We blessed our daughter yesterday. I pulled up the ordinance instructions on my phone just before to make sure I wasn’t forgetting anything.The instructions are extremely simple:
When blessing a baby, Melchizedek Priesthood holders gather in a circle and place their hands under the baby. When blessing an older child, brethren place their hands lightly on the child’s head. The person who gives the blessing:
- Addresses Heavenly Father.
- States that the blessing is performed by the authority of the Melchizedek Priesthood.
- Gives the child a name.
- Gives words of blessing as the Spirit directs.
- Closes in the name of Jesus Christ.
The usual tropes like ‘the name by which he shall be known in the records of the church” aren’t in there.
The instructions are spare enough that they are obviously meant to provide a framework only.
I realized that technically the instructions are completely compatible with regional or family versions of ordinances. A particular family line could always use a particular form of words, for instance: ‘we welcome you into the XX family with the name of . . . .” But as far as I know, these sorts of variations haven’t happened. I’m not decrying their lack. I don’t actually know whether it would be a good thing or not. But its interesting to realize the untapped potential Mormonism has to be developed in various ways.
As to why family versions of ordinances haven’t developed, I speculate that its partly because family revelation is underutilized among us, and even if it weren’t, there are cultural and social barriers to family revelation that extends beyond the two generations of the nuclear family. Also, the smart phone age probably makes it less likely anyhow. Local and family variations are more likely to develop where blessing rituals are still part of the oral culture. When you can look up blessing instructions on your phone, they aren’t anymore.
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