Law of adoption
Encyclopedia
The law of adoption was a ritual
practiced in Latter Day Saint temples
between 1846 and 1894 in which men who held the priesthood were sealed in a father–son relationship to other men who were not part of nor even distantly related
to their immediate nuclear family
.
reason for the practice was because “[a]t this early stage in the church's history the membership was dominated by adult converts, whose new religious beliefs and westward migration with the Saints often estranged them from their birth families. Intra-church adoption in some measure compensated for this.”
; however, the doctrine Pratt referred to was not a sealing ordinance, but rather the means whereby Mormons, through baptism, were said to obtain a birthright as an "adopted" son of God and a member of the heavenly kingdom. There is no surviving evidence that the "law of adoption" sealing practice was taught by Joseph Smith, Jr. or his contemporaries prior to Smith's death
in 1844. However, adoptions appeared on the records of the Nauvoo Temple
in 1846, and scholars generally assume that the practice was instituted by Brigham Young
.
had been sealed by the law of adoption to Joseph Smith, and in January and early February 1846 (before leaving for the Rocky Mountains
on 15 February 1846), Young was sealed to 38 young men by the law of adoption in the Nauvoo Temple
. On 23 February 1847, Young “went to see Joseph” in a dream
and Young said that he spoke with Joseph about the law of adoption.
On April 6, 1862, Brigham Young said of the law of adoption: “By this power men will be sealed to men back to Adam, completing and making perfect the priesthood from this day to the winding up scene.” It is reported by Brigham Young’s grandson, Kimball Young (chairman of the Department of Sociology
at Northwestern University
) that in a letter Brigham Young stated that there will be a future time “when men would be sealed to men in the priesthood in a more solemn ordinance than that by which women were sealed to men, and in a room over that in which women were sealed to man.”
, the fourth president of the LDS Church, stated in August 1896 that between 1843 and 1894 he “officiated in adopting 96 men to men”. Woodruff also stated that by 1885, he had “had 45 persons adopted to me”. Woodruff recorded in his diary that when the sealing rooms of the St. George Temple
were dedicated in January 1877, Woodruff—who was the temple president
—adopted two couples to Brigham Young. Of the seventeen LDS Church apostles who died in the faith prior to 1894, fourteen had persons adopted to them.
, “fewer members of the church arrived separated from their birth families (because they were born into the church)”.
Thus, as of 1894, the practice of the law of adoption ceased in the LDS Church.
was involved as part of the original practice of the law of adoption in the 19th century. However, beginning in the 1970s, some members of Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons began to suggest that the leadership of the LDS Church should restore the law of adoption in order to allow same-sex couples to be sealed to each other in the temple in a kind of quasi-celestial marriage
. It has been argued that this would preserve the primacy of heterosexual marriage
but would allow an ecclesiastical equivalent of homosexual civil union
s—a homosexual ecclesiastical union
. The LDS Church did not respond directly to these suggestions, but continues to oppose homosexual behavior and same-sex marriage.
The restoration of the law of adoption was implemented when some members of Affirmation in 1985 established the Restoration Church of Jesus Christ
(commonly referred to as the Gay Mormon Church) and the First Presidency of that church restored the law of adoption, citing it as the theological
justification for their practice of homosexual celestial marriage
.
Ritual
A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value. It may be prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. The term usually excludes actions which are arbitrarily chosen by the performers....
practiced in Latter Day Saint temples
Temple (LDS Church)
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time...
between 1846 and 1894 in which men who held the priesthood were sealed in a father–son relationship to other men who were not part of nor even distantly related
Extended family
The term extended family has several distinct meanings. In modern Western cultures dominated by nuclear family constructs, it has come to be used generically to refer to grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins, whether they live together within the same household or not. However, it may also refer...
to their immediate nuclear family
Nuclear family
Nuclear family is a term used to define a family group consisting of a father and mother and their children. This is in contrast to the smaller single-parent family, and to the larger extended family. Nuclear families typically center on a married couple, but not always; the nuclear family may have...
.
Practice
Some younger men who were sealed by the law of adoption were called “sons” and took the surname of the older man, who they called their “father”. In the law of adoption, “the sons were to give to the fathers the benefit of their labor while the fathers offered their children not only some measure of security but counsel and direction in the world as well.” One sociologicalSociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
reason for the practice was because “[a]t this early stage in the church's history the membership was dominated by adult converts, whose new religious beliefs and westward migration with the Saints often estranged them from their birth families. Intra-church adoption in some measure compensated for this.”
Early references to the "law of adoption"
The first known use of the term "law of adoption" within Mormon doctrine was by Parley P. PrattParley P. Pratt
Parley Parker Pratt, Sr. was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1835 until his murder in 1857. He served in the Quorum with his younger brother, Orson Pratt...
; however, the doctrine Pratt referred to was not a sealing ordinance, but rather the means whereby Mormons, through baptism, were said to obtain a birthright as an "adopted" son of God and a member of the heavenly kingdom. There is no surviving evidence that the "law of adoption" sealing practice was taught by Joseph Smith, Jr. or his contemporaries prior to Smith's death
Death of Joseph Smith, Jr.
The death of Joseph Smith, Jr. on June 27, 1844 marked a turning point for the Latter Day Saint movement, of which Smith was the founder and leader. When he was attacked and killed by a mob, Smith was the mayor of Nauvoo, Illinois, and running for President of the United States...
in 1844. However, adoptions appeared on the records of the Nauvoo Temple
Nauvoo Temple
The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, commonly known as the Mormons. The church's first temple was completed in Kirtland, Ohio, United States in 1836. When the main body of the church was forced out of Nauvoo, Illinois in the...
in 1846, and scholars generally assume that the practice was instituted by Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
.
Brigham Young
Brigham YoungBrigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
had been sealed by the law of adoption to Joseph Smith, and in January and early February 1846 (before leaving for the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
on 15 February 1846), Young was sealed to 38 young men by the law of adoption in the Nauvoo Temple
Nauvoo Temple
The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, commonly known as the Mormons. The church's first temple was completed in Kirtland, Ohio, United States in 1836. When the main body of the church was forced out of Nauvoo, Illinois in the...
. On 23 February 1847, Young “went to see Joseph” in a dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
and Young said that he spoke with Joseph about the law of adoption.
On April 6, 1862, Brigham Young said of the law of adoption: “By this power men will be sealed to men back to Adam, completing and making perfect the priesthood from this day to the winding up scene.” It is reported by Brigham Young’s grandson, Kimball Young (chairman of the Department of Sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
) that in a letter Brigham Young stated that there will be a future time “when men would be sealed to men in the priesthood in a more solemn ordinance than that by which women were sealed to men, and in a room over that in which women were sealed to man.”
Wilford Woodruff
Wilford WoodruffWilford Woodruff
Wilford Woodruff, Sr. was the fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1889 until his death...
, the fourth president of the LDS Church, stated in August 1896 that between 1843 and 1894 he “officiated in adopting 96 men to men”. Woodruff also stated that by 1885, he had “had 45 persons adopted to me”. Woodruff recorded in his diary that when the sealing rooms of the St. George Temple
St. George Utah Temple
The St. George Utah Temple is the first temple completed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after the forced exodus of the body of the Church from Nauvoo, Illinois, after the death of its founder Joseph Smith, Jr.-Description:The building is located in the SW Utah city of St....
were dedicated in January 1877, Woodruff—who was the temple president
Temple President
Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of an LDS temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity....
—adopted two couples to Brigham Young. Of the seventeen LDS Church apostles who died in the faith prior to 1894, fourteen had persons adopted to them.
Problems
The practice fell into disrepute partly because “in a few cases it led to jealousy and conflict between sons for their adoptive father's attentions, and because it had in some other cases caused a scramble for status between potential sons seeking adoption by higher-ranking elders, and between elders by accumulating large numbers of adoptive sons”. Another factor was that after the settlement of Utah TerritoryUtah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
, “fewer members of the church arrived separated from their birth families (because they were born into the church)”.
Placed in abeyance
In a church general conference address on 6 April 1894, Wilford Woodruff stated that “I have not felt satisfied, nor has any man since the Prophet Joseph Smith who has attended to the ordinance of adoption in the temples of our God. We have felt there was more to be revealed on this subject than we have received … and the duty that I want every man who presides over a Temple to see performed from this day henceforth, unless the Lord Almighty commands otherwise, is let every man be adopted to his father.”Thus, as of 1894, the practice of the law of adoption ceased in the LDS Church.
Significance today
There is no evidence to suggest that homosexual sexHuman sexual behavior
Human sexual activities or human sexual practices or human sexual behavior refers to the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts from time to time, and for a wide variety of reasons...
was involved as part of the original practice of the law of adoption in the 19th century. However, beginning in the 1970s, some members of Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons began to suggest that the leadership of the LDS Church should restore the law of adoption in order to allow same-sex couples to be sealed to each other in the temple in a kind of quasi-celestial marriage
Celestial marriage
Celestial marriage is a doctrine of Mormonism, particularly The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and branches of Mormon fundamentalism.Within Mormonism, celestial marriage is an ordinance associated with a covenant that always...
. It has been argued that this would preserve the primacy of heterosexual marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
but would allow an ecclesiastical equivalent of homosexual civil union
Civil union
A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...
s—a homosexual ecclesiastical union
Blessing of same-sex unions in Christian churches
The blessing of same-sex unions is currently an issue about which some Christian churches are at present in disagreement with other Christian churches...
. The LDS Church did not respond directly to these suggestions, but continues to oppose homosexual behavior and same-sex marriage.
The restoration of the law of adoption was implemented when some members of Affirmation in 1985 established the Restoration Church of Jesus Christ
Restoration Church of Jesus Christ
The former Restoration Church of Jesus Christ , based in the United States in Salt Lake City, Utah, was a church in the Latter Day Saint movement that catered primarily to the spiritual needs of Latter Day Saints who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered .The RCJC was sometimes informally...
(commonly referred to as the Gay Mormon Church) and the First Presidency of that church restored the law of adoption, citing it as the theological
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
justification for their practice of homosexual celestial marriage
Celestial marriage
Celestial marriage is a doctrine of Mormonism, particularly The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and branches of Mormon fundamentalism.Within Mormonism, celestial marriage is an ordinance associated with a covenant that always...
.
See also
- Homosexuality and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day SaintsHomosexuality and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day SaintsHomosexual acts are prohibited by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' Law of Chastity, as well as other sexual acts outside the bonds of marriage. Violating the Law of Chastity may result in excommunication...
- List of Christian denominational positions on homosexuality
- Religion and sexualityReligion and sexualityMost world religions have sought to address the moral issues that arise from people's sexuality in society and in human interactions. Each major religion has developed moral codes covering issues of sexuality, morality, ethics etc...
Further reading
- Irving, Gordon. "The Law of Adoption: One Phase of the Development of the Mormon Concept of Salvation," BYU Studies, 14(3) (Spring 1974), Pages 291-314
- Quinn, D. Michael Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example University of Illinois Press, 1996
- Tanner, Jerald and Sandra "Sealing Men to Men" Salt Lake City Messenger , Number 92, April 1997, Pages 4-8
External links
- Ben Williams, "Same Sex Temple Sealings: Did the Early LDS Church Embrace Homosexual Relationships?", Salt Lake Metro, September 2004