Temple (LDS Church) - Temple Ordinances

Temple Ordinances

LDS Church members perform rituals (termed ordinances) within temples. They are taught that temple ordinances are essential to achieving the condition of Exaltation (Mormonism) after the final judgment. They are also taught that a vast number of dead souls exist in a condition termed as spirit prison, and that a dead individual upon whom the temple ordinances are completed will have a chance to be freed of this imprisoning condition. In this framework ordinances are said to be completed on behalf of either the participant, or a dead individual the same sex as the participant ("on behalf of the dead" or "by proxy").

Ordinances performed in the temple include:

• Baptism and confirmation on behalf of the dead
• Priesthood ordination on behalf of the dead
• Washing and anointing (or "Initiatory" ordinances)
• The endowment
• The sealing ordinance is a marriage ceremony explained below

Most ordinances are performed by proxy only on participants who have already completed the ordinance. Similarly, most ordinances are completed only one time for a participant in a lifetime and all subsequent temple ordinance participation is seen as acting for a dead individual. Baptism, Confirmation, and Priesthood Ordination are performed exclusively in temples when on behalf of the dead. The Initiatory, Endowment, and Sealing ceremonies are today performed only within a temple.

The Sealing ordinance can be performed on behalf of dead couples; and so long as the two participants are of opposite sex they do not have to be married. It is also performed on behalf of living couples who wish to be legally married. In this manner, the ordinance is typically performed as a celestial marriage, with the idea the marriage bond literally lasts after their death; "time and all eternity". A "time only" modification can be made to the ordinance; such as when the surviving widow of a celestial marriage wishes to legally remarry.