Mormon temple weddings are a sacred and intimate event that takes place inside a Latter-Day Saint temple, symbolizing the eternal nature of marriage. The ceremony includes prayers, scripture readings, and a blessing given by an authorized temple officiant. The couple exchanges wedding bands and is “sealed” together for eternity. Temple sealings ensure that death cannot separate loved ones, as marriages must be sealed in the right place and with the right person.
Mormons believe that the first marriage was performed by God, and marriage and family have an extra meaning for Mormons. To plan a Mormon temple wedding, it is essential to understand the traditions surrounding this celebration of faith. There are only 230 Mormon temples worldwide, and couples qualifying for and desiring an “eternal” marriage must marry in a Mormon temple.
The sealing ceremony typically takes 20 to 30 minutes, and only members in good standing and eligible to enter the temple may attend. Couples must exchange rings and make their marriage vows during the ceremony. Some Mormons may be required to swelter outside with the gentiles during an LDS wedding.
Temple sealings are short and eternal, as they are consecrated in the temple, and only members in good standing and eligible to enter the temple may attend. The couple may clasp hands during the ceremony, and after the vows, they are pronounced husband and wife and receive a blessing from the Church.
Inside every temple, there are bright, cheerful rooms for marriage ceremonies, with an altar at the center and chairs for guests on either side.
📹 Mormon Temple Weddings Explained (Sorry, You’re Probably Not Invited)
Getting married in the temple had nothing to do with me and everything to do with my religion. A few resources I mention in the …
Can a Mormon marry a non Mormon in the temple?
Only faithful Church members can marry in the temple. You can marry someone who isn’t a member, but you can’t do it in the temple.
Marriage outside the temple. Some Latter-day Saints couldn’t marry in the temple for valid reasons like proximity or local laws requiring government marriage. The Church understands and will allow a marriage by legal authority, but it should be sealed in the temple as soon as possible. If a couple follows God’s commandments, they can be sealed in the temple after being married outside the temple. This will also make their children sealed to them.
What happens when you get sealed in the Mormon temple?
If you are sealed to your family, your family will stay together after death. You can also receive the sealing ordinance for your ancestors. This unites your family for eternity.
Are Mormons allowed more than one wife?
Today, members of the Church honor those who practiced polygamy in the early days. However, the Church does not allow plural marriage. The Church always taught monogamy. This is shown in the Book of Mormon (Jacob chapter 2). “Listen to the Lord’s word, my brothers and sisters. “No man among you shall have more than one wife. I will command my people to obey this law, unless I raise up seed for me.” The Lord’s people should be monogamous unless the Lord says otherwise. Latter-day Saints believe the Church practiced polygamy during that time.
What is the secret room in the temple LDS?
Celestial Room A Glimpse of Heaven. After the Endowment ordinance, participants enter the celestial room. No ceremonies are performed here. It is a place of peace, prayer, and reflection meant to symbolize heaven, where we may live forever with our family in the presence of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
Celestial room (Manaus Brazil Temple) This room symbolizes the peace and joy of heaven, where families can live forever with God and Jesus.
Sealing Room: Families can continue forever. God wants us to be happy, and families are important. In the temple, families can be united forever. The scriptures call this the sealing power. Jesus gave the Apostle Peter the same authority to bless people on earth that will continue in heaven.
What is the secret Mormon temple ceremony?
In Mormonism, the endowment is a ceremony that makes participants kings, queens, priests, and priestesses in the afterlife. In the first ceremony, participants act out the story of Adam and Eve. The ceremony includes washing and anointing, a new name, and the temple garment. Mormons are expected to wear the garment under their clothing day and night throughout their life. Participants learn gestures and passwords to help them pass by angels guarding the way to heaven. They are not to reveal these to others. As practiced today in the LDS Church, the endowment also consists of covenants (promises to God) that participants make. All LDS Church members who serve as missionaries or participate in a temple marriage must first complete the first endowment ceremony. The second part of the endowment is the pinnacle ordinance of the temple. It is given to a husband and wife couple to ensure salvation, guarantee exaltation, and confer godhood. Participants are anointed kings, queens, priests, and priestesses. In the first endowment, they are only anointed to become those who follow specified covenants. The second anointing is only given to a select group and not widely known. It was instituted by Joseph Smith in the 1840s with contributions by Brigham Young and his successors. The ceremony is held in Latter Day Saint temples, which are for Mormons only. A small building called the Endowment House was used to administer the endowment ordinance during the construction of the Salt Lake Temple. The LDS Church and several other Mormon denominations practice the endowment. The LDS Church has simplified its ceremony.
Can a woman be sealed to two men?
In the LDS Church today, men and women may enter a celestial marriage with only one partner. A man can be sealed to more than one woman. If his wife dies, he can enter another celestial marriage and be sealed to her and her (or their) deceased spouse(s). Many Mormons believe that these marriages will be valid in the eternities. The husband will live together in the celestial kingdom with all to whom he was sealed. In 1998, the LDS Church changed the policy and now allows women to be sealed to more than one man. A woman can only be sealed to one man at a time. She can only be sealed to subsequent partners after she dies. Proxy sealings, like proxy baptisms, are offered to the person in the afterlife. The celestial marriage covenant requires the couple to remain righteous after this life. If only one is righteous, that person will have a righteous partner in heaven.
New Testament In Matthew 22:28–30, Jesus is asked about marriage after death. He says that after the dead are resurrected, people will not marry or be married. They will be like the angels in heaven. Mormons don’t think Jesus meant marriages won’t exist after the Resurrection. They’ll still exist, but not be performed. All questions of marital status must be settled before that time. Mormons believe only mortals can be the subject of an eternal marriage ordinance. Mortals may receive the ordinance for themselves or by proxy for those who have already died.
Sealing. Celestial marriage is part of the LDS Church doctrine of sealing. After a celestial marriage, the couple and their children are sealed together. If a couple has been married before, their children can go to the temple with them and be sealed to their parents after the wedding.
What do Mormons wear when they get married?
The couple and their guests should wear their best Sunday clothes to the temple. Brides’ dresses in the temple should be long-sleeved, modest, white, and not elaborate. Dresses in the temple should have high necklines. No dresses with trains in the temple, unless they can be removed or bustled for the ceremony. Tuxedos, cummerbunds, formal headwear, and flowers are not allowed in the sealing room. If you have questions about clothing, call the temple where you’re getting married. Grooms wear temple clothes for the ceremony and change into other clothes for pictures. Brides can also wear a temple dress for the ceremony and change into wedding clothes later. You can invite family and friends to your temple marriage. They must be members of the Church with current temple recommends. Temples have different-sized sealing rooms. When you schedule your ceremony, the temple will ask how many people you expect and tell you when to arrive.
Can Mormons kiss before wedding?
Church leaders haven’t given specific guidelines about when kissing is allowed for youth. This is one of those areas where you learn the right way to act and then decide for yourself (see Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith 2007, 284). The right way to do it is this: “Treat others with respect. Don’t do anything that arouses sexual feelings. Pay attention to the Spirit so that you can be clean and virtuous” (For the Strength of Youth, 36). Also, kissing often means you’re in a serious relationship you’re not supposed to have as a teen (see For the Strength of Youth, 4). Being attracted to someone and kissing them are natural, but you need to be careful. If you kiss too early or often, you’re more likely to want to do more. Church leaders haven’t told you when it’s OK to kiss. If you choose to kiss, be sparing.
What does sealing a woman mean?
In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sealing means joining a man, woman, and their children together forever. Only a man with the priesthood can perform the sealing. Latter-day Saints believe that sealing family relationships will last forever if people follow Jesus Christ’s teachings. For Latter-day Saints, the family is the most important unit on earth and in eternity. A Latter-day Saint temple wedding is called a sealing ceremony. Children born to this couple are automatically sealed to their parents. If you join the Church after getting married or if you didn’t marry in the temple for other reasons, you can still be sealed together in the temple later. Parents can have their children sealed to them. These ordinances can also be done for the dead, so families stay together. Jesus Christ talked about sealing in the New Testament.
Can a divorced Mormon remarry?
Many people who divorce no longer want to be with their ex forever. Most who remarry want to be with their new spouse in the next life, not their previous spouse. Latter Day Saints (LDS) couples marry for time and forever. A divorce doesn’t affect temple marriages. A cancellation cancels the eternity part of the union. You must ask the First Presidency of the Church. There is a process to follow.
Temple Sealing Cancellation Follows Divorce. A couple must divorce before cancelling their temple marriage/sealing. But church rules may be different in some countries. Mormons who were only married civilly do not need to apply for a temple sealing cancellation because no sealing exists.
📹 Mormon Temple Wedding (aka Sealing) Ceremony
This is hidden camera footage of a Mormon temple marriage ceremony (also referred to as a “sealing” ceremony). FUN FACTS: …
I must say THANK YOU!!! My family left the Mormon Church before I was born. As you can imagine, I have multiple family members — and they are still in the church, including Bishops. As I was growing up, many of my cousins did their missions and had temple weddings (of which we of course could not attend)…. I am so pleased you are doing this presentation — I am 75 now and over the years my friends have had a hard time believing the explanations I would share … I will be sharing this posting. You have done a great job — very clear and concise. Keep up the good work!! 👍
I was a convert to the church here in Brazil and oh my gosh… My husband’s family is all from the church and they never told me anything, neither did my leaders. I felt so shocked when I left the temple, I got physically sick. Thank you for giving me this platform, I felt so alone. Thank you so much 🙏
My temple marriage in 1978 was one of the worst days of my life. I grew up SO excited to get married in the temple. I married a convert and an RM. Of course his parents could not attend since they weren’t LDS. In those days one had to go through the washing and anointings naked under a poncho. This was changed in 1990 to the way they do it now which as I understand it one dresses in their garments and temple clothes first but someone who has gone through since then can certainly correct me if I’m wrong. Then I went through my endowment and THEN got sealed in marriage. It was a LONG day. The officiator was so old his hands were shaking and we were afraid he would pitch over the altar or onto one of us! He called me by the wrong name also. (This became a joke between us over the years that we weren’t “really married” because my husband married someone named Lorraine). My husband looked like a baker in the hat. I was still so traumatized by the washing and anointing earlier in the day and the endowment I couldn’t even focus on the sealing. I cried all the way to the reception and was furious with my mother and my husband for not giving me a heads up in advance. I understand much has changed since 1978. We left the church in 1992 due to the truth claims. We had no internet and did all of our research in the library. Only looked at church sources also. No “anti-Mormon” literature in those days. Best decision I ever made. My family is all LDS. Anyway it is therapeutic for me to share this and I know it’s long!
Happy for you and your husband to be free. I was raised Mormon from an infant and left in my early 20’s. My dad wasn’t a Mormon, but the rest of family is. When i became a Christian 25 years ago, I’ve been rejected most of the time, even taken out of the will! I’ll take God’s peace and love any day over “being worthy”. God bless you dear girl.
My parents were not married in the Temple. As a child, the boys my age used to corner me at church and tell me how my family would never be together in heaven, my parents were sinners even though my mother came from a prominent LDS family – which made it worse (and my father smoked a pipe in public!) One of them said he heard his mother tell other women that my mother was married in the blue dress!! None of us knew what that meant and I didn’t figure it out until I was in High School, when I was disgusted by it. I spent time in other children’s homes and saw how their parents interacted, particularly how the father treated the mother. My father and mother SHOWED me what love was by the way they lived together. They were partners, they respected each other, and they loved each other. My father worshiped my mother. I was married in my own home, standing in the same place my parents had been married, in a dress I chose myself that I loved. My Mama was with me, alone, getting me ready. I came down our long staircase to Mendelssohn’s “Bridal Suite” with my sister as my Maid of Honor and four of my best friends as Bride’s Maids. I took my Daddy’s arm and he walked me down the aisle. I was married by a Presbyterian Minister who had counseled us for several months and let us write our own vows which were personal, meaningful and exactly what we wanted. When the minister asked, “who gives this woman in marriage?” My father stood up and said, “her mother and I, and by her own choice as we have taught her.
I was baptized in 1996 and I wish I knew more before that. The elders tell you what they are taught to tell you. I moved around quite a bit; I was basically a visitor everywhere I went and my final move to Indiana brought me to an LDS church I planned to stay at. I was never married and had no interest in becoming married. The officials at my church learned I had not yet received my endowment. Here it was 2003, and finally was able to prepare for my endowment. I found the entire day, from beginning to end to be more than just weird. It was everything I believed a religion should not do. Very ritualistic, very mapped; being touched while naked under a fabric flap, and perusal members of my church chant while standing around a pentagram; my stomach turned. I could not wait to get the heck out of there and every minute that passed I promised GOD that if HE could get me home safely I would NEVER go to any Temple ever again as long as I live.
The whole white wedding dress wasn’t even a thing until Queen Victoria wore it for her own wedding. And it wasn’t about purity. It was about flaunting that she had the money to spend on an outfit she was only going to wear once. It made her a fashion icon, of course because she set a trend for all brides in the western world. But people who push the purity idea are wrong. But that’s what happens when a precedent is set. We keep the precedent but forget the actual reason. Then we treat it like it’s something sacred instead of mere coincidence and treat anyone who doesn’t follow the rules like an agent of pure evil 😅
Thank you for sharing the very deep and inner workings of the Mormon religion, the false doctrines and the sadness and restrictions of it all. Thank you for your bravery and I pray for healing, wholeness and restoration from the spiritual abuse that you endured. You are free in Jesus Christ and may HE forever be with you for Jesus is the Only Truth. God Bless You.
I grew up in the Mormon church but my mom, siblings and I left when I was in high school. I was never excited about getting married. So much of my family isn’t Mormon, so inherently I knew a temple wedding would cause conflict and hurt feelings. So my association with getting married was always negative. I didn’t realize how ingrained this was until my husband and I started talking about getting married and I dreaded the idea of having a wedding despite not being Mormon anymore. My husband and I had a courthouse wedding a few years ago. Our son was the only one in attendance. It was perfect for my level of comfort but I’m also a little sad that the concept of a wedding was ruined for me. Might have to do a vow renewal someday if it feels right
28 years ago when my wife and I were married, the vows also included a section for my wife to agree to love, honor and “obey” me. There was nothing that mentioned “obey” in my vows. The ceremony came to a screeching halt when my wife told the officiator to repeat that last bit but leave the word “obey” out. Everyone’s eyes were as big as dinner plates but I couldn’t help but giggle a little bit because I thought the mere concept of my wife needing to obey me was ridiculous! The officiator turned to me and asked if I was okay with this. I told him I was more than okay with it. It’s nice to see that part at least is no longer part of the ceremony. Loved the article, there are hundreds of thousands of members and ex members who I am sure are right there with you on many of the problematic parts of the Mormon Temple marriage.
The fact that as we are raised as women in the church dreaming of our wedding. Every level of YW marriage is uplifted and you are made to be excited for the day it finally happens. I remember as a Mia Maid we made “marriage capsuls” and thinking back now, NONE of it was about the actual day. How distressing it must be to go to the temple and get this????? I am so happy I lucked out on leaving at 18. I do wish I had had your book back then. Healing from religious trauma is a hard bitter road but I would never want it to have happened another way. Life is so much kinder and joyful outside the Mormon church.
I’m so glad you mentioned “you get your own planet in Mormonism.” I was very involved with a man and trying to learn more about his religion, because I really thought we might get married. I studied with the missionaries for several months, but they neglected to tell me a lot. I found out about this planet thing through other sources. It hurt me to break it off with my love, but knew I could never be a Mormon, and I would not leave my church.
Hi, I want to thank to thank you for being so open and honest. I left the Mormons 31yrs ago and I’m 66 now, (to be honest I was excommunicated) but I have NEVER been able to talk about the temple proceedings to my husband. Basically I still had the fear of retribution but thanks to you I finally realised I could talk to him about it all. You are a blessing. xx
My husband and his family were all Mormons until my husband was 14. It was a real shirt show when they all left (he has three siblings). His Dad was a BYU professor. My husband has an older brother and two younger siblings, so it was a little complicated, but they are such a close family even 30 years later. I am going to buy your book and surprise my husband! I think he will find your story so interesting and get a kick out of it (he is totally fine not being a Mormon anymore). Good for you, doing what you need to do to process your experiences! I am glad you are still together.
I had a coworker that gave her baby up for adoption. She was mormon but wasnt active. The adoptive mom asked her to come to their familys sealing. I told her not to go that it would be so painful. She went anyway and they made her stay outside the temple as the adoptive mom went inside and was sealed to her baby for all eternity. Not only was it low key shaming it was a slap in the face to her. She called me weeping. I could not believe the adoptive mom pressued her to go to that.
I was that girl. Who had to cancel her temple wedding after confessing to her bishop some things. Then had to wait a year. Honestly, a blessing in disguise because I had a regular ceremony and a year of a somewhat normal life before going through the temple. I threw up in the days following my endowment. Got sealed anyway because I honestly was afraid of not going to the celestial kingdom with my husband. Took 13 more years for me to fully leave. This was very therapeutic, thank you!
As a Lutheran Christian woman, I find the marriage aspect of Mormonism so interesting and so sad. In traditional Christianity, marriage is something in the life that does not carry over into heaven. Marriage is a gift and blessing that God gives us in this life, but it will not change our heavenly life. There is an understanding that men and women take on different roles in a marriage, but both the man and women are fundamentally equal before Christ. As such, both widows and widowers are permitted to remarry on equal footing, since we know that in heaven, we will neither be married nor given in marriage. We enter the marriage as equals, because we are both equal before God in the end.
Coming from a long line of Mormons, my ancestors coming across with Joseph Smith, I truly believe Mormonism is pure straight a cult! I chose at age 13 to become Catholic. My Mother was not a practicing LDS so it made it easy for me to start my catechism and on to Baptism, First Holy Communion and Confirmation. At 67, I don’t claim any religion. Jesus is my savior and I know he has my back.
You’re doing such great work here! My exmo self was the only bridesmaid waiting in the temple visitor’s center while my sister got married. We have a lot of non-Mormon friends and family, so she held an exchange of vows before the reception, and while she and her husband did everything they could to honor everyone and make it feel inclusive, the emphasis from the officiant was very much as you said, “The real wedding happened earlier today and this is just for show.” I kept the focus on her, but it was “a slap in the face” to a degree not to be included in the “sacred moment,” and to be reminded about that exclusion later. Thanks for that validation; I’ve always felt guilty about having felt that way. I left the church before doing endowments, etc. and after perusal your articles, I’m so glad I did! So very proud of you and looking forward to reading your book. I’m so happy you and your husband were able to leave together. ♥
My grandmother was a young widow. My grandpa died tragically while theu still had 3 minor children between the ages of 8 and 17. She was didnt want to live her life “without companionship” so she intentionally remarried someone she didnt love but liked as a friend because she was unwilling to be sealed to anyone else and she thought if she loved the person she married it would be an insult to his memory. When that marriage fell apart she remarried again to someone that she did not love again. That man divorced her when she got cancer. Both of these men were also widowers and mormon. The second husband stayed close to our family as a good friend. I didnt even know she was married a third time until I was a teenager and my aunt and bio mom told me how traumatizing these experianced were to their family.
I married into the LDS church. Never in my life have I been so disappointed when I received an invitation to a wedding reception but not the wedding of a nephew. Jesus never turned away a sinner. No matter the reason for a person to be in church, we are to take this gifted moment and give it to the Lord to open their hearts while in Gods house. This is something I will never agree with that only the worthy can come into the Mormon chapel.
As an adoptee, i had a unique experience with sealings. Got sealed to my adoptive parents when i was 15, one of them had already been dead for several years so his youngest son was a proxy for him. The whole experience was terrifying since there wasnt any explanation for anything since i hadnt been endowed and wasnt “allowed” to know anything. I even had to cover my eyes at multiple points. Im working on leaving now, but its a hard process when your entire family drilled into you that theres nothing outside of the church. (Happily living with 2 wonderful and supportive partners helping me through this and many other transitions in my life)
I wrote my entire wedding ceremony. I got a book that included the wording from many different Christian wedding ceremonies and used bits and pieces and wrote original similar words, etc. It was completely personal. My dad made a wooden arch. My aunt did flowers for us. It was outside in a park by a lake. Even through the marriage did not last, I still am happy about the wedding I had. I meant every word and every vow, and it meant so much to me.
Wedding night speculation at 33:29. The same happens in evangelical church weddings. Most couples remain virgins until after the wedding. What no one speculates is all the sexual dysfunction that will occur in the marriage as a result of body and sex shaming the couple from a young age. Most will be disappointed on their wedding night.
I am all but out of the church, the only thing that remains is my member ID #. I haven’t been to Sunday services for months. I have been a temple worker. I’ve not worn my garments for a long time, basically I only wore them for about a month after being endowed. I have prayed and asked God to forgive and release me of any covenants made in the temple. Thank you for speaking openly about this subject. The last straw for me was a hymn that was sung one Sunday and I’d never heard it before but realized it was singing praises to J Smith and I’m sorry praises are for Jesus Christ only 🙏🤍
I dated a Mormon for a bit, he always HATED how much makeup I wore and how I dressed. Often shaming me out loud and to his friends. He tried to convert me because he could never marry a non Mormon. He was honestly awful, and gave me so many complexes! He even once said to his friends in front of me that I wasn’t Mrs Right but I was Misses Right now. I really appreciate you telling your story and it truly affirms that I dodged an awful bullet.
This is the first time I’ve seen one of your articles. Thank you so much for sharing your story, and congratulations on you and your husband escaping the bonds of that twisted institution. I’m not a Mormon, never been one, but I’ve read quite a bit about the church, so I’ll definitely check out your book. You and your husband are entitled to a wedding that celebrates your love and commitment to building a life together. Your second wedding doesn’t have to be big and expensive, just full of the love and respect missing from the first one … and a brand new (sleeveless) dress. 💐👰🏼♀️❤️
I’ve never been LDS, but the name mishap made me laugh (in commiseration!) When my husband and I got married almost 25 years ago, the preacher who was set to officiate had to rush to his father (in another state) who was about to pass away. We had 2-3 days to secure another preacher, and the only available person was my elderly great-grandmother’s preacher (also ancient). He had no clue who hubby and I were, so he had a piece of paper with our names written on it inside the open Bible he was holding! 😂 “Do you… looks at note… take… looks at note…” Our wedding was quite the disaster (this is the tip of the iceberg), but we’re still together! 😊 Thanks for sharing on this website, so we non-LDS viewers can learn more about your experiences and the church.
Speaking from the perspective of a guy who married a Mormon, it was a colorful journey. She (ex for 20+ years) wasn’t a practicing Morman, so my time with her was far closer to normal than the time spent around most folks from Utah. Man, oh, man. The vibe that occurred sometimes was awkward. Her family was extraordinary, and I never once felt uncomfortable around them… We flew back to Utah for our civil ceremony, and when we were out together meeting her friends, I sometimes felt very out of place. I was in a rigorous religious home, so the ceremonial aspect wasn’t foreign. Still, the shenanigans that Morman has to adhere to are exponentially more inflated with ritual than my upbringing. She used to joke about the stories regarding the ‘magic underpants.’ It’s strange to me. Mormonism isn’t the only faith drenched in symbolism. What truly saddens me is that all that symbolism counts for Zilch at the end of the road. To think that we exist in a world where your book will benefit people is just sad. I’ve heard it said that the presence of the different types of rituals involved in many religions somehow imparts a significance that would otherwise be missing. The importance lies within the people rather than the ceremony around them. What will it be like when we are all but dust? Who knows until postcards from the afterlife arrive. Why put the extra stress on a young couple just starting out? Their path forward together is already arduous, as is any marriage. The couple can do without the Mormon gasoline on the fire.
My first experience with a Mormon wedding was a friend who converted to Mormonism in order to be married. None of her family, including her parents, no non Mormon friends and no college friends were allowed. She was all alone except for the groom and his Mormon family and friends. We were all shocked as none of us had ever encountered this situation. We just thought it was the weirdest thing we had ever heard of.
I followed the approved plan by the church. Married a returned missionary in the temple. Remained faithful to him, had a large family, note; I don’t regret the children. They are my joy. Stayed active, went according to the “Plan of Happiness”. Fast forward… We’re divorced, I’m free of the cult, my children are out. We’re happier now than before. The critera that is given to find a mate and have a family is skewed to the benefit of a patriarchal corporation. I have told my children to find someone, if they choose to be coupled, who lights you up, who you feel safe with. A better critera in my estimation.
I really appreciate the explanation on your articles, my whole family is Mormon (parents, brothers, etc) and I was for some part of my life as a kid and teenager, but I decided to stop attending the Sunday meetings when I was like 18-19, it was very hard for me cause of course my whole family were expecting me to be a Mormon girl and marry a guy who served a mission, and of course that give me a lot of trouble with my self esteem 😢 but looking backwards I think that was the most courageous thing I could do for myself at that time. Thank you for making this articles exposing all the fucked up things that make Mormonism a cult
One of my best friends was Mormon. Yes I definitely was not invited into the temple at her wedding. Nor was her sister who was Mormon but not in good standing. So we sat on the grass and talked. I did however get to see the inside of a temple at an opening of a new temple. They are stunning…except ya know the whole cult thing.
I went to a wedding at a Temple in Utah County. I’m about 100%% sure the groom agreed to marry in the Temple to keep her from leaving. Its kind of like, “Or else” if you don’t get sealed in the Temple. I wasn’t allowed in the ceremony for the obvious reason that I am non-LDS. I felt a little embarrassed because I didn’t know why I was invited to the Temple if I couldn’t actually go in. I had to wait in the waiting room, with one of the brother in-laws, cool guy, I kept thinking to myself, “I know why I can’t watch the ceremony, but why isn’t he allowed in the ceremony?”. He is LDS 😂. It’s a different religion for sure. One more thing when someone is sealed, for example grandparents, and on person dies. They can move on and get seated to someone else. So that person is in a celestial kingdom waiting for all of eternity and their Earth spouse is sealed to a new person! Nobody has been able to make sense of this to me. One LDS person said, “Oh its because in heaven they have different planets for their spouses”. …ohhhhh ooookay
I dated a Mormon guy when I was in HS. He was ready to leave the church BUT he could not do it since his dad lived in a house they supplied, they paid for his dads BAD habits(booze) and he was expected to work for the church to take care of his dad… it was messed up! I read the book and I honestly could not agree to any of it. Glad you got out! This was both sad and funny. You give others hope and those of us curious about the churches ways some insight! Blessings from a Pagan.
Im so sorry you had these experiences but im glad now you decided for yourself. I love how you talk about this but without being biased. Just totally informational etc. it doesnt sugar coat any of it nor make it out to be worse than it is. Bc i enjoy learning about other religions despite being sure in my beliefs. And there’s so many secrets in the Mormon church. Hopefully this can help others considering joining as they arnt told what its like before. Marriage in every culture is extremely important so to hear this ceremony is saddening. Esp bc they create the 1st secret in your marriage…and if its a good marriage the only secret.
Already commenting 20 seconds in to appreciate the change in quality of the article! I saw your story yesterday on tiktok how John provided you with some new recording stuff and I want to say I’m loving witnessing the evolution of you, Alyssa! Even though I’m not Mormon myself, it’s fascinating to be able to find out more about Mormonism and I really enjoy the content you bring out! Keep doing what you are doing! 🌟
Thank you for speaking your truth. My parents converted to the LDS faith when I was 6 years old so I was raised in the church. I married in the temple (we both lied to get our recommends to be sealed) at age 21. (Way to young as I look back. I had no life experience.) My father’s parents disowned the whole family because they could not attend the temple wedding (I was the oldest of 5 kids and they literally removed all of us from their wills. My only cousin inherited everything). My Mormon husband was verbally and physically abusive, mostly because I was not subservient enough to him. (I basically couldn’t have a life of my own. He could do whatever he wanted, but I had to ask permission to do anything that did not include him.) After 6 years, I had had enough and I left him. I moved to another state and my parents encouraged me to seek out the church in that area for “comfort and support.” Both the bishop and RS president told me I was wrong to leave my husband and I needed to “work on myself and being a better wife to my husband.” Every time I moved, the same thing happened. The bishop would tell me how wrong it was to leave my abuser and that if I had been a better wife, he would have not acted the way he did. “The lord would watch over and protect me from harm as long as I followed the teaching of the church and upheld my temple covenant.” Didn’t’ matter that he wasn’t living up to his end of the bargain nor keeping the covenants he made. Nope…not happening. So 22 years ago I walked away from the church.
I am not Mormon nor would I ever consider joining the church. But I give you a lot of kudos for coming out and explaining much of what takes place that many non-Mormons don’t know about. You were really doing a service to the community for those that are considering joining the church so they have a heads up as to what lies ahead for them. Good luck for your continuing website and book.
I went to the open house recently, it was interesting. The celestial room was very large, and had a fantastic chandelier. The baptism room was amazing, detail-wise and the architecture was beautiful throughout the building. The little socks we had to wear weren’t bad, because their floors were very clean an I didn’t want to mess them up anyway. It was super cool, honestly. I wasn’t raised Mormon, and don’t plan on it, but goddamn if they aren’t good at making pretty castles.
I live in Carlingford, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. We have a temple that the community got to view before it was consecrated 30 + years ago. It was very interesting seeing the hall with the mirrors on either side of the room that meant your reflection and that of the enormous chandeliers went on for ever and the deep pool for baptism with a computer in the corner. Good luck to you
I have seen some of your articles now on Mormon and it is very informative and interesting so thank you for this. I’m an atheist and have no interest in joining and have never beein involved in the Mormon church, this is why i think it is great to listen to people like you who has been in it and even left it to tell/give information about it.
If it weren’t that serious and causing so much harm to people the whole thing would be great comedy… A Club with a secret hangout and a lot of secret handshakes, special holy clothes and all that… and then a bond for time and all eternity can be broken simply by removing your name from a list… Which is fascinating because this makes the club be higher up than even god.
I agree with your sentiments. My wife was equally saddened by the decision not to allow her mother to attend the wedding in the temple because she is not a member of the church. I encourage you to pursue all of these things and enjoy them as it is your dream. It is your right to be happy, and I am sure your feelings deserve that. It is possible to recover from all of this. You are a very special person, and I could see that clearly.
Thank you for sharing your story. I was a convert to the church at 18 and remained in the church for just short of 10 years. More than 20 years later, I still fight the shame at times, flashes that bad things are happening to me because I was not faithful enough. I need to watch your full episode on Mormon stories, and I plan to get your book. Keep sharing dear heart! You are doing great things!
Thanks for this, we only went to one of my Ex-Mormon wife’s siblings many weddings, and I found it super weird hanging out perusal strangers kids while they were doing their thing. Your footage from inside the temple reminded me very much of Freemasonry ceremonies I’ve been through, and I’m glad you acknowledged that some of the temple ceremonies may have been reworked versions of Freemason ceremonies.
Thank you Alyssa for your interesting topic of your experience as a Mormon. Yes, I remember long ago i was traveling during the summer and we visited one temple in Utha. It was pretty and the organ and its music was beautiful. I am Catholic and I think it is interesting the story about your experience in the Mormon. I like to learn about different religious.
My very first endowment session some mental lady sitting behind me kept yanking my head piece down every time I tried to fit it comfortably on my head. After the 3rd or 4th time a temple worker almost got up to say something but then sat back down. My fiance and his mom, everyone in there just stayed silent. I was so set on being positive snd having a spiritual experience that I did not turn and tell her to stop. Everyone with me just ignored it too.
I was an exchange student in Idaho almost 15 years ago and lived with a Mormon host family in a very Mormon area. Thank you for your articles, they are teaching me a lot and putting things into perspective even such a long time after my stay there. My time there was pretty much the beginning of the end of my own religious journey (I grew up catholic in Austria, left the church a few years ago). I just bought your book, I look forward to reading it and perusal more of your articles! Love from Austria 🙂
I am not and never will be LDS. I have many relatives who I love who are Mormons. These relatives are college educated, very intelligent people. I have to question their common sense and ability to question. I “attended” my cousins wedding at the Washington,DC temple in the parking lot. Let me tell you how warm and fuzzy that made me feel. Congratulations on you and your husband freeing yourselves from the LDS church. Many blessings to you both going into the future! ❤
I have both LDS and ex LDS friends. I never looked too far into their religion. It seemed a bit weird to me, but as long as it made them happy, and they didn’t try to ram it down my throat, I didn’t care too much. I’m learning a great deal from your articles (I have btw no idea why the youtube algorithm recommended them to me). But your remark about basketball courts did awaken some memories. I attended maybe five or six services in my life. My friends’ ward was rather big. Normal services were done in two shifts, but for christmas, they had one for the whole congregation, meaning that they opened the divider between the normal church hall and said basketball court to cram in the extra people. It was the least festive christmas service I have ever attended in any denomination. In general, I found the church services to be pretty depressing. Up until then, my experiences with church were mostly lutheran services in a huge, beautiful gothic church from 1300, with a real pipe organ, and lutheran chorales. And suddenly I found myself in a utilitarian 1980s building with a grey carpet that screamed middle management, an electric piano, and honestly pretty dingy hymns. And dry bread and water in plastic cups on plastic trays.
Listening to the process of the ceremony, it’s so different from what I’m used to! I’m Jewish. In our marriage ceremony, there also isn’t anything personalized- but it’s also a very ceremonial event and it’s expected that the couple has figured everything out beforehand. I can talk about it more if anyone is curious- I personally find it very meaningful, but I know that a lot of people might not understand why.
My aunt, uncle, and cousins are Mormon and I grew up sometimes going to church with them, and as I got into my pre-teens, going to the more cutesy fun parts of the Mormon church like teen dances and I even went to girls camp where I thought it was weird that we sang about marriage and finding the “perfect Mormon boy” to marry “for eternity” at 12-16 years old. Anyway, I do have a memory of sitting in the car while everyone went into the temple and I could totally see how that could’ve been a way to make me feel left out and made me curious about what they were doing inside the temple. It honestly feels kind of predatory on the part of my aunt who made an effort to invite me and my sisters and sometimes my cousin’s friends to the different church events. It makes me feel like she was trying to recruit kids to the church while they were still young and impressionable. Your articles are really interesting getting to see the inside of the church this way because it reaffirms those feelings I had as a pre-teen; feeling off about the church and not feeling entirely comfortable, like I was being judged by grown adults. The church also felt kind of suffocating to me. But it also makes me feel weird thinking about the stuff they were doing in the temple while I was just sitting in the car and this is not what I had imagined. Another thing that made me uncomfortable is that my cousins would always talk about how their church was the “true church.”
I’m from the UK and legally you have to be married by someone who has the right certification to marry you so you can’t get married in the temple. It doesn’t work with Scottish/English etc marriage laws. There used to be a strict rule that you had to get sealed within 24hrs of your legal marriage or you had to wait 1 year. I know it has changed now by the church. I never got to that point of the temple and im bloody glad i didn’t
You are awesome! Thanks for your info and perspective. I hope you have an awesome renewing vows. And I hope you know true God! I lived near Snowflake, AZ the temple was open to view when built I have always regretted not going to see it. At the time I had no desire for LDS to think I valued anything or had any interest about the cult but wow what a weird large cult, people just dont realize this freakiness.
Heh. I got married in a Mormon chapel! So, roughly 30 years ago this year, my then bf & I had just decided to get married. He was raised Methodist & was somewhere between Methodist & agnostic at that point in time . I was raised Southern Baptist, but had fully left that (my family refuses to accept this, even now.) I had flirted with Wicca/paganism during college, but by this point I was definitely somewhere between pagan & agnostic. My maid of honor (one of my best friends from college & still one of my dearest friends) had become friends with my bf/husband-to-be & introduced us to her dad, at the time a SB pastor to one of the largest deaf congregations in our area. So, when we decided to get married, we asked him to officiate (he was made fully aware of our religious leanings; luckily he was/is not the sort to get bent out of shape about the religions or lack thereof of his friends). The ceremony was SUPPOSED to happen in my aunt’s backyard. So, of course, it rained. For most of the week before our wedding. But it was supposed to be clear on the day. The whole wedding party shows up at my aunt’s & we realize that while her yard is not a swampy mess, it is… well… rather DAMP, and mushy. My aunt had already gotten permission from the local Mormons to use the parking lot of their chapel down the street so we wouldn’t have 30-40 vehicles sitting in her front yard, so she made a phone call to see if we could maybe borrow their reception room (aka, basketball court) for the reception & maybe tuck the ceremony in there, too, since the ground was a bit doubtful.
I noticed that they make you wear the green apron, which is a representation of the fig leaves that Adam and Eve wore in the Garden of Eden, as they covered themselves in shame after God had found out they had eaten the apple, (I digress though). I found it interesting as well. My best friend was Mormon, she passed away in 2005. I was able to attend her funeral in Cedar City, Utah. At her viewing, while she was in the casket, I noticed that she was dressed in the same green apron upon burial. I just thought it was interesting that it is required for both, a wedding and a funeral.
24:30 I (convert, not in the church anymore) was planning on having a temple and civil wedding on the same day. I planned on not telling my mom about the temple ceremony at all because I couldn’t imagine how hurt she’d be that she couldn’t see her only daughter get married. If the bishop would’ve said “actually the REAL ceremony happened earlier” at my wedding without me knowing, I can’t imagine what I would’ve done. It almost makes me cry just thinking about it. Really dodged a bullet there
I really hate the idea that the most important thing about a woman’s life they gives her value is whether or not she is married. Hate the idea of a womans self worth being tied to a man. Hate the idea that nothing a woman accomplishes, degrees, work pursuits, creative endeavors etc matter as much as whether they attach themselves to a man.
I have always been so fascinated with the LDS church. I have done a lot of research but there’s soooo much to learn. (Yes I subscribed, eagerly). I thoroughly enjoyed this article. I have always been curious- do you have to show your W-2’s to prove what you make to determine your tithing amount? I’m guessing you do. The amount of control the LDS church has over their members is just astounding. Looking forward to learning more. Thanks for this website!!
They had an open house in Fort Collins, CO, a few years ago. I jumped at the chance to see what it was like inside a temple before the prerequisites went way up. It was beautiful and serene. But afterwards, there always was a really high-pitched screechy sound near the garden entrance. I’m guessing it was a thing that detected visitors because it would change pitch if I got near it, but it always felt eerie walking by.
I consider myself spiritual, but areligious – almost against organised religion, but understand (some) peoples’ need for Faith, and definitely for Ritual. I am, however, very interested in religions, their histories, their current practices, doctrines, beliefs, etc., and have found your website, not only enlightening, but rather frightening. They do an excellent job of ‘hiding the crazy’ – apparently even (maybe ‘especially’) from their own people.
Basketball court reception at 32:30. Part of the reason is there is no rental fee like you would have at a banquet center. Other churches do the same. I even went to one reception at a Baptist church which was held in a gym. The couple were so broke the food was made by various people in the family. There were even some guests to the wedding who got recruited to serve the food and do clean up afterwards.
I showed this to my Mormon mom and she scandalized. She said this girl has a demon and that she will have severe consequences for her actions… That’s how they (mormons) wash the brains of the weak and doctrines them out of reality and wrap them in a bubble of pure fantasy and ignorance. I am so glad I walked away from all these nonsense.
My husband grew up Mormon and left at 16 when he got a job and used it as an excuse to not be able to go to church. He has ptsd about it. When we got engaged, his mother tried to push the idea of a temple wedding. We had to sit her down and explain that we were not Mormon and would never be getting married in a temple. She was very delusional, not understanding that my husband hadn’t practiced Mormonism since he was a kid. She once invited missionaries to our house and my husband locked himself in our bedroom rhw whole time and I had to handle the situation. I find this religion strange. My mother in law has since stopped trying to push us into the church, but I do ask her about church because I know its important to her. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
As a parent I was diligent to teach my children about what happens in the temple. I didn’t want them to be shocked at how incredibly different it is not just from everyday church but the world. I say be baptized when you know Jesus is the Christ and go to the temple only when you believe the Church is the only path to exultation. Some never will, and that is okay. My advice for LDS members is to wed in any form you wish before going to the temple. Go to the temple only to fulfill what you fully understand and find an escort willing to explain it to you.
My wife and I were married some time after she had formally left the Mormon church. But I can remember attending — or rather NOT attending — the wedding of one of her brothers who is still an active member of the church. It meant waiting outside while the wedding took place inside the temple, and then going to the reception where we WERE allowed. So it was interesting to see a photo of the inside, as well as hear what the ceremony is.
My cousin spent 8 months exercising to fit into my grandmother’s (also Mormon) wedding dress. When she went to the temple, it was rejected because over time, it had diminished to an ivory cream color due to aging. So she was stuck with a generic, ill fitting glorified nightgown. But, hey, it was stark white! Because that’s all that counts. So much for being “all about family.”
My LDS Bishop got permission (from Salt Lake) to marry us under a tree in his back yard. White dress, tuxedos on a hot Saturday morning. It was over in 10 minutes, and I shook through the whole thing. It was wonderful. The year: 1984. We are celebrating 40 years together this August! Have another wedding….do it YOUR way. 🙂
Speaking from the outside, it’s pretty telling that they ask the man if he will take a woman as his bride before they ever ask her if she gives herself. The implication is that her consent is far less important and only a secondary consideration. In what other situation do you ask someone to take something before asking if the other person is even willing to give it away? Also, regarding the names: there are two names for each day, a man’s name and a woman’s name. It’s determined by the day of the month. Everyone getting sealed that day gets the same name. The exception is if it’s the same as their given name. In that case, they get Adam or Eve. (Sometimes they do it if the name is very close, like the first name is Lucille but the temple name would be Lucy, or Paul/Saul.) The list has changed over time. You can find it with Google.
I’m so sad for my friend, Kathie, who lost her husband right before their 45th Anniversary, and her son, 2 weeks after that. They were devout Catholics, and she was really messed up, and still in grieving when this “nice Morman man” she met in a grocery store. long story short, she hid from me that she went to some party or something that he had at his church. She was all mixed up and needed her dear Ken again. This new man drove her around and she didn’t have to ever drive. She finally confessed to me a couple of weeks later that she went through being “baptized” at his “chch.” She knew nothing about Mormans. Very frequently she & Ken had to talk with her parents about not “falling for” the people that came to their house and talked about a religion other than Catholic, which they were. She lost her mother and her Father was in Dementia. The very next week she then sheepishly confessed to me he asked her to marry him in “IS” church. I cried because I knew she was going to give up her Christian faith to become a Morman. Neither she nor I knew anything, but she kept saying “how nice this man treated her’ and that she needed someone to “love her” for the rest of her life. I have not talked with her since that day. After our close Social Media friendship in which we knew practically everything about each other, she felt it best that we part and not be in contact with each other anymore. I have always blamed myself, because she didn’t know anything she was getting into. She hated cults and we talked about them so I know this.
I grew up in a very mormon area and knew about the reality of the temple early. Bc of “sacred not secret” friends and schoolmates would refuse to believe this truth…and i remember seeing them all after their weddings or endowments and seeing the pain and betrayal in their eyes they couldnt speak about, each one. It always broke my heart.
I’m so sorry for everything you’ve experienced. Thank you for sharing your story!! I had close relationships with LDS members in high school – and wow – they were focused on converting people, and although I was never a member, I had to unlearn a lot of weird things too from the friend group. You look like you are happy and following your own heart. All the best!
Ohh, hon. Congratulations on getting out! My mom converted to the LDS church the summer after my freshman year of high school. Even though I was never baptized, she made me go to that exhausting three-hour service every Sunday despite getting no sleep and having 8+ hours of homework on the weekends. She sent me to girl’s camp every summer. She enforced the Mormon dating and dress standards on me. The only social activities I was allowed to attend were Mormon youth events at the local stake. But out of curiosity and a desire to belong, I gave my testimony on that one Sunday a month. I took that awful, sticky Wonderbread and water communion. I even (LOL) did baptisms for the dead (nobody remembered I wasn’t baptized after awhile). I thought our local ward was very kind for the most part, but much of the doctrine seemed hinky. Because of my mom I STILL get calls, texts, and invitations from the Relief society everywhere I go no matter how many times I move. Mainly I was stuck on “But I don’t want 16 kids.” “I don’t know if I want to get married.” “Why would God throw out billions of his own creation because they weren’t LDS?” and all the other stuff that doesn’t stand up to rational scrutiny. And don’t even get me started on how creepy it is that they dictate your underwear. Decades later, there is no way any God would insist on only one way of worshiping him/her. Love is unconditional. The church has it wrong.
Thank you for this article. I’ve tried for years to get a complete explanation of Mormon beliefs and practices. I now appreciate that even those raised in the faith don’t initially get one. I’ve shied away from claims by former Mormons because of their blatantly vindictive tone. I heard/felt none of that in your discussion and so I subscribed. (BTW, I’m one of Jehovah’s Witnesses and the claims and complaints published by former Witnesses are 99.9% blatant disinformation. If you want to know what we believe or practice, just ask one of us. We’re “allowed” to talk about anything and everything.)
Grew up in small town, Utah. Many of my classmates were Mormon. All of our receptions were in the stake center. Reception line for guests to greet newlyweds. Everyone sits and visits with other guests. No dancing. Thanks for sharing. Always heard stories about the wedding; and was one reason I only lasted a short time in the “religion.”
Exactly, that is one of the reasons I left bc every time Joseph went into the woods to ask God how He wanted His REAL church run (bc none of the religions in his time were all TRUE-they just have bitsc& pieces so Joseph said His church would be the first true church) but every time he came back the Doctorines & Convenents only benefited him! Wouldn’t the way God wanted His church run really benefit the WHOLE church?!
They showed all of this on the television series “Big Love”. I was LDS from when I was about 14 to 21. As I was perusal that show, I thought – Wooooow, these are the deepest darkest secrets from the Temple! Some Mormons are going to be MAD about this being on a TV show! I have watched that show at least 3 times now. I loved that show so much, but it enraged me as well.
Thank you for sharing your experiences leaving the church. It has answered so many questions I’ve had about the church. I’m a ex-mormon myself. Born and raised. My parents were sealed and my dad was an alcoholic abusive husband to my mother. Because her parents forced them both into it. I feel happier knowing she doesn’t have to deal with him in the afterlife because the temple wedding meant nothing. She still practices in the church, but is happy. I do not like the church and have always felt unhappy in it. I’m still a Christian though and happy to be out of that church. I don’t want to share my future husband in the afterlife lol
Really love perusal your articles and you telling your story, doesn’t matter whether it’s on Tik Tok or on YouTube ^^ As a European atheist, Mormonism is one of the things way too intriguing to me not to dive into, plus I really just “vibe with” your personality and outlook on life in general. Sending lots of love, keep it up❤ And also on a “Your presentation was good, you used a lot of pictures and spoke fluently”- highschool feedback kinda level, I love that you actually showed how the clothes look on you in front of the camera. But the audio/the sound track during the short montage around 15:30 was a bit loud compared to the parts of you talking to the mic. That’s something whoever is editing (which can very well be and likely is you yourself ofc, I know you’re just getting started on here) could keep in mind. But I really love the new equipment with better sound and quality! Anyways, this is meant to be constructive criticism. Have a great day to anyone reading this❣
This just highlights the need for better preparation on the person going to the temple and their parents/family teaching them about it. It doesn’t have to be a hush-hush-you’ll-figure-it-out-one day thing. Just like any cultural ceremony, it might be weird to other’s who are not familiar with it but it doesn’t make it wrong. Just my thoughts.
I’m so sorry that there were things you wanted to do for your wedding that you didn’t get to (vows, for example). I also think it’s important to remember that the “generic” wedding your average American pictures when they think of a wedding isn’t actually “generic”. It’s a Christian wedding ceremony. We don’t have personal vows in a Jewish wedding under the chuppah either. Not defending the Mormon church by any means. You should absolutely be able to decide what you want to do in your wedding ceremony. And if someone wants personal vows in a Jewish ceremony, you’re absolutely allowed to. But i think we should be careful about labeling things as “normal” and lamenting when people don’t get to experience them when “normality” is rooted in culture. It’s very common for Jews in America to be treated with pity when we don’t grow up celebrating Christmas, having a “normal” wedding, etc. and, though these people mean well, it’s always a slap in the face to be told my life is somehow incomplete because all of my beautiful traditions are somehow less valuable and less fulfilling than the average culturally-Christian ones. But I’m sorry to hear your wedding was not beautiful and fulfilling for you at the time. It absolutely should have been.
I want to commend you for having the courage to leave the church. I also left my church, Catholic, after 40 years. Leaving the church left a hole but I never looked back. Realizing the hold they had over me was disturbing. Thank goodness we had the intelligence to reclaim our ability to think for ourselves. You sound like a person who can determine truth from control. I enjoyed hearing your wedding story and seeing that it is possible to move on from this prison we were born into. Good luck to you in the future!
Cults wipe out a person’s individuality, and demand conformity. Cults cut you off from family, friends that are “outsiders”. Cults claim that their way is the ONLY way to god and use fear to control the followers. Any kind of relationship that demands secrecy, is by definition an unequal power equation.
Thank you for sharing this, Alyssa!! It will of course anger Mormons (one of your best skills lol!), but think how c*ltish it is to forbid a woman from speaking about her own wedding! They’ll label people apostates and treat them as the worst people in the world regardless of their whether they make content like this, so what exactly is the incentive to keep those “sacred” secrets? Perhaps if treated with compassion, these “apostates” wouldn’t have such trauma and desire to share their experiences. Those articles she had were secretly recorded by someone with a temple recommend. And most of the ceremony is stolen anyway! A church that truly cares about the family wouldn’t separate families. It wouldn’t keep a mother from her daughter’s wedding because of a diet Coke habit. Thank you for continuing to expose the madness, Alyssa. There is a saying (I think from 12-step programs, not sure though) that secrets keep you sick. The organization’s secrets have been rotting it from within for years, but the advent of the internet in homes and the ability of people to share information in new ways accelerated the rot. The best and the brightest are leaving, and we see what’s left. It’s sad for so many reasons, but definitely not because the “church” is hemorrhaging members. ❤
I was asked to be a bridesmaid by my Mormon friend. I’m not Mormon. I sat in the lobby of temple babysitting all the little kids whose parents went into the ceremony. Her dad made a big deal to me about the marriage being for “time and all eternity.” She’s been divorced (and remarried) from that husband for over a decade. My husband (my only husband) and I have been married for 39 years. She had to get her ex husband’s permission to get remarried. He did not have to get hers to remarry. She also had to wait a year to get sealed to her new husband (who’d also been married before) after their wedding ceremony at their chapel. I believe that she and her first husband were unsealed. I find the whole thing odd.
Thank you for sharing. The polygamy issue started my way out after my wife had passed and I was sealed to a second wife. Matthew 22:30 Jesus said there is no marriage in Heaven. That led to actually studying the Bible as well as Mormon history. Praise God for opening my eyes and saving me from the false church. I am now in a relationship with the only groom in Heaven…Jesus! The actual Jesus written about in the Bible….whom is God! The only God that has and ever will be!
boy I wish I knew my bible better!1 I do remember someone asking Jesus about a woman who had lost her husband, married his brother then another brother when she lost him. Someone asked who she would be married to in heaven. Jesus said it would not matter. Earthly things such as husbands fall away. You won`t be concerned with the earth.