Ordinances
The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a church of ordinances and covenants. The
ordinances are ordained of God. "They are essential to our salvation and
exaltation. Through the sacred ordinances
of the gospel, we learn of His kingdom and learn of Him, we enter into holy and
eternal covenants, and we receive an endowment of divine power in our
lives."1
In many
congregations the emphasis upon ordinances has been replaced by grace and
faith. Yet the Mormon
Church, as well as The Catholic and
The obtaining of
ordinances is a progressive process. This progression of ordinances teaches
members about their own salvation and the nature of God. "Worthy
participation in sacred gospel ordinances
changes our lives and brings blessings and power to us that we would otherwise
not enjoy. The power of the Atonement itself is unlocked by sacred gospel ordinances that are performed under the keys of
the priesthood. Remission of sins is extended through the ordinance of baptism. Confirmation brings with
it the promise of the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. Ordination to
the Melchizedek Priesthood opens the way for 'every man [to] speak in the name
of God' by teaching, blessing, and comforting others. Worthy participation in
the holy ordinances of the temple reveals
our eternal possibilities and places us in a position to realize them."
3
Baptism washes a
person clean from all sin and unlocks the gates of heaven. It is required to
return to our Father in Heaven. Because baptism is a required ordinance (Mark
16:16), members do proxy baptisms for the
dead within their temples, thus allowing those that did not have a
chance to be baptized on earth to receive the ordinance, with the option to
accept or reject it.
After members
have been baptized they receive the ordinance of the gift of the Holy Ghost
(Acts 2:38). The Holy Ghost is a comforter, teacher, and guide to all worthy
members of the Church.
Another
ordinance is the priesthood.
At age twelve worthy boys receive the Aaronic
Priesthood, followed by the Melchizedek Priesthood at age eighteen, in
preparation for becoming a missionary.
The priesthood is the power of God upon earth. It allows men to act in His name
and gives them the power to perform sacred ordinances that bind on earth and in
heaven.
Other ordinances
are only performed within Mormon
temples, such as the endowment and sealing ordinances. Of the
temple endowment President Brigham Young taught, "Your endowment is, to
receive all those ordinances in the house
of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to
enable you to walk back to the presence of the Father, passing the angels who
stand as sentinels." 4 It is a series of instructions and
covenants made between God and each member.
The sealing
ordinance is performed in the temple during an eternal marriage.
It seals families together and assures that family ties will continue beyond
the grave. If a couple who is sealed are already
parents, their children also participate in that sealing.
Mormons participate in these ordinances because as the Prophet Joseph Smith taught, "Reading the experience of others, or the revelation given to them, can never give us a comprehensive view of our condition and true relation to God. Knowledge of these things can only be obtained by experience through the ordinances of God set forth for that purpose." 5
1. Dennis
B. Neuenschwander, Ordinances and Covenants,"
Ensign, Aug. 2001, 20
2. Dennis
B. Neuenschwander, Ordinances and Covenants,"
Ensign, Aug. 2001, 20
3. Dennis
B. Neuenschwander, Ordinances and Covenants,"
Ensign, Aug. 2001, 20
4. Teachings of Presidents of the Church:
Brigham Young
(1997), 302.
5. Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 324; emphasis in original.