by David John Buerger
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Product Description
A veil of secrecy surrounds Mormon temple worship. While officially intended to preserve the sacredness of the experience, this silence often leaves Latter-day Saints mystified. Until now there has been no scholarly examination of the derivation and development of the temple—something David John Buerger suggests all Mormons should know. By grounding the ceremony’s meaning in symbolism and context, Latter-day Saints should find the ritual more enriching. Non-Mormons, too, may better appreciate the syncretic interweaving of old and new traditions in this highest form of Mormon devotion.
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Average Customer Review:
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
 Rigorous Academic Masterpiece, 2008-03-15
Buerger's exceptional work, characterized by his rigorous academic perspective, holds up as a touchstone for unbiased research into a profoundly important American movement, the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints. His open-minded and carefully scrutinized exposition of the church's history, as it was reflected in the development of the temple ritual, is worthy of careful scrutiny by anyone who genuinely wishes to examine this church. Moreover, and critical to such expositions, his sensitivity to secrets of Mormon ritual makes this book of interest to any of the faithful who wishes to examine temple institutions from an historically accurate perspective. Finally, telling a complex, intertwined story of personalities, theological discourse, and organizational change, he both clarifies and questions without accusation or bias. In the intellectual tradition of Professor Sterling McMurrin, Buerger's book, over a decade old, still sings with courageous and compelling truths. A small masterpiece of scholarship.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Masterful research makes for an excellent read, 2008-03-05
The LDS temple ceremonies have been shrouded in mystery for decades. This well-documented and masterful work covers not only the history and development of these ceremonies but the doctrinal changes that went along with their development. I found the book not only fascinating but extremely well-written, without an axe to grind. Buerger gets to the documented facts and lays them out for the reader to discover and draw their own conclusions. To me, that is the best kind of history - the facts as drawn from circumstances and environment without a specific viewpoint or bias from the author.
This is a book not steeped in difficult to understand doctrines or techobabble of any kind. Anyone even slightly interested in knowing more about the secret/sacred rites of the Utah-based LDS church will benefit from and enjoy this book. It would also made a proud addition to the library of any intelligent, thinking Mormon.
4 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
From the Masonic Lodge to the Mormon Temple, 2007-11-20
When Joseph Smith joined the Freemasons in Nauvoo,Illinois, he graduated to Master Mason in a brief time...and with his embrace of Masonry, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints underwent a great change. Before then, Mormons modeled themselves on other churches in their worship- hymns, Communion, sermons; now they had something to call their own.
In "Mysteries of Godliness",David John Buerger chronicles the changes in Mormon temple worship. In the beginning, gatherings in temples were like Pentecostal revivals- people spoke in tongues, prophesied, it was a "divine frenzy." After weddings were performed, there was dancing within the temple precincts. As part of the endowment ceremony, there would be "the lecture before the veil (entry to the Celestial Room)" explaining the deities and exaltation. There were even "second anointings", in which men&women were declared King&Queen, Priest&Priestess. The woman would anoint the man's feet as Mary Magdalene did to Jesus as a ritual marriage (making this a bonus for Da Vinci Code fans!) The beginning of Mormon temple rituals was rooted in magical thinking.
Now,Mormon temple rituals are more standardized. Endowments range from a half hour to two,depending. The sealing of husband&wife is a ten minute ceremony;there isn't any dancing. Temples now contain locker rooms and cafeterias. The temple play depicting the Creation&Fall of Man is now projected on movie screens. Buerger argues that live presentations, time for prayer&meditation in the Celestial Room,would make temple attendance more appealing, making it a "holy setting for spiritual healing." It is true that few Mormons attend the temple regularly; exhorting members to participate in vicarious endowments and sealings has become a popular topic from the pulpit. The mystery of Mormon temples is part of their allure to non-members; Buerger argues that it's time to bring it back.
24 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
Excellent research and presentation. Thorough and yet non-offensive., 2006-09-06
This is one of the best reads I've had for awhile. Buerger has done an excellent job of researching and presenting the history behind the origins and developing changes to the Mormon temple ceremonies. Every quote cited is referenced and the author's goal "to achieve a balance of scholarly objectivity, reverence for the sacred, regard for the sensitivities of others, and adequate documentation and development of the points to be discussed" is very much achieved admirably in this book. The result is an excellent resource for members and non members alike.
Included in the impressive research taken, this book contains names, dates and frequency of what ceremonies took place when and who was involved, taking the guesswork out of other vague historical accounts on the same topic. It covers the history of what has taken place in the temple from the Kirtland days through to modern day.
Buerger avoids delving into the actual oaths, signs and tokens, which should remove any discomfort from current LDS members reading this - although he does dedicate an Appendix at the back of the book to over a hundred references (only) of published descriptions.
I've been a member now since a child and have been taught at every level (and taught others) much on Church doctrine and history, and I was definitely enlightened from reading this book - I highly recommend it to anyone who desires to learn more on the history of Mormon temple worship, including what has been added, changed or discarded since the first endowment was given, and why.
***** 5 stars
35 of 69 people found the following review helpful:
 Pretty good history, but biased conclusions, 2004-02-13
I enjoyed reading this book, and it's history help me a lot to understand the evolution of temple ordinances. I'm LDS and don't understand why someone said LDS would feel embarassed by the book. If it wasn't for the uncalled opinion on how it should evolve (like sugesting a short version of the endowment) I would have given it an extra star. By uncalled opinion I mean that the temple ordinances evolution is not a matter of public opinion (the LDS church is not a democracy, but a theocracy) but rather a matter of either revelation or leadership decision (decision of those in authority to make such changes.
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