I am so excited and I'll tell you why: my husband and I are eligible to go to the Temple!!
So how does this work since my husband and I are already considered married?? Here's an explanation that may make more sense:
Our church views our marriage as a civil union, appointed under the federal government, not God. By being worthy to enter the Temple, our church sees it as being officially married in the name of the Lord.
The things that go on in the Temple are sacred, and therefore before we go in, we know nothing other than what they tell us in the prepratory classes (which is nothing), and then after we go through the ceremony, we rarely if ever speak of it to anyone but our spouse. It is a sacred thing to go through the ceremony with your spouse and it is also something that is important between just the two of you. It is considered the strongest foundation you can have within a marriage, and I wholeheartedly believe it.
To be worthy and elegible for a Temple Reccomend (a pass), in our case meaning after being civilly married, means having:
a belief in God the Father, Jesus as the Savior and redeemer of mankind, and the Holy Spirit;
belief in the role of Jesus as the Savior;
belief in the Restoration;
support for the President of the Church and other general authorities and local church leaders;
obedience to the "Law of Chastity" (ie: sex/flirting/relations between husband and wife only no ifs, ands or butts);
refraining from the abuse of family members;
ABSOLUTLEY NO AFFILIATION OR AGREEMENT with polygamists or other people whom the church considers apostates;
making a good faith effort to attend church meetings and obey other church rules;
honesty in dealings with others;
payment of tithing;
following the church's interpretation of the Word of Wisdom;
payment of child support (if applicable);
keeping the solemn oaths one has previously made in the temple;
wearing the temple garment "night and day"; and
confession of all serious sins to Church leaders.
we both had to be members for 1 year, have a testimony, attend church regularly, my husband must have all the proper Priesthood ordinances and we must be in general, decent people in the eyes of the church. So technically we are shoe-ins. Right now we are just waiting for my husband to get his last Priesthood ordinance and then we will be ready to receive our Temple reccomends.
I am excited to go through this and excited to be able to share it with the most wonderful man in the world.
