What do we know about the purposes and function of the Holy of Holies? And do all temples have one? The word “seal” or “sealing” seems to have multiple meanings. What are those meanings? Also, has the Church’s teachings on wearing garments changed over time? And is there anything doctrinal about the length of garments? Since the garment length has changed in the past to accommodate changes in modern clothing styles, could we expect them to change again as styles continue to change? Furthermore, how do we reconcile examples of clear covenental changes in the endowment ceremony with the common narrative that the covenants don’t change? Today on Church History Matters we sit down with Dr. Richard Bennett, one of the world’s foremost scholars on LDS temple development during the 19th century, to discuss these and other great questions. And, by the way, we apologize in advance for some difficulties with the audio recording of Dr. Bennett. For whatever reason, several times during this interview his audio didn’t record properly and so it was sadly unusable. But we hope you’ll enjoy what we were able to capture from the responses of this great Latter-day Saint scholar.  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

1904 marked the beginning of what would become a grueling 4-year-long senate hearing of US sentator and apostle Reed Smoot. It is intriguing—and important—to learn how this crucible of intensive government examination into every aspect of the Church led to a posture of much greater openness about the temple to outsiders. In fact those hearings, followed by a backfired blackmail attempt by a man who threatened to release illicit pictures he had taken of the interior of the Salt Lake Temple, led Church leaders—really for the first time—to go on the offensive and proactively tell our own story about LDS temple beliefs and practices.  In this episode of Church History Matters we’ll talk about the Smoot hearings and the blackmail attempt; as well as dig into the origin of temple garments, their symbolism, and changes made to their design over the years. We’ll also discuss major innovations in how the temple endowment was presented (which included some help from Walt Disney studios), a cool floating temple boat idea that never happened, as well as how President Gordon B. Hinckley’s temple innovations and prolific temple-building ministry became an inflection point which set the Church on a trajectory to build thousands of temples in the years to come. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

Beginning in 1846, thousands of Latter-day Saints left Nauvoo, Illinois and trekked over one thousand miles west to the Salt Lake Valley.  Having, of necessity, abandoned the Nauvoo Temple for which they had worked so hard and sacrificed so much, they were now a temple-centered people without a temple. Now they certainly would go on to build more temples—the first of which was the Saint George Temple, completed in 1877—but how would the saints do temple related work in the meantime? In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott walk through the unique story of how temple work continued during that 30-year season of no temples, where Church leaders used Ensign Peak, a multi-purpose building called the Council House, a one-of-a-kind building called the Endowment House, and administrative offices for these purposes. We’ll also highlight some important take-aways from Church leaders’ response to the crushing government legislation they faced in the late 1880s forcing the decision between losing all temples or ending the practice of plural marriage.   For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

During the last years of his life, the prophet Joseph Smith gave multiple public sermons dealing with 2 Peter 1, wherein the apostle Peter encourages his readers to “give diligence to make your calling and election sure” (vs. 10). Commenting on this phrase the prophet explained that to have one’s “calling and election” made sure meant to “obtain a promise from God for yourselves that you shall have eternal life.” And he explained that such a promise could be mediated through the keys restored by Elijah. By “this power of Elijah,” he said on one occasion, “we are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. [And] to obtain this sealing is to make our calling and election sure.” In another sermon he confirmed, “the power of Elijah is sufficient to make our calling and election sure.”  In 2 Peter 1, Peter also speaks of obtaining the “more sure word of prophecy” (vs. 19), a phrase the prophet Joseph similarly interpreted to mean “a man’s knowing that he was sealed up unto eternal life … through the power of the Holy priesthood.”   This was the theology—the possibility of being sealed up unto eternal life under the keys restored by Elijah.  Then came the practice.  Beginning in 1843 in Nauvoo, the prophet introduced a sacred ordinance to his most trusted associates wherein, using the keys of Elijah which he held, husbands and wives were sealed up unto eternal life. This was not the marriage ordinance. This was more, given to those already married. It was an ordinance sometimes referred to in the historical record as “the second anointing.”  In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott discuss what they know about the theology and early practice of the second anointing. We also discuss the early—and now discontinued—sealing practice called “the law of adoption” wherein men and women were sealed into the families of Church leaders as their children. They also briefly touch on the now extinct practice of temple-like prayer circles that were conducted outside of the temple for many years in our history.  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

The prophet Joseph Smith’s final years in Nauvoo, IL constituted a season of rich theological and ritual convergence. It was a time when various threads of biblical and revealed theology gave birth to the Latter-day temple rituals that would enable us to enact that very theology. It was in Nauvoo that the picture became clear. Every revealed ordinance builds with deep meaning to the next, until finally reaching the pinnacle ordinance of sealing wife and husband together for eternity. All theological and ritual threads come together at this point.  In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into when and where the ritual of marriage sealings first began in the Church and explore the tight weave between this ordinance and the theological threads of God’s true nature, the existence of Heavenly Mother, and mankind’s created purpose and destiny.  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

Welcome to our special bonus episode where Casey and I interview a friend of our show Lon Tibbitts. In our previous episode we discussed at length the relationship between masonry and the development of the temple endowment in Nauvoo—a topic a lot of people have questions about. So we thought you might enjoy hearing from Lon Tibbitts who has served both as an LDS ward bishop and as a Master of his Masonic lodge in Utah. Lon is a keen student of both masonic and LDS history, and in this interview he sheds light on the origins of freemasonry; on why so many Nauvoo Latter-day Saints joined the fraternity; on connections between masonry and the endowment, the Relief Society, and the martyrdom of Joseph Smith; as well as the later fraught relationship between freemasons and Latter-day Saints in Utah. We hope you enjoy it.  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

What Latter-day Saints today call the Temple Endowment was first given by the prophet Joseph Smith in 1842, two years prior to his death, to a small group of nine of his trusted associates in Nauvoo, Illinois. It was a key piece of the larger vibrant temple liturgy then developing in Nauvoo. But where did this temple endowment come from? What was its relationship to the prophet’s previous revelations? And what, if anything, was its relationship to masonry which Joseph Smith had joined only two months before administering that first endowment to his nine friends (who, by the way, were all masons as well)?  In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott dig into the details of what we know (or think we know) about the origins of the Temple endowment ritual. They discuss several of what they believe are primary source materials the Prophet Joseph drew from as he formulated this important ordinance under inspiration. And they also offer a Nauvoo angle to the meaning of the word “Restoration.” For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

As the climax of the Kirtland endowment on April 3, 1836, Joseph Smith received sacred keys in rapid succession from Moses, Elias, and Elijah. This was the primary purpose for which the Kirtland Temple was built! Joseph had now received all that was necessary for the next phase of temple building which he hoped would take place in Northern Missouri at the settlements of Far West and Adam-Ondi-Ahman. But, due to heinous persecution, neither of these temples ever came to be and the saints found themselves in 1839 as refugees in a swampy, milaria-infested peninsula in Illinois that the Prophet would name “Nauvoo.” It was there over the next few years that the theology, the rituals, and those Kirtland keys, like pieces of a puzzle, began to come together to reveal the stunning purpose of the Nauvoo temple and every temple that would be built thereafter. The Lord referred to this temple-purpose as restoring “the fulness of the priesthood.” The prophet Joseph referred to it as “the restoration of the priesthood” or as the work of connecting “the priesthood.” But what does this mean? And how would the ordinances given to men and women, living and dead, constitute the work of restoring “the priesthood”?    In this episode of Church History Matters we’re excited to talk about all of this!  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

In 1831 the Lord promised the New York saints that if they would gather together with Church members in Ohio they would there “be endowed with power from on high.” Trusting this promise most of them moved to Ohio in expectation of receiving this endowment, or gift, of power from on high. But what exactly was this endowment? What “power” was given from on high? Was it one thing, or several things? And how was this gift (or gifts) of power received in the Kirtland temple so crucial in the unfolding story of the development of Latter-day Saint temple worship in general and to our personal temple experience today?  In this episode of Church History Matters, we dig into the surprising yet satisfying answers to these important questions. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

Temples: It’s difficult to overestimate their importance in the Latter-day Saint movement. In fact, it could be said that what is accomplished inside Latter-day Saint Temples is at the beating heart of the purposes of the Restoration.  In today’s episode of Church History Matters we begin a new series exploring the Development of Latter-day Saint Temple worship. We’re starting at the very beginning and probing questions such as, how early on did Joseph Smith understand the temple-centric nature of his prophetic mission? What is the meaning of the word “endowment”? Which was the first temple commanded to be built in our day, and which temple was actually built first? How are we to make sense of what appears to be a failed prophecy in D&C 84 about the building of the Missouri temple in the first generation of the Church?   For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

Why did the Church file 13f documents with separate shell companies if there was no tax advantage for doing so? Could there be more to the story than simply saying Church leaders listened to "bad legal counsel" in the context of the recent SEC fine?  What’s the latest on the story of James Huntsman who is currently suing the Church to get over 5 million dollars of his tithing returned to him? Should Church leaders be more transparent with Church members about Church assets? Why or why not? And what about the size of the Church’s multi-billion dollar reserve? How can we best situate or contextualize that amount compared to other large organizations? And with so much money, does the Church even need our tithing dollars anymore?  How effective is the Church at humanitarian work? Like, if we wanted to donate to humanitarian aid, would we be better off giving our money to the Church or some other other humanitarian organization?  And finally, is capitalism compatible with consecration and zion building?  All of these questions and more coming your way on this episode of Church History Matters. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

Doctrine & Covenants 119 directs Church members to pay essentially two tithings—the first tithing being a one-time donation of all of their surplus property (meaning whatever they don’t have immediate need of), and the second tithing being an ongoing payment of one-tenth of what they would make in interest annually if they invested their total net worth at 6%. So, when did we shift in the Church away from the payment of tithing in that two-part way to the more general approach today of really only one type of tithe as 10% of our income? Also, who are the Danites and what role did they play in early tithing collection in Far West? Furthermore, how is it okay for some full-time Church leaders today to receive a financial stipend or allowance? Is that historically justified in the revelations and early practice of the Church? Also—related question—is it considered priestcraft for people to receive money for their efforts to build Zion?   Finally, after Joseph Smith’s martyrdom, was there significant disagreement between Brigham Young and Emma Smith regarding Church financial assets? If so, what role did that play in their turbulent relationship over the next decades?  All of these questions and more coming your way on this episode of Church History Matters with Dr. Elizabeth Kuehn and a surprise guest we brought on last minute (we think you'll like him). For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

How does the Church justify putting over one billion dollars into building a mall in downtown Salt Lake City? And did they use tithing money to do so? Also, is it true that the Church has over 100 billion dollars in reserve? Why won’t Church leaders just disclose exactly how much they actually have? If it’s anywhere near that number, is it ethical for the Church to continue to ask its members—especially its poorer members—to tithe? Furthermore, what’s the deal with the Church paying a 5 million dollar fine to the SEC last year? What did they do wrong? Were they caught doing something nefarious?    All of these questions and more coming your way on today’s episode of Church History Matters. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

Zion has been defined as God’s people being of one heart and one mind, dwelling together in righteousness, and having no poor among them. Since Joseph Smith’s day Latter-day Saints have made continuous efforts toward this Zion ideal, including not only assisting the poor and needy, but going even further to help them eliminate poverty from their lives by becoming self reliant.     In this episode of Church History Matters we want to trace the fascinating story of our current Church system for helping the poor—beginning at its origins where it was serendipitously born of necessity in the mind of a Stake President amidst the Great Depression, to its current multi-pronged offerings where, though most of it goes unseen, it quietly blesses countless lives. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

In his July 1838 tithing revelation, the Lord both affirmed the law of consecration and modified the ongoing way in which the saints were expected to consecrate of their money and property. Rather than following the 1831 system outlined in D&C 42 of legally deeding all of their property to the bishop and receiving back from him a legal lease of property known as a stewardship, the Lord asked the saints instead to follow a tithing system of paying “one-tenth of all their interest annually” (D&C 119:4). Only months after this tithing revelation was received, however, the saints were violently expelled from Missouri and, just over a year later, found themselves as refugees settling a swampy piece of land in Illinois they would call Nauvoo.  In this episode of Church History Matters, we begin by diving into what consecration looked like in Nauvoo and then trace the practice into Utah. And rather than seeing a clean linear break from the D&C 42 financial consecration system of stewardship to the D&C 119 consecration system of tithing, we instead see in the historical record what appears to be various forms of overlap between and hybridization of these two systems. We’re talking about united orders and business cooperatives Brigham City, Orderville, how the federal government broke up these cooperatives, and finally how we as a Church came to settle more exclusively on the tithing system.  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

In the aftermath of the significant 1837 failure of the Church’s banking business in Kirtland, Ohio and the subsequent fallout with several Church leaders—including death threats—Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon fled Ohio to be with Church members in Far West, Missouri. Shortly thereafter, in April 1838, the Lord commanded the saints to build the Far West temple, but charged them not to go into more debt to do so. Church leaders were then already steeped in debts from Kirtland as it was. So in response to Joseph’s prayerful plea in July of that year as to how to fund the various needs of the Church, the Lord revealed what we now know as the law of tithing.   In this episode of Church History Matters we discuss several of the fascinating details from this history and grapple with a few fundamental and slightly controversial questions about tithing. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today owns and operates several successful for-profit businesses, from livestock and agriculture to publishing and digital media to real estate and many others. This has caused some to wonder, does a Church focused on bringing people to Christ have any business getting involved in business? Are business ventures like these compatible with the mission of the Church generally and the founding principles of consecration specifically?  In this episode of Church History Matters, we go back to the beginning of the Church to discuss its very first consecration-based business ventures—the Literary Firm and the United Firm, or United Order. Specifically, we’re interested in the founding revelations that justify these ventures and how the principles found in these have paved the way for the Church’s very successful business ventures today. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

In the last few years the finances of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have been in the media spotlight—and not always in positive ways. It’s no secret that the Church today has amassed an impressive financial reserve to ensure the accomplishment of its purposes. But it was not always so. There have been some narrow straits through which the Church has had to pass to get to where it is financially today. It is quite compelling history actually—which is why we wanted to dedicate a whole series to exploring this fascinating and important topic.   In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and Scott go back to the beginning of Church finances to explore the undergirding principles in the original revelations that have gotten us to where we are today. And among them all there is one particular principle that looms larger and is more responsible for the Church’s financial success than any of the others, and that is consecration—a law shrouded with some degree of mystery and confusion in the minds of many. So, we want to at least begin dissecting what it is and what it isn’t in this episode. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

What kind of thinking skills do we need to develop in order to gain and maintain the kind of robust faith we desire? This question is the central subject of a book by Dr. Anthony Sweat entitled, “Seekers Wanted, the Skills You Need for the Faith You Want.” In this book Dr. Sweat offers keen insights into many of the principles of truth-seeking we have been exploring throughout this series as well as many others we didn’t cover!  Casey and I were excited to interview Dr. Sweat for this episode of Church History Matters to discuss his book and to dig deeper together into what good thinking looks like—especially regarding doctrinal seeking. And, as usual, we were not disappointed. For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/

In this episode of Church History Matters, we are joined by special guest Dr. Keith Erekson, a Church Historian. Dr. Erekson wrote an important book entitled “Real vs. Rumor: How to Dispel Latter-day Myths.” It embodies many of the principles of truth-seeking we have been exploring throughout this series … and then some! Casey and I were excited to interview Dr. Erekson about his book and to invite him to demonstrate what those principles look like in practice by inviting him to grapple on-air with some challenging Church History questions. And we were not disappointed.