The Endowment

The word endowment means “a gift.” The temple endowment is literally a gift from God through which He blesses His children. The endowment can be received only in holy temples. Some of the gifts that members receive through the temple endowment include:

Greater knowledge of the Lord’s purposes and teachings.

Power to do all that Heavenly Father wants His children to do.

Divine direction when serving the Lord, their families, and others.

Increased hope, comfort, and peace.

All the promised blessings of the endowment are in force both in this life and for eternity. The fulfillment of these blessings depends on faithfulness to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The endowment is received in two parts. In the first part, a person receives preliminary ordinances called the initiatory. The initiatory comprises three ordinances: washing, anointing, and clothing (see Exodus 29:4–9). It includes special blessings related to the person’s divine heritage and potential.

During the initiatory, the member covenants to wear the temple garment. The garment represents his or her personal relationship with God and the commitment to obey covenants made in the temple. When members are faithful to their covenants and wear the garment properly throughout their lives, it also serves as a protection. For information about wearing and caring for the garment, see 38.5.5.

In the second part of the endowment, the plan of salvation is taught, including the Creation, the Fall of Adam and Eve, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the Apostasy, and the Restoration. Members also receive instruction on how to return to the Lord’s presence.

In the endowment, members are invited to make sacred covenants as follows:

Live the law of obedience and strive to keep Heavenly Father’s commandments.

Obey the law of sacrifice, which means sacrificing to support the Lord’s work and repenting with a broken heart and contrite spirit.

Obey the law of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which means:

Exercising faith in Jesus Christ.

Repenting daily.

Making covenants with God by receiving the ordinances of salvation and exaltation.

Enduring to the end by keeping covenants.

Striving to live the two great commandments. These are to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” and to “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matthew 22:37, 39).

Keep the law of chastity, which means abstaining from sexual relations outside of a legal marriage between a man and a woman, which is according to God’s law.

Keep the law of consecration, which means that members dedicate their time, talents, and everything with which the Lord has blessed them to building up Jesus Christ’s Church on the earth.

In return, Heavenly Father promises that those who remain faithful to their temple covenants will be endowed “with power from on high” (Doctrine and Covenants 38:32, 38; see also Luke 24:49; Doctrine and Covenants 43:16).