Temple garment circa 1879 (GSR 1879)

A temple garment (also referred to as garments, or Mormon underwear)^[1] is a type of underwear worn by members of some denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, after they have taken part in the Endowment ceremony. Garments are worn both day and night and are required for any previously endowed adult to enter a temple.^[2] The undergarments are viewed as a symbolic reminder of the covenants made in temple ceremonies, and are viewed as either a symbolic or literal source of protection from the evils of the world.^[3]

The garment is given as part of the washing and anointing portion of the endowment. Today, the temple garment is worn primarily by members of LDS Church and by members of some Mormon fundamentalist churches. Adherents consider them to be sacred and not suitable for public display. Anti-Mormon activists have occasionally publicly displayed or defaced temple garments to advance their opposition to the LDS Church.^[4]

Temple garments are sometimes derided as "magic underwear" by non-Mormons, but Mormons view this terminology to be misleading and derogatory.^[5][6]

Purpose[link]

According to the LDS Church, the temple garments serve a number of purposes. First, the garment provides the member "a constant reminder" of the covenants they made in the temple. Second, the garment "when properly worn...provides protection against temptation and evil". Wearing the garment is also "an outward expression of an inward commitment" to follow Jesus Christ.^[7] General authority Carlos E. Asay adds that the garment "strengthens the wearer to resist temptation, fend off evil influences, and stand firmly for the right."^[8]

The nature of the protection believed to be afforded by temple garments is ambiguous and varies between adherents.^[9] Researchers who interviewed a sample of Latter-day Saints who wear the temple garment reported that virtually all wearers expressed a belief that wearing the garment provided "spiritual protection" and encouraged them to keep their covenants.^[9] Some of those interviewed "asserted that the garment also provided physical protection, while others seemed less certain of any physical aspect to protection."^[9] In Mormon folklore, tales are told of Latter-day Saints who credit their temple garments with helping them survive car wrecks, fires, and natural disasters.^[1]

Sacredness among members[link]

To members of the LDS Church, the temple garment represents the sacred and personal aspects of their relationship with God. Church President Joseph F. Smith taught that the garment was to be held as "the most sacred of all things in the world, next to their own virtue, next to their own purity of life."^[10] For this reason, most church members feel uncomfortable discussing the garment in a casual or disrespectful manner.^[11] Some church leaders have compared the garment to the clerical vestments worn by clergy of other churches.^[8][12] Church leaders have publicly discussed the above principles and beliefs in general terms since the mid-1840s. Many Latter-day Saints view the garment associated with the temple rites as sacred. Some church members have criticized the sale of garments on internet auction sites.^[13]

Garment origins and evolution[link]

The garment as first described in the 1840s was a one-piece undergarment extending to the ankles and the wrists, resembling a union suit, with an open crotch and a collar. It was made of unbleached cotton and was held together with ties in a double knot. Most garments were home-made.

Garment markings[link]

Post-1979 two-piece temple garments end just above the knee for both sexes. Women's garments have cap sleeves with either a rounded or sweetheart neckline. Male tops are available in tee-shirt styles.^[14]

The original garment had four marks that were snipped into the cloth as part of the original Nauvoo Endowment ceremony.^[15] These marks were a reverse-L-shaped symbol on the right breast, a V-shaped symbol on the left breast, and horizontal marks at the navel and over the right knee. These cuts were later replaced by embroidered symbols.

According to Mormon doctrine, the marks in the garments are sacred symbols.^[16] One proposed element of the symbolism was a link to the Square and Compasses, the symbols of freemasonry,^[17] to which Joseph Smith, Jr. had been initiated about seven weeks prior to his introduction of the Endowment ceremony.^{[18][clarification needed]}

Thus, the V-shaped symbol on the left breast was referred to as "The Compasses", while the reverse-L-shaped symbol on the right breast was referred to by early church leaders as "The Square".^[19]

According to a description by LDS Church President John Taylor in 1883, the "Square" represents "the justice and fairness of our Heavenly Father, that we will receive all the good that is coming to us or all that we earn, on a square deal", and the "Compasses" represents "the North Star".^[20] In addition to the Square and Compasses, Taylor described the other symbols as follows: the collar represented the idea that the Lord's "yoke is easy and [his] burden is light", or the "Crown of the Priesthood"; the double-knotted strings represented "the Trinity" and "the marriage covenant"; the navel mark represents "strength in the navel and marrow in the bones"; and the knee mark represents "that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ".^[21]

In 1926, then-LDS Church apostle David O. McKay offered an updated description that was later incorporated into the church's endowment ceremony.^[22] According to McKay's explanation, the "mark of the Compass" represents "an undeviating course leading to eternal life; a constant reminder that desires, appetites, and passions are to be kept within the bounds the Lord has set; and that all truth may be circumscribed into one great whole"; the "mark of the Square" represents "exactness and honor" in keeping the commandments and covenants of God; the navel mark represents "the need of constant nourishment to body and spirit"; and the "knee mark" represents "that every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is the Christ".^[22] Unlike Taylor, McKay did not describe the symbolism of the collar or the tie-strings because those elements of the garment had been eliminated in 1922.^[23]

Garment color[link]

In 1893, the church expressed an official preference for white garments which has become the standard color, with the exception of military garments. Members of the military may purchase desert sand-colored garments and can submit regulation military T-shirts of any color to the church for custom addition of the symbolic markings.^[24]

Design[link]

For several decades after its introduction in the 1840s, the original 19th-century union-suit style was accepted within Mormon doctrine as being unalterable. In 1906, LDS Church President Joseph F. Smith characterized as a "grievous sin" any attempt, in the name of changing fashion trends, to modify the 1840s garment pattern, which he characterized as "sacred, unchanged, and unaltered from the very pattern in which God gave them."^[10] However, while the original pattern of the garment is still in use by some Mormon fundamentalists, the LDS Church has updated the original pattern.

In 1923, a letter from LDS Church President Heber J. Grant to stake and temple presidents, stated that after careful and prayerful consideration the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church had unanimously decided that specific modifications would be permitted to the garments: sleeves could end at the elbow; legs could be shortened to just below the knee; and buttons could be used instead of strings. The collar was eliminated and the open crotch closed.^[25] Other changes were made after 1923 which shortened the sleeves and legs more and eliminated buttons.

In the 1930s, the LDS Church built Beehive Clothing Mills, which was responsible for manufacturing and selling garments. This led to a more standardized design. During this time women's garments were one-piece designs that ended just above the knees and had a cap sleeve. In the 1970s, the first two-piece garment became available and Mormons generally accepted the change.^[26] Today garments are made in both styles with a variety of different fabrics. Feminine styles are sold with either a rounded or a sweetheart neckline with cap sleeves. Sweetheart necklines usually follow the line of the bra, which is usually worn over the garment. There are also two styles of necklines for men. Endowed church members can purchase garments through Church distribution centers worldwide, through the mail, and online. They are sold at a moderate price that is assumed to be near cost.^[14]

To purchase temple garments, members must have received their temple endowments.^[27] To purchase garments online, they must provide their membership record number.^[28] Endowed members can find their membership record number on their temple recommend or by obtaining a copy of their Individual Ordinance Summary.^[28]

LDS Church teachings[link]

In the church's Handbook of Instructions, leaders are instructed to tell members they "should wear the garment both day and night",^[7], and that they should not alter it. In the temple recommend interview,^[29][30] members are asked if they wear the garment "night and day" according to the covenants made in the temple,^[31] although the temple ordinance only states that "you must wear [the garment] throughout your life."^[32][33] Members are told that they should not partially or completely remove any portion of the garment to participate in activities that can "reasonably be done with the garment worn properly beneath the clothing".^[7] When necessary, the garment may be temporarily removed, but members are told that after the activity "they should put it back on as soon as possible."^[7] Swimming is given as an example of an activity that would justify removal of the garment.^[7]

Garment wearers are also instructed that they should not adjust the garment or wear it in a way that would accommodate the wearing of what the church considers to be immodest clothing.^[7] This includes uncovering areas of the body that would normally be covered by the garment, such as the shoulders and lower thighs. Members are instructed to keep garments clean and mended and to refrain from displaying them or exposing them to the view of others who may not understand their significance.^[7] Prior to the disposal of old garments, members are instructed to cut out the markings on them.^[1][34] After the marks are removed, "the fabric is not considered sacred" and the garment fabric may be cut up and discarded or used for other purposes.^[1][34]

Use in protests[link]

Some church opponents have used public occasions, like the semi-annual church conferences, to publicly mock and parody the wearing of temple garments.^[1] During the October 2003 LDS Church General Conference, some anti-Mormon demonstrators outside the LDS Conference Center reportedly spat and stomped on garments in view of those attending the conference. One protestor blew his nose into a garment he wore around his neck.^[35] A scuffle broke out between a protester and two members of the church who attempted to take the garments from him.^[36] To avoid a repeat of the conflict, the municipality of Salt Lake City planned stronger enforcement of fighting words and hate speech laws for the April 2004 Conference in Salt Lake City with new protest buffer zones.^[37]

See also[link]

• Kachchhera
• Priestly tunic
• Priestly undergarments
• Tallit katan

Notes[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Temple garment

• What is Mormon Underwear and why do Mormons wear these garments? An explanation of what Mormon Underwear is, how Mormons understand it, and why they wear the garment.
• Mormon Underwear - An explanation from LightPlanet.com
• Mormon Garments - Article at Mormon wiki about the temple garment.
• Mormon Garments - Information on how garments relate to temple worship.
• Latter-Day Sportswear: Do Mormon athletes wear the temple garment under their uniforms?, Slate (magazine)

Jerald Dee Tanner (June 1, 1938 — October 1, 2006) was an American writer and researcher who, with his wife Sandra McGee Tanner (born January 14, 1941), was noted for publishing archival and evidential materials about the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). They are both ex-Mormon. The Tanners founded the Utah Lighthouse Ministry, whose stated mission is "to document problems with the claims of Mormonism and compare LDS doctrines with Christianity". Sandra Tanner continues to operate it.

The Tanners printed original versions of early Mormon writings and scripture in which they annotated and highlighted doctrinal changes, such as the rejection of Brigham Young's "Adam–God theory". They jointly published more than 40 books about many aspects of the Church, but primarily its history.

Biographies[link]

Jerald Tanner was born in Provo, Utah and reared as a Mormon. He studied at the University of Utah and received a degree from Salt Lake Trade Technical Institute.

Sandra is a great-great-granddaughter of Brigham Young, the second president of the LDS church and both of their families had longstanding ties to the Mormon community.

Soon after they were introduced, Tanner and Sandra began jointly researching the subject of Mormonism. (Each had been raised in the LDS faith, but discovered that they each as a teenager had begun to question the church.)

Jerald and Sandra Tanner were married in Mission Hills, California on June 14, 1959. They had two daughters and a son together. After 47 years of marriage, Jerald Tanner died in Salt Lake City, at age 68, as a result of complications arising from Alzheimer's disease.^{[citation needed]} Sandra Tanner announced Jerald's death by email. An "In Memoriam" tribute to Jerald Tanner was posted on the Utah Lighthouse Ministry website.^[1]

Publications[link]

Joseph Smith Egyptian Papers[link]

The Tanners have specialized in publishing original documents that would otherwise be inaccessible to the general public. For example, in 1966, they were the first to publish Joseph Smith's Egyptian Alphabet and Grammar (since called the "Joseph Smith Egyptian Papers"). Prior to their publication, few LDS followers knew about these documents.^[2] The next year, Tanners' publication prompted discussions and debates about the content of the documents, which have continued for decades.

Joseph Smith said that, in addition to translating the golden plates, he translated the Book of Abraham papyri. These materials were thought lost in the Great Chicago Fire. However, in 1966 scholars found ten fragments of the papyri in the archives of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Subsequently, an additional fragment was located in the LDS Church Historian's Office. Because of Smith's claims, these are now commonly called the Joseph Smith Papyri. Both Mormon and non-Mormon Egyptologists^[who?] agree that the Book of Abraham, as published by Joseph Smith, is not a translation of these papyri, and that the papyri were not written by the Biblical Abraham.

Rather, the papyri have been determined to be portions of Egyptian funerary texts, dating to about the first century BC.^[2] Joseph Smith's purported translation of the papyri has not been supported by contemporary translations by Egyptologists. Mormon apologists^[who?] have argued that there are several parallels, but have not provided them. The interpretation of the texts has been controversial. Critics of Mormon dogma^[who?] differ with Mormon apologists^[who?] on the reasons for the discrepancy.

The Tanners contend that the Book of Abraham is a 19th-century work written only by Joseph Smith.^{[citation needed]}

Other documents and books[link]

The Tanners have also published photo-mechanical reproductions of texts such as complete sets of early-LDS periodicals, including Messenger and Advocate, Times and Seasons, and the Millennial Star. Also notable is a reproduction of the 1825 edition of Ethan Smith's View of the Hebrews. Their version contains the margin notes made by the Elder B. H. Roberts, who compared this text with the Book of Mormon at the request of an LDS leader. His report was initially kept secret, but it gradually was distributed within Mormon circles and was published posthumously as part of A Book of Mormon Study (also known as Studies of the Book of Mormon) and A Parallel.

The Tanners have published compiled lists of changes to the text of the Book of Mormon and other texts used by the LDS church. They argue that the alterations are substantial and that the inconsistencies in the texts are evidence against LDS claims of their being divinely inspired.^{[citation needed]} This is because of the Tanner's interpretation of Joseph Smith's claim the Book of Mormon was "the most correct book on the face of the earth...and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book."

The Tanners' best-known publication is Mormonism: Shadow or Reality?, originally published in 1963 as Mormonism: A Study of Mormon History and Doctrine, and reprinted five times since. Dean M. Helland of Oral Roberts University describes it as "the heavyweight of all books on Mormonism."^[3] The Tanners question the character and integrity of the witnesses to the Book of Mormon; they discuss the different accounts which Joseph Smith gave of the First Vision. Their book includes copies of original LDS documents.

Legal challenges[link]

In 1999 the LDS Church sued the Tanners for internet linking from their website to the copyrighted Church Handbook of Instructions. The lawsuit was settled out of court before an appeals court could rule on what observers described as a potentially landmark case concerning internet linking.^[4]

Criticism[link]

Lawrence Foster, a non-Mormon historian who has written about the church, has written that, until the Tanners "are prepared to abide by accepted standards of scholarly behavior and common courtesy, they can expect little sympathy from serious historians."^{[citation needed]} He criticized them for "a holier-than-thou stance, refusing to be fair in applying the same debate standard of absolute rectitude which they demand of Mormonism to their own actions, writings, and beliefs. ... The Tanners seem to be playing a skilful shell game in which the premises for judgment are conveniently shifted so that the conclusion is always the same—negative."^[5]

Foster says that some of the Tanners' "research and analysis ... would do credit to any professional historian."^[6] He credits them with being "more than simply gadflies; in curious and often indirect ways, their work has also been a factor helping to stimulate serious Mormon historical writing."

Foster has praised Jerald Tanner for his "fierce opposition to Mormon racism" and notes:

Some scholars have also, at least in private, been very pleased that the Tanners have made available hard-to-find printed works from early LDS history... even those scholars who are most critical of the Tanners and their methods have profited, at least indirectly, because the Tanners' allegations have spurred them to begin their own investigations into vital and still incompletely understood topics.... Jerald and Sandra Tanner have functioned with regard to Mormonism in much the same way that Ralph Nader has functioned with regard to American business.... The Tanners have prodded the church to begin, however haltingly and imperfectly, to develop a more realistic sense of itself. I would imagine, for example, that much of the flowering of Mormon historical studies in the 1970s, which has helped to give at least some Mormons a richer and more vital knowledge of their own heritage, has been more than tangentially related to the desire of Latter-day Saint historians to prove the Tanners wrong by showing that a full and honest history of the Latter-day Saints can indeed be written. Much like the irritating grain of sand in the oyster, the result has been a pearl."^[7]

Michael Quinn, a historian and former member of the LDS Church, takes issue with the Tanners' work. He noted that, "although the most conscientious and honest researcher can overlook pertinent sources of information, the repeated omissions of evidence by the Tanners suggest an intentional avoidance of sources that modify or refute their caustic interpretation of Mormon history."^[8]

Tanners challenge anti-Mormonism[link]

On occasion, the Tanners have publicly challenged critics of Mormonism and earned praise from some LDS scholars. For instance, the historian Daniel C. Peterson, chairman of the LDS apologetics group Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) at Brigham Young University, suggested the Tanners' willingness to debunk false documents regardless of their content was a sign of integrity:

"There are some anti-Mormons out there that I hold in contempt. They're demagogic. They spread hatred and strife and disharmony. I don't see the Tanners in that way."^[9]

The Tanners were among the first public critics of the forger (and later, murderer) Mark Hofmann. Though Hofmann's "discoveries" of important Mormon documents appeared to bolster the Tanners' arguments, by early 1984, Jerald Tanner had concluded there was significant doubt as to the Salamander Letter's authenticity. "[T]o the astonishment of a community of scholars, historians and students, [he] published an attack on the so-called Salamander Letter."^[10] By late 1984, Jerald Tanner questioned the authenticity of most if not all of Hofmann's "discoveries," based in large part on their undocumented provenance. But, the Tanners agreed with Hofmann in saying that the apparent inability of LDS scholars to discern the forged documents was evidence that the church leadership was not divinely inspired.^{[citation needed]}

The Tanners have debunked what they characterize as misrepresentations of the LDS Church by Ed Decker, a Christian evangelist. They criticized his film The God Makers II^[11] despite their involvement in his earlier film, The God Makers.

Selected publications[link]

• Mormonism: Shadow or Reality?^[12] includes reproductions of early Mormon documents accompanied by commentary. A revised version is the basis for their more accessible book, The Changing World of Mormonism.^[13]
• The Case Against Mormonism, Vols. 1-3.
• The Mormon Kingdom, Vols. 1-2
• Evolution of the Mormon Temple Ceremony: 1842-1990, includes the complete text of the 1990 changes to the temple ceremony, and examines many other changes made to the ceremony throughout the years.

See also[link]

• Controversies regarding The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• Criticism of Mormonism
• Mormonism and Christianity

References[link]

External links[link]

• Tanner ministry website
  • Testimony from Jerald and Sandra
  • Archives of the Salt Lake City Messenger from utlm.org
  • Online Books from utlm.org
  • Tanner, Jerald and Sandra. (1981). The Changing World of Mormonism (Moody Press) is the most thorough exposition available of their LDS religion critique.
  • Tanner, Jerald. Tracking the White Salamander (Salt Lake City, Utah: Utah Lighthouse Ministry, 1987), gives Tanner's description of his encounters with Mark Hofmann and the reasons for his conclusion that Hofmann's "discoveries" were fraudulent.

• Sandra Tanner interviews on television program Polygamy: What Love Is This?:
  • Episode 106 (17 July 2008)
  • Episode 202 (15 Jan 2009)
  • Episode 236 (10 Sept 2009)
  • Episode 308 (25 Feb 2010)
  • Episode 417 (5 May 2011)

• From the Foundation for Apologetic Information & Research (FAIR):
  • Bachman, Danel W., Mormonism--Shadow or Reality? History or Propaganda? Joseph Smith as a Case Study, http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_History_or_Propaganda.html , presentation at the 2000 FAIR conference.
  • Roper, Matthew, FARMS Review of Mormonism—Shadow or Reality, 4, pp. 169–215, http://farms.byu.edu/publications/review/?reviewed_author&vol=4&num=1&id=102 
  • Watson, Edward K. (December 1998), "Tanner Worship and Real Scholarship", Apologia (FAIR) 1 (9), http://adherents.com/people/pt/Jerald_Sandra_Tanner.html 
  • List of Books written by Jerald and Sandra Tanner, as reviewed in FARMS Review, Maxwell Institute.