Exact Words

Some members of the Church have a certain tradition or habit that really isn't necessary, and that I consequently avoid.  When blessing a baby and giving him or her a name, I often hear the wording like this: "and to give him a name by which he will be known on the records of the Church."  It's simply not dictated by any Church book of instructions.  It doesn't hurt, but I don't want to confuse things that are necessary and things that aren't, so I never use those words.  And I hope that people notice it and realize that they don't need to use them either.  That way we can focus on the traditions and elements of ordinances which are truly important and necessary.

Much of the time, priesthood ordinances do not use exact wording.  Any holder of the Melchizedek Priesthood, when reading the instructions for ordinances, will find key elements but rarely exact words.

But sometimes exact wording is important.  Temple ordinances, for example, use exact wording.  One thing I wonder is, other than the fact that the words have been prescribed for us, are the exact words absolutely necessary?  Perhaps not, and we know that temple ordinances have changed at times, but there are good reasons for using specific words.  A major reason is that there is much to learn from what is said during those ordinances.

Outside of the temple, I can think of two occasions when exact wording is dictated by scripture (in Doctrine and Covenants Section 20 and also in the book of Moroni): during a baptism, and when we renew our baptismal covenants with the sacrament.  Why do we use exact words then?  Is it because those exact words are necessary for the ordinance?  It seems clear that such is not the case when we review the wording used by Alma as he baptized Helam and others: "Helam, I baptize thee, having authority from the Almighty God, as a testimony that ye have entered into a covenant to serve him until you are dead as to the mortal body; and may the Spirit of the Lord be poured out upon you; and may he grant unto you eternal life, through the redemption of Christ, whom he has prepared from the foundation of the world."

I think along with the advantage of learning from specific wording comes the advantage of not having to think through it on the spot--we don't have to figure out what to say every week during the sacrament.  What seems to be the most important reason to me, however, is that by using the same words every time we don't distract ourselves from the ordinance itself.  Too often during regular prayers, the speaker turns to flowery and profuse speech.  If the person performing the baptism or blessing the sacrament wanted to "make it good", they could easily get lost in language that didn't really add to the ordinance at all.  Some people would even be tempted to praise the speaker, again being distracted from the ordinance itself.  The exact wording provides simplicity and focus when that is exactly what is needed as we make and renew covenants with God.

Last thoughts for now:
Making and keeping covenants with our Heavenly Father will bring us back to live with Him.  Sometimes, exactness and precision is required so that we can be most fully blessed.  I want to be precise when such precision is warranted, to keep learning throughout my life, and to stay focused on the simplicity of essential ordinances and covenants.

Blessings and Food

It's strange to me when I arrive at an event where people have already begun to eat, and someone says, "The food has already been blessed," as if to suggest that I don't need to pray. What does "blessed food" even mean? I explain to the person that I still need to thank my Heavenly Father and then I pray. I get the impression that people believe that, somehow, when they pray and ask Heavenly Father to "bless the food", the stuff will change and be more healthy for us, and that's why they're praying in the first place. People also get unnecessarily confused about how to pray when they are about to eat a dessert, not wanting to say something like, "Please bless these cookies to nourish and strengthen our bodies..."

Call me nitpicky, but I pay attention to details and I try very much to be correct even in small things. I never say that we "bless" the food before eating, because I don't think it makes any sense.

The word "blessing" has two basic definitions. First, blessings are any good things that happen to us. Often, they are the natural consequences of our righteous actions; they're God's reward for doing what is right. At other times, we will be blessed because of others' actions or even just their prayers. In short, they're good things in our lives. It makes sense to ask Heavenly Father to bless us that we will be well nourished by food. By a second definition, blessings are priesthood ordinances. We perform ordinances in service to people, not food.

It certainly is appropriate to pray to God before we eat: it's important for us to express gratitude to our Father who provides everything for us.

Last thoughts for now:
I hope to always show gratitude to God. "Blessing" food doesn't make any sense, but I'll always pray before I eat, even if I'm about to eat brownies or ice cream.