It was mostly like any other Christian service I have been to with one exception:
Tons of little kids running around and making noise.
Almost everybody had kids, many of them were under 5. Very few if any women wore pants. Almost all men wore ties, most had jackets. There was no real sermon, just talks from 2 members, 1 was a kid about to go on his mission, another was a woman talking about her parents. They gave out bread and water for communion (or whatever they call it) One odd thing was no cross inside or outside the building. I don’t think Jesus was mentioned by name at all.
We’ve gone a couple times w/ our neighbors as we live in an entirely LDS neighborhood that has 3 wards in it. I’ve been to plenty of different religious services and found the LDS services to be bland and inoffensive; no political talk, etc. Females all wear skirts, most guys in shirts w/ ties, the kind of mumble-singing you’d expect from tired white parents. A million kids for sure!
The only awkward moment so far was when I forgot I wasn’t greeting new spouses but rather female missionaries and my friendliness was mistaken w/ much optimism. I literally had my back against a wall and had to slide away; it was embarrassing.
I have to say no LDS has ever tried to convince me they fit in w/ other Christian sects; they seem fine w/ standing out so long as they’re treated w/ respect. It’s funny how much they tell me when I don’t say anything.
I like going to different types of church services just to see what the deal really is. I have been to all kinds of fundamentalist Christian services but never a Mormon one. Good for you. I have also been to a bunch of Jewish services and celebrations and I worked in a supermarket in high school where about a 3rd of the employees were Jehovah’s Witnesses. The Jehovah’s witnesses were a little kooky in their beliefs but they didn’t push it on us as coworkers. I don’t think any of them were ever late to work and they would help anyone to the best of their ability.
Mormons fascinate me in the same way that some Jewish groups do. Some specific beliefs seem a little strange at a micro level but it manages to come together quite well at a group level especially at raising good kids and being successful at whatever they deem important. All religions have weird offshoots and strange doctrine at the fundamentalist level. The Mormons simply seem more effective at getting things done than others so I have to respect them for that no matter what their founder did.
Mormon here. Growing up I had the experience a lot where Jesus wasn’t even mentioned during Sacrament meeting (the part you went to; I’m assuming you didn’t go to the other two hours!) – lately they have really made an effort to mention Jesus more, though.
But (and I think this is what you are saying) Mormons never actually call him “Jesus” – it’s Christ and Savior, mostly. I think the only place where “Jesus” is ever said is with the little kids. It was really weird to me when I went to church with my husband and it is Jesus this and Jesus that.
Same thing with “God,” who is almost always “Heavenly Father” in Mormon churches (sometimes “the Lord” – never “Lord” by itself – when one addresses God, as in a prayer, it’s always “Heavenly Father”).
Specialized syntax is weird.
When I got my own kid I really appreciated all the little kids running around. That way my own kid running around blends in. At my husband’s church she is the only one and so when someone’s screaming you know who it is!
And yeah, I would never wear pants to (a Mormon) church.
I’m confused, I thought Mormon services were held in the part of the church that was off-limits unless you knew the secret handshake and wore the garments. Or are there two services, one for True Believers™, and one for both them and the “I want to see what it’s like” riff-raff/potential converts? If that’s the case, it may have been bland, boring, and inoffensive specifically because they don’t want to offend anyone until they hook you into their secret club at which point you’re unlikely to be turned away by the Real Service®.
I was wondering about the time commitment. Every Mormon I knew in college was as unavailable on Sundays as they’d be on weekdays at a typical Mon-Fri job. So I assumed it lasted about 8 hours, total.
Some LDS rituals take place in the Temple, a specific building that may only be entered by those LDS in good standing (there’s a checklist for good standing); Sacrament Meetings (Sunday church services) are in a ward building which is open to all comers. There’s a sign on every one of the ward buildings stating visitors are welcome. I was invited to play in their ladies indoor soccer league (they have a gym, usually) and was left to my own devices for a good while every Thursday night for 2 months in various ward buildings in our area (they call an area a ‘stake’, that’s a group of wards). I poked around all over those buildings; most times every door was unlocked and sadly, I found nothing interesting, much less nefarious. The buildings all have lovely prints and paintings done not unlike Thomas Kinkade; inoffensive and colorful.
Every LDS I’ve asked respectfully has told me full details of various rituals done in the Temple and you can find all the steps and scripts for them online. The very secret thing some people receive are called Endowments. There are men who hide theirs away and the occasional one who frames it and hangs it on the wall in their home.
Honestly, LDS is no more odd than RC or other sects which rely heavily on ritual; it’s just not built in to our mainstream Western culture yet, not having been around the extra 1800 years like Catholicism.
Nawth, you’ve got it mostly right, but you are a little fuzzy on some parts.
Weekly Sunday services are open to everyone and are in churches. The secret stuff (well, not so secret anymore) takes place in Temples which are restricted access and aren’t actually even open on Sundays.
Where you are a little confused is Endowments. You can’t hang them on a wall! It’s just a ceremony that you go through in the Temple and learn the secret handshakes and passwords. And make no mistake, believing Mormons would never tell you exactly what goes on there as they’ve sworn an oath multiple times to keep that info secret. However, you can find the entire script online but believing Mormons will never discuss specifics with you.
No, it’s three hours long. The reason they werent available is because Mormons try not to work on Sundays. Unless they are professional football players.
Of the 2 male LDS who allow themselves to be alone w/ me in my home, one’s got his Endowment printed very nicely and hung in the living room and the other has told me it’s in their fireproof safe (we were comparing safes, of all things!) The one I saw is titled ‘The Endowment of Firstname Lastname, given this date blah blah’ then goes on into stuff I didn’t get to read. It enumerated the dates of his priesthood endowments, I saw that much, and referred to a personal prophecy he ‘must stay mindful of’.
Perhaps Brother **Erdosain **can clear up a contradiction for me - to what benefit is a church so evangelical and over-the-top welcoming staying so full of secret traditions?
And also, am I so non-threatening b/c we don’t have kids and I treat the LDS around me w/ respect? I’ve talked to their kids about religious matters, answered their questions and even helped teach a Sunday class for 8 year-olds w/ my neighbor. They ask me to watch their kids w/o even making sure I have a contact # for them. What gives? (Yes, I know about Neighbor Ministry, this seems different.)
I’ve never heard of anyone framing their endowment certificate, though it certainly could have become a new fad since I left. I don’t know if I even received a certificate. There are some other documents I that would consider more likely suspects if you hadn’t seen the words “Endowment” on it: Priesthood Ordination certificate, Priesthood Line of Authority, Marriage certificate. Who knows, though? Maybe your neighborhood is really into the endowment certs. All it takes is one local ward activity with framing and matting and suddenly the whole neighborhood has them. I would consider it unusual, though.
As for the safe guy, I’d imagine he’d keep those certificates in his safe, but he may have been referring to his Patriarchal Blessing. Basically, Mormons when they are around 18 or 19 years old go to a local guy (The Patriarch) and he gives them an extended tarot-like reading. They transcribe it word for word and Mormons keep a copy on hand their whole lives. It’s usually five pages long or so and is basically supposed to give you guidance through your whole life. You’re generally supposed to keep it private but it’s not a swornsecret like the Temple.
Please, no Brother! I no longer consider myself a member.
As for the benefit of secrecy, well, it started out as a way to conceal the practice of polygamy from the larger membership of the Church. Over time, this was no longer a secret, but the ceremony continued to be. As for why it continues today, I’d argue there are two benefits. It cultivates group cohesion, and shields the Church from some ridicule.
Undergoing a super-secret rite lets members feel they are part of an exclusive, mystical, and way cool club that others are excluded from.
Its also a secret for the same reason the Masons are secretive about their handshakes (which are nearly identical to the Mormon ones). It’s a little kooky to believe that you need to know handshakes and secret words to get into heaven. People looking to join a mainstream Christian church could also get turned off if they’re exposed too much and too early to the unique Mormon weirdness that is the Temple ceremony. (It’s not all that weird but its way weirder than mainstream Christianity.)
It sounds like they’ve accepted you as part of the neighborhood and community. Plus, they have a LOT of kids. It’s hard to be overprotective when you’ve got 4 or 5 and need a night away from them!
Service I went to only lasted an hour. 40 years ago when I was a kid I was told visitors were not allowed at any Mormon service, even in the church. Maybe I heard wrong or the rules have changed.
I plan to call the mosque before I go there. I might do that for the Jewish temple too.
Mormon services are comprised of three meetings, each lasting about an hour. The main one, which you attended, is where they do the Eucharist/Sacrament. The other two hours are smaller Sunday school-type classes and generally pretty boring for visitors.
Sunday services have always been open to visitors. It’s likely they were referring to the Temple services mentioned upthread which are restricted. It gets confusing to outsiders because Temple and Church are usually synonyms, but in the world of Mormonism, they are very different. Its probably the single greatest source of confusion to outsiders.
That’s the respectful way to go about it and faux pas are easily overlooked when they know you’re well-intentioned.
Erdosain, I may be conflating the Patriarchal Blessing and the Endowment; are they done at the same time roughly?
Youre’ right about the decorating fads that sweep through families in a ward! One wreath pops up on a house, then another, then all of a sudden my house will stick out not having one. My best friend neighbors have a picture of the SLC Temple in their living room and I’ve noticed most families have a picture of either their hometown Temple or the one they were married in. I asked if they’re ‘supposed to’ but they said it wasn’t a requirement, just that they liked how it looked. I doubt they really feel it’s part of the decoration.
There’s one half-built an hour from here that we may see the inside of before the Air Force moves us next year.
I’ll admit that as rootless as the last half of my life has been the LDS culture is seductive in its inclusion; but if I joined it would be for all the wrong reasons and that would be disrespectful of me.
