Temples are being modified so nonmormons can attend the wedding ceremonies on the ground floor. Only white clothes allowed beyond the first floor.

I hope it's true!! But, too little, too late.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/16/2013 12:09AM by laurel.

A friend of mine was talking about how the higher ups in SCL were considering that option.

I didn't know if they were doing it.

But, how does that mend the broken family relationships? How does heal the wounded hearts of the family members who were forced to be absent from the weddings of their loved ones?

Hope to GAWD this is true - I've been advocating this on this board and elsewhere for years. It would take one of the church practices that makes non-Mos HATE Mormons and turn it around into a missionary opportunity. Not that I want non-Mos to be the victims of missionaries but their hateful, family dividing doctrine is one of the things that blacken their reputation with potential converts. Not one of the people who work in my nevermo dad's large law firm would have anything to do with missionaries after they found out he was deemed unworthy to attend my temple wedding. They all love him and were appalled by the Mormon church's harsh policy. That is quite a number of people turned against Mormonism in one fell swoop, not to mention those they told. The church is foolish to not fix this.

Which means it's probably not going to be fixed because the COB big wigs can be real fools. And as happy as I'll be for all the young brides, I'll still be bitter my daddy couldn't be at my wedding. I want this stopped but as you say, for some of us it truly is too little, too late.

I don't know how to forgive my self for that...

During the ceremony, the couple are dressed in their full sacred temple robes and cap/veil, and then as part of the ceremony they join hands in the highly sacred "patriarchal grip." Allowing members to witness this would be "casting pearls before swine" and might even evoke a snicker or two out of a surprised/shocked non-member audience.

So, if true, how do you think the church would deal with these sensitive issues?

I would say, ditch the temple robes for the wedding ceremony. What bride pictures herself looking in the "mirrors of eternity" dressed in anything but her bridal gown? As for the patriarchal grip, most nonmembers probably wouldn't even notice it.

And this is exactly why it will never, ever happen.

The easier option is to allow normal weddings at the local chapel prior to the sealing later that day - just as they allow in some parts of the world where the sealing isn't actually recognised as a civil ceremony.

This is how it is done 100% of the time in the UK and while TSCC promotes a view that they don't want the civil marriage to upstage the sealing, this just isn't a problem at all in my experience.

In fact everyone wins this way. In the morning Non-members get to attend the wedding, in a chapel, with often 'church-oriented' talks. You can have a nice reception for everyone, see everyone off and then the couple and LDS family members head off to the temple that evening.

I'm amazed that TSCC hasn't allowed this more broadly. But as was suggested elsewhere, the tithing is obviously more important than people's feelings.

They would have to go up from the bottom floor, dressed in white, before they put their costumes on.

they make too much dough from wedding blackmail

+1

if they have half a brain they will do this.

interesting to consider what might occur along this path though, there will be some fallout among TBM, I wonder what my parents would say?

This really fucking pisses me off because I want people to know how royally fucked up this fucking cult is! I don't want the fucking cult to be able to play off like they weren't ever exclusionary. & if this is true, & it happens, then everyone will be in denial in 10 years that they ever were, & anyone who says different will be all called fucking liars. Fuck this fucking cult, & it's fucking attempts to come off as fucking 'normal'!

...what he/she said!

I agree with you Infinite Dreams. This would be one more desperate attempt for Smith's cult to become more socially acceptable. The truth is the church isn't run by the prophet, it's run by exmormons and the media. The only time they change anything is in response to outside pressure (polygamy, racial discrimination). So now that they know people are disgusted by their exclusionary temple rules, they'll come up with the brilliant idea (or divine revelation) of changing the rules.

I hope they stay weird and get weirder. It's the best way to hasten their demise.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/16/2013 10:22AM by canadianfriend.

I can't agree. I have too much family left in who are going to have the broken hearts created by the current policy.

And if they can attend weddings without paying tithing, they might get free of that more often.

I've never been able to attend 98% of the weddings in my family because of th cult's stupid rules. No one cared about my feelings either, & now I'm basically disowned from my family. I want everyone to see the cult for how it truly is.

BS.....this won't happen for generations. The Temple will be the very last to fall, as it is tied to the most observant.

Sorry to burst your bubble...my temple working parents will never buy off on this....

They've changed other temple ceremonies quite a lot already. I wouldn't be too shocked if they added this one to the list of changes in the coming years.

Vows are still at odds in public.

I'll believe it when I see it.

They would have to make physical modifications to the temples to add new sealing rooms near the entrances (the temple we have here, the sealing room is in the farthest corner from the entrance). What about the temple robes and patriarchal grip? Those kinds of things are not for outsiders to view.

I don't see it happening ANY time soon.

Plus, it keeps the members writing checks to TSCC to make sure they're worthy enough to see their family members get hitched.

I wonder if they're reading RfM . . . and listening :p

...might go over like a lead balloon...

It's just a waiting room. The wedding does not take place in the waiting room. It's like the mud room of a house.

There really isn't any excuse not to have a wedding. A wedding is a wedding and a sealing is a sealing. Have a big church wedding then get sealed, or visa versa. It's just as stupid as being pre-worthy to be baptized or to take the sacrament. Maybe they would get the picture if when we paid tithing we say I will pay my tithing just as soon as I stop masterbating.

and have the gentiles sit in the back.

They ought to open it up so non member family can see their loved ones "receive their endowments" . Now that would be awesome!

They need to fix the marriage covenant so that entering Mormon eternal marriage is not the same as signing up for polygamy. Of course, most Mormons don't realize this.

Agreed, I can't believe I didn't figure that out until recently. I told my mother(who has always promoted polygamy for in the afterlife and told me I would have to accept it to go to heaven.) Her exact words when I told her were "Maybe you agreed to it at your wedding, but I didn't!" LOL.... and yet she still says I have to accept it and I just don't understand it. I understand it...believe me.

From the Tall Man archives . . .

*** For Immediate Release ***

Thomas S. Monson, the prophet and leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced today that weddings performed in the church's temples worldwide will soon be open to all members of the bridal party without regard to church membership or worthiness requirements.

“The Lord has heard our prayers.” Monson said at the noon press conference held at Church Headquarters.

Monson explained that this change was the result of months of fasting and prayer by the church's First Presidency. He detailed that the church has also been working closely with Bonneville Consolidated Materials, a company owned by church, to develop a special material to make this change possible.

At the heart of this change is a breakthrough material called “Templed Glass.” Monson explained. “It looks just like normal glass, but it's able to keep the holy in, and the unholy out.”

“With this new material, we'll be able enclose a special wedding altar on the outside wall of each of our temples. We're designing large viewing panels lined with “Templed Glass” so friends and family members will be able to attend their loved one's weddings without needing to actually enter the temple.”

“Our architects are already hard at work creating large seating areas where members and non-members alike will be welcome to view the nuptials of their loved ones through this special glass. No longer will young couples need to exclude family members from viewing this most special event.”

When pressed for details on the ingredients used in “Templed Glass,” Monson just smiled at reporters and said, “Oh, I suppose its made of snips and snails, and puppy dog tails.”

I'll believe it when... well, You Know.

I'm placing all of my chips on the "No Change" part of the table.

Roll em!