Major changes to Mormon temple ceremony, especially for women

[Disir]

On Wednesday, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced—but did not quite actually announce—important changes to its temple rituals.

In other words, the Internet was awash with rumors about unprecedented changes, especially concerning gender roles in the endowment ceremony. But other than confirming that something unspecified has indeed been updated and urging Mormons not to talk about those changes publicly, the church has been tight-lipped about what actually happened.

The Salt Lake Tribune is reporting from a witness who went through the temple Wednesday that important elements have indeed been altered, including:

• GONE: women’s promise to hearken to their husbands, as the husbands hearken directly to the Lord. Men are no longer intermediaries between women and God in the temple.
• EXPANDED: the role of Eve, who previously had no dialogue after the expulsion from Eden, and is now purportedly more loquacious than Satan.
• UNITED: women and men covenanting together to serve God, with the same promises, rather than covenanting separately with slightly different wording.

Over the last day I have also heard other attendees reporting about their experiences, and the changes sound far-reaching. This is not just window dressing, but a full overhaul of many aspects of the temple. Without going into detail, I understand that these changes include:

• A simplification of ritual clothing and how it is used
• A shorter overall length to the ceremony, with some repetitive language eliminated or changed
• A different temple movie that is primarily composed of still shots with narration rather than a live action film
• Gender equality in the language of the sealing ceremony, where the bride and groom now apparently make the same promises to each other
• Major changes to Mormon temple ceremony, especially for women - Religion News Service

Of course they are tight-lipped. They are making this up as they go.