence to flow into our souls

From a FB post of D. Todd Christofferson, Sun 3 Nov 2019

Today I am in Paraguay for the rededication of the Asunción temple. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the beginning of the work in Paraguay. It was in 1949 that missionaries began to serve there. To show you my age, this new mission was established when I was four years old. In my lifetime, the Church and the restored gospel in Paraguay have grown from no presence to 11 stakes, 2 missions, and a beautiful temple. 

To me, the fact that we sacrifice to build temples is an undeniable witness that Jesus Christ is the living, resurrected Son of God. I bear my personal witness that Jesus is the Only Begotten Son of God, our living, resurrected Redeemer. I bear witness that it is Jesus Christ who is the Master Builder of celestial men and women in this, the house of the Lord. 

God does not force grace or goodness upon us, but the covenants we make through temple ordinances permit Him to let His divine influence flow into our souls. This brings power in the priesthood, power to declare the word of God, power to gather scattered Israel, and power to offer redemption to the dead. It is the power to resist temptation and overcome evil. It is the power to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. In other words, it is the power to lay hold on eternal life. 

I pray that all of us may repent daily and become increasingly holy. I pray that each of you will be armed with righteousness and the power of God all the days of your life.

I love how he describes God as not forcing his grace or goodness upon us. God offers his covenants to us. As we accept and honor them, we receive of the grace of God. We receive the power enabling us to become increasingly holy. We receive power to know God because we are doing what Jesus would do in our place.

Founding Fathers Appear to Wilford Woodruff in the St George Temple

Matthias E. Cowley records the account of Wilford Woodruff and the appearance of the founding fathers of the USA in the St.George temple.

Two weeks before I left St. George, the spirits of the dead gathered around me, wanting to know why we did not redeem them. Said they, “You have had the use of the Endowment House for a number of years, and yet nothing has ever been done for us. We laid the foundation of the government you now enjoy, and we never apostatized from it, but we remained true to it and were faithful to God. Everyone of those men that signed the Declaration of Independence, with General Washington, called upon me as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the Temple at St. George, two consecutive nights, and demanded at my hands that I should go forth and attend to the ordinances of the House of God for them. I straightway went into the baptismal font and called upon Brother McCallister to baptize me for the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and fifty other eminent men, making one hundred in all, including John Wesley, Columbus, and others. When Brother McAllister had baptized me for the 100 names I baptized him for 21, including General Washington and his forefathers and all the Presidents of the United States–except three. Sister Lucy Bigelow Young went forth into the font and was baptized for Martha Washington and her family and 70 of the ’eminent women’ of the world. 1 In the April 1898 General Conference, President Woodruff again recalled this sacred experience: ““I am going to bear my testimony to this assembly, if I never do it again in my life, that those men who laid the foundation of this American government and signed the Declaration of Independence were the best spirits the God of heaven could find on the face of the earth. They were choice spirits, not wicked men. General Washington and all the men that labored for the purpose were inspired of the Lord. Another thing I am going to say here, because I have a right to say it.  Everyone of those men that signed the Declaration of Independence, with General Washington, called upon me, as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the Temple at St. George, two consecutive nights, and demanded at my hands that I should go forth and attend to the ordinances of the House of God for them.  Men are here, I believe, that know of this, Brother J. D. T. McAllister, David H. Cannon and James S. Bleak.  Brother McAllister baptized me for all those men, and then I told these brethren that it was their duty to go into the Temple and labor until they had got endowments for all of them.  They did it.  Would those spirits have called up on me, as an Elder in Israel to perform that work if they had not been noble spirits before God?  They would not.” 2 On the night of March 19th, 1894, he [Wilford Woodruff] had a dream which followed his meditations upon the future life and the work that he had done for the dead.  In his dream there appeared to him Benjamin Franklin for whom he had performed important ceremonies in the House of God.  This distinguished patriot, according to his dream, sought further blessings in the Temple of God at the hands of his benefactor.  President Woodruff wrote:  ‘I spent some time with him and we talked over our Temple ordinances which had been administered for Franklin and others.  He wanted more work done for him than had already been done.  I promised him it should be done.  I awoke and then made up my mind to receive further blessings for Benjamin Franklin and George Washington.’ The appearance, therefore, in his dream of Franklin was to him a satisfying conclusion that he had at least received joyfully the blessings that came to him from the ordinances of the Lord’s House.
(Matthias E. Cowley, Wilfrod Woodruff–His Life and Labors, p. 585-9, found at https://josephsmithfoundation.org/wiki/eminent-spirits-appear-to-wilford-woodruff/ )

You have had the use of the Endowment House for a number of years, and yet nothing has ever been done for us. We laid the foundation of the government you now enjoy, and we never apostatized from it, but we remained true to it and were faithful to God. (Wilford Woodruff, in a Conference Report, April 10, 1898; Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 160-61; Wilford Woodruff Journal, August 21, 1877. found at https://historyofmormonism.com/2015/05/25/wilford-woodruff-founding-fathers/)

-

President George Washington was ordained a high priest at that time. You will also be interested to know that according to Wilford Woodruff’s journal, John Wesley, Benjamin Franklin, and Christopher Columbus were also ordained high priests at that time. (Ezra Taft Benson, Sandy, Utah, 30 December 1978; Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 603, found at https://josephsmithfoundation.org/wiki/eminent-spirits-appear-to-wilford-woodruff/ )

-

Video of a Tour of the Rome, Italy Temple

What a beautiful video and message.

"Members of the Church of Jesus Christ declare that a temple is literally the house of the Lord. Each temple is a holy sanctuary in which sacred ceremonies and ordinances of the gospel are performed—by and for the living and also in behalf of the dead.

I invite you to enjoy this video and see inside one of our temples. In this recording, made in the Rome Italy Temple, you will hear from two Apostles of the Lord about promises devout members make there to become better people by following our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ."
(Russell M. Nelson, FB Post, 7 Mar 2019)

Covenants of the Endowment

-

“The ordinances of the endowment embody certain obligations on the part of the individual, such as covenant and promise to observe the law of strict virtue and chastity, to be charitable, benevolent, tolerant and pure; to devote both talent and material means to the spread of truth and the uplifting of the race; to maintain devotion to the cause of truth; and to seek in every way to contribute to the great preparation that the earth may be made ready to receive her King,—the Lord Jesus Christ. With the taking of each covenant and the assuming of each obligation a promised blessing is pronounced, contingent upon the faithful observance of the conditions” (The House of the Lord, James E. Talmage, rev. ed. [1976], 84).

-

“We are a covenant people. We covenant to give of our resources in time and money and talent—all we are and all we possess—to the interest of the kingdom of God upon the earth” (Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple, 35).

-
See also “Lesson 4: Receiving Temple Ordinances and Covenants,” Endowed from on High: Temple Preparation Seminar Teacher’s Manual (2003), 16–20

Holy temples are as necessary today as they were in ancient eras

Spiritual Symbols

My brother in law pointed out a meaning of an oval (or ellipse). The orbit of the planets and other objects around the sun are elliptical. That means they are at times closer to the sun than at other times. When we pull away from God. His light and love draw us nearer to Him if we allow it.

This comforts me in my emotional swings. That I can always draw closer to God. That perhaps I might be able to adjust my proximity to God by adjusting my orbit and by being more constant or like a circle.

Temple Garments

I am glad that the church produced this video about our sacred temple clothing. It is an authoritative and respectful resource for curious people.

What I Hope You Will Teach Your Children about the Temple

-

To enter into the order of the Son of God is the equivalent today of entering into the fullness of the Melchizedek Priesthood, which is only received in the house of the Lord.
Because Adam and Eve had complied with these requirements, God said to them, “Thou art after the order of him who was without beginning of days or end of years, from all eternity to all eternity.” (Moses 6:67.)
[...]
Here is an illuminating passage from Section 107 of the Doctrine and Covenants which tells us how Adam was able to bring himself and his righteous posterity into God’s presence:
“The order of this priesthood was confirmed to be handed down from father to son, and tightly belongs to the literal descendants of the chosen seed, to whom the promises were made.
“This order was instituted in the days of Adam, and came down by lineage in [order] … that his posterity should be the chosen of the Lord, and that they should be preserved unto the end of the earth.” (D&C 107:40–42; italics added.)
How did Adam bring his descendants into the presence of the Lord?
The answer: Adam and his descendants entered into the priesthood order of God. Today we would say they went to the House of the Lord and received their blessings.
The order of priesthood spoken of in the scriptures is sometimes referred to as the patriarchal order because it came down from father to son.
But this order is otherwise described in modern revelation as an order of family government where a man and woman enter into a covenant with God—just as did Adam and Eve—to be sealed for eternity, to have posterity, and to do the will and work of God throughout their mortality. ("What I Hope You Will Teach Your Children about the Temple", Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign Aug 1985)

-

Gilbert Mormon Temple: A Rare Glimpse by Local TV Station

Here is a series of news videos on the Gilbert Temple and temples history in the LDS faith.

To be Willing...

In the sacrament each week, we witness to our Father in Heaven that we are "willing to take upon [us] the name of thy Son, and always remember him and keep his commandments which he has given [us]" (D&C 20:77). Why does it say willing? Elder Oaks said the following:

It is significant that when we partake of the sacrament we do not witness that we take upon us the name of Jesus Christ. We witness that we are willing to do so. The fact that we only witness to our willingness suggests that something else must happen before we actually take that sacred name upon us in the most important sense. 

What future event or events could this covenant contemplate? The scriptures suggest two sacred possibilities, one concerning the authority of God, especially as exercised in the temples, and the other—closely related—concerning exaltation in the celestial kingdom. (Emphasis in original, "Taking upon Us the Name of Jesus Christ" Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Apr 1985)

Later on, he says,

Willingness to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ can therefore be understood as willingness to take upon us the authority of Jesus Christ. According to this meaning, by partaking of the sacrament we witness our willingness to participate in the sacred ordinances of the temple and to receive the highest blessings available through the name and by the authority of the Savior when he chooses to confer them upon us.

And again,

when we witness our willingness to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ, we are signifying our commitment to do all that we can to achieve eternal life in the kingdom of our Father. We are expressing our candidacy—our determination to strive for—exaltation in the celestial kingdom.

Finally,

what we witness is not that we take upon us his name but that we are willing to do so. In this sense, our witness relates to some future event or status whose attainment is not self-assumed, but depends on the authority or initiative of the Savior himself. 

Scriptural references to the name of Jesus Christ often signify the authority of Jesus Christ. In that sense, our willingness to take upon us his name signifies our willingness to take upon us the authority of Jesus Christ in the sacred ordinances of the temple, and to receive the highest blessings available through his authority when he chooses to confer them upon us.

There is power in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The power is to the sanctifying of our heart, mind and body. That we become holy, without spot. That we become his hands and feet to the serving of those around us. That we do what He would do if He were here. That we have the ability to preach by the power of the Holy Ghost that it might be delivered unto the hearts of the children of men. That those who will take in that teaching might benefit of the same eternal gift of life. And that we all are brought into his presence.

There are so many promises here. And it begins with the smallest of steps. Only to be willing to take upon us the name of the Son of God. Only to turn my heart and say, yes, I will do what is takes to receive the name of thy Son. To be His representative. To deliver the saving message and ordinances of the doctrine of Christ.