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Temple garment
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Temple garment circa 1879 (GSR 1879).

In some denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, the temple garment (also referred to as garments, or Mormon underwear)[1] is worn as a religious vesture beneath the clothing of those who have taken part in the Endowment ceremony. Garments are worn both day and night and are required for any previously endowed adult to enter the temple.[2] The undergarments are viewed as a symbolic reminder of the sacred covenants made in temple ceremonies, and are viewed as an either 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 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and by Mormon fundamentalist churches. Adherents consider them to be sacred and some may be offended by public discussion of the garment. Anti-Mormon activists have occasionally publicly displayed or defaced temple garments to show their opposition to the LDS Church.[4]
Contents
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* 1 19th century garments and original symbolism
* 2 Post-19th century modifications by the LDS Church
* 3 LDS Church teachings on use
* 4 Purpose
* 5 Latter-day Saint views as to sacredness
* 6 See also
* 7 References
* 8 Notes
* 9 External links

[edit] 19th century garments and original symbolism

In the 19th century, the temple garment 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. The garment had four marks that were snipped into the cloth as part of the original Nauvoo Endowment ceremony.[5] 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 generally-accepted Mormon doctrine, the marks in the garments are sacred symbols.[6] One proposed element of the symbolism, according to early Mormon leaders, was a link to the Square and Compasses, the symbols of freemasonry,[7] to which Joseph Smith, Jr. had been initiated about seven weeks prior to his introduction of the Endowment ceremony.[8] 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".[9] According to an explanation 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".[10] 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".[11]

An alternative explanation was given in 1936 by then-LDS Church apostle David O. McKay, whose explanation was incorporated into the LDS Endowment ceremony.[12] According to McKay's explanation of the ceremony, 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".[13] 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.[14]