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The Holy Sealing: Uniting the Eternal Family of God
Although sealing is central to the Restoration, sometimes we don’t understand it beyond “living together” in heaven. Sealing, however, orders eternity, links generations, secures blessings, continues priesthood, and enable exaltation.
In this third companion book to the best-selling volumes The Holy Invitation and The Holy Covenants, Anthony and Cindy Sweat explore more broadly what the holy sealing is doing, why it is essential, and how it blesses us. Drawing form the scriptures and words of prophets, they teach about the organization of heaven, God’s work and glory, the marriage sealing promises, covenant children as heirs, the great chain of the priesthood, the latter-day offering of temple work for the dead, and the centrality of the Lord Jesus Christ in perfecting God’s divine family.
No matter your current situation, The Holy Sealing offers clarity, comfort, and confidence in the Lord’s divine work to unite the eternal family of God.
In this third companion book to the best-selling volumes The Holy Invitation and The Holy Covenants, Anthony and Cindy Sweat explore more broadly what the holy sealing is doing, why it is essential, and how it blesses us. Drawing form the scriptures and words of prophets, they teach about the organization of heaven, God’s work and glory, the marriage sealing promises, covenant children as heirs, the great chain of the priesthood, the latter-day offering of temple work for the dead, and the centrality of the Lord Jesus Christ in perfecting God’s divine family.
No matter your current situation, The Holy Sealing offers clarity, comfort, and confidence in the Lord’s divine work to unite the eternal family of God.
105 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 29, 2025
54 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Sweat
23 books77 followersAnthony Sweat is an Associate Professor of Church History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University. He received a BFA in painting and drawing from the University of Utah and his MEd and PhD in curriculum and instruction from Utah State University.
Before joining the religion faculty at BYU, he worked for thirteen years with Seminaries and Institutes of Religion. Dr. Sweat is the author of several books and articles related to the teachings and history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His research centers on factors that influence effective religious education. As a practicing artist, his paintings center on religious themes, including underrepresented events in Church history. Anthony and his wife, Cindy, are the parents of seven children and reside in Springville, Utah.
Before joining the religion faculty at BYU, he worked for thirteen years with Seminaries and Institutes of Religion. Dr. Sweat is the author of several books and articles related to the teachings and history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His research centers on factors that influence effective religious education. As a practicing artist, his paintings center on religious themes, including underrepresented events in Church history. Anthony and his wife, Cindy, are the parents of seven children and reside in Springville, Utah.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
October 20, 2025
I loved this book and marked almost every paragraph. It's only 102 pages. I recommend that you read the whole thing! It provides wonderful insights on the sealing ordinance. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
"Sealing... is central to understanding the Restoration (p. x)."
"Great truths of the next world have been revealed by the Lord in His mercy, but it's often general, and not specific, and some vistas of eternity yet remain obscured (p. xi)."
"The Lord's prophets are the appointed guides in this sacred territory... The President of the Church holds and governs the use of the keys of sealing and 'personally oversees its delegation to others' (p. xii)."
"As you study the doctrines and principles of sealing, we believe you will draw closer to Jesus Christ and the power of His great redemptive work (p. xiii)."
"God sees you... feel His justice, mercy, and love through His great plan (p. xiv)."
"Although Joseph Smith had implemented the broader doctrine of sealing in Nauvoo, it came line upon line and was yet underdeveloped when he was suddenly martyred in 1844... Brigham picked up where Joseph left off, seeking to forge the great 'chain' of linking the human family through priesthood sealing back to Adam and Eve... How do we create and bring everyone into the heavenly structure of the covenant family of God? (p. 2)"
"Brigham saw a great heavenly network. Not a network of rivers and roads, but of people and families--God's children 'joined together' by the sealing priesthood in a 'perfect chain from Father Adam to his latest posterity' (p. 3)."
"Heaven is organized and ordered (p. 3)."
"Sealing organizes the structure of the kingdom of heaven... 'heaven is organized by families' (p. 5)."
"Sealing bestows blessings upon the covenant children of the Lord, creating potential heirs of exaltation. Sealing is the divine organization that facilitates the Lord's eternal reach and rescue of all of God's children so that none are lost (p. 5)."
"Sealing empowers the ultimate dream to inherit eternal life in the presence of God and the Lamb and together with our loved ones, to progress eternally (p. 5)."
"'It isn't easy to translate our doctrinal framework into daily reality, because mortal family life is by its nature a continual struggle between the ideal and the real' (Bruce Hafen, p. 6)."
"The dream of deep and everlasting family connection and love yet calls to us. We're wired for it... Heaven would fail in solitude... Celestial living is both upward (connection to God) and outward (connection to family); loving God and loving others (p. 7)."
"Let's pursue the dream in faith, with hope, full of charity, and with a 'sure reliance to trust in the Lord and His love for His children'... particularly on 'unanswered questions about sealings in the next life' (Dallin H. Oaks, p. 8)."
"Jesus Christ is the way. Priesthood is the order. Family is the work. Sealing enables eternal connection. Pure love is everlasting. We are not alone. All are remembered in the covenant. Neither we, nor they, can be made perfect without one another. God's great divine plan is successful. Exaltation is possible. Family relationships can be perpetuated beyond the grave (p. 8)."
"'The great and grand secret of the whole matter... consists in obtaining the powers of the Holy Priesthood' (Joseph Smith, p. 9)."
"Too many of us do not deeply understand priesthood (p. 10)."
"The essence of the holy priesthood is more than ecclesiastical Church offices... priesthood is 'the authority and power of God,' that... can 'flow to all members of the Church--male and female--as they keep their covenants'... Priesthood ordinances... unlock 'the power of godliness' to be manifest in our lives (p. 11)."
"Priesthood... is a covenant order of persons living a life patterned after Jesus Christ, dedicated to doing the will and work of God, who are authorized and empowered by Him (p. 12)."
"If we had to summarize Godhood in one word, it could be parenthood (p. 13)."
"Eternal glory is embedded in eternal seed. Eternal life is family life (p. 14)."
"Priesthood is God's power and authority. We obtain God's power and authority by covenant righteousness through Christ's order [which] brings eternal [which] centers in continuing seed, or God's eternal family. God's eternal family is God's work and glory [which] can become our work and glory through eternal marriage and family (p. 15)."
"The patriarchal order can be conferred upon us through an eternal marriage sealing, it is true, but only those who learn to govern themselves and serve God and their families in righteousness will have power in the priesthood, in time or eternity (p. 19)."
"Heaven is not so much a place as it is an ability. Specifically, the endowed spiritual capacity to abide in celestial 'laws' and 'conditions.' If you live laws and principles of righteousness, through God's grace you can develop the ability to continue in eternal covenant relationships and 'the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven' (p. 20)."
"'You have got to learn how to be gods yourselves; to be kings and priests to God' (Joseph Smith, p. 21)."
"Priesthood is eternally tied to everlasting posterity... That work will bring God's glory, but it requires covenant hearts (p. 21)."
"'Our mission to the earth was to organize a nuclei of Heaven, to take with us, to the increase of which there would be no end' (p. 25)."
"Without being sealed to a spouse, we are limited in our eternal progression, or we 'cannot have an increase'... We are not intended to be solitary individuals. God has designed us and His work on a plan of interdependence (p. 26)."
"'Every kingdom is given a law'... The law of exaltation in the celestial kingdom requires sealing a man and woman by the power of the holy priesthood (p. 27)."
"A holy sealing is much more than a wedding... The bride and groom don't stand, but instead symbolically and humbly kneel across from one another at an altar... Vows aren't created and read by the couple, but instead God's revealed words for a sacred ordinance are spoken and agreed to in a solemn covenant (p. 29)."
"A temple sealing looks different than other marriages because it is--it is uniting covenant hearts for all eternity to do God's work and receive a fulness of exalted blessings (p. 30)."
"A holy sealing is founded upon following the teachings and laws of Jesus Christ in obedience, through sacrifice, living the higher laws of the gospel, being temperate and chaste, consecrating all we have and are to do God's work and will to build His kingdom (p. 30)."
"'I love you so much that I want to build a family of God with you. I want that family to be centered on Jesus Christ and His gospel. I want to pass on the blessings of the gospel to our children by giving them an heirship to all the truths, covenants, and ordinances of the priesthood. I am willing to commit to you and this by a solemn and sacred priesthood covenant in God's house. Will you do the work of God with me for eternity so we can become like God together?' (p. 30)"
"Exaltation is His work. When we choose to get sealed, we willingly become one and enter into 'partnership' with God, doing His work in our own home and family on earth (p. 31)."
"Creating an eternal union between a man and woman of God, to do the work of God, in the ways of God, is central to the temple marriage sealing covenant (p. 31)."
"Cleaving in total devoted chastity creates the relational environment for complete trust, union, loyalty, safety, and selfless care that is required to establish an eternal covenant family (p. 33)."
"Modern prophets teach that a husband and wife are equal partners (p. 34)."
"Our covenants with God and sealing to another are all based on agency (p. 36)."
"'That which is governed by law is also preserved by law' (p. 37)."
"The foundation of an eternal marriage is and must be on Jesus Christ. It is only through continual repentance, forgiveness, and grace--between God and each other--that the shortcomings of mortal marriage can be repaired and strengthened to endure for eternity (p. 38)."
"'The work' of God is family-centric, faith-based work. You have desires. You are called. You are ready to embark in this service (p. 39)."
"Let us be as Abraham, who 'against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations' and 'was strong in faith, giving glory to God' (p. 40)."
"God is creating a 'kingdom of priesthood' and a 'royal priesthood' through the ordinances, power, and blessings of the house of the Lord (p. 44)."
"Like sisterhood or brotherhood, priesthood is a covenant community of priests (p. 45)."
"Through temple ordinances we enter in and connect to this royal patriarchal lineage--the exalted family line of God that facilitates its blessings to flow to us as heirs and, through us, on to our children (p. 47)."
"There is only one general ordinance in the Church where we use the word 'heir,' and that is in sealing a child to his or her parents in the temple (p. 48)."
"We 'inherit' things from our parents... These things simply come to us... but right of birth... In the Lord's kingdom the concept of being an heir continues, only instead of inheriting earthly things, we are 'heirs according to the covenant... As faithful heirs of the exalted covenant, through the Savior's grace we can' inherit thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, dominions all heights and depths... exaltation and glory in all things, as hath been sealed upon their heads' (p. 49)."
"Those who are not born in the covenant can be sealed to their parents once their parents are endowed and sealed to a spouse, and thus they receive the blessings of being an heir equally, just as if they were born in the covenant (p. 52)."
"God desires everyone to become heirs of the covenant blessings of the patriarchal priesthood so that none are lost or denied opportunity for eternal growth and progression (p. 52)."
"It is January 28, 1844, and Wilford Woodruff is carefully drawing pictures in his journal. Embroidered hearts, to be exact, with twelve smaller hearts and a thirteenth larger heart, connected to one grand heart, all with keys inside of them (p. 55)."
"'Seal the hearts of the children to the fathers.'... This drawing... was not only showing Wilford and Phebe's eternal marriage sealing to each other, but also their connection into a network of kings and priests and queens and priestesses to God (p. 56)."
"Sealing keys validate all the ordinances of exaltation--including temple work for the dead (p. 60)."
"We can link ourselves and this last dispensation with our progenitors and prior dispensations (p. 60)."
"If eternal priesthood is familial, then we need our families, and they need us. Remember, heaven is relational and priesthood is parental. None of us can be perfected or exalted without one another (p. 61)."
"At times, connecting flights are seen negatively, but they are a marvelous solution to a major problem. Without connections, we wouldn't be able to travel everywhere in the world from wherever we live. We would be severely limited. It's the great web of regional carriers connecting to major national and international airports that makes it all possible. There's power in pathways of connection. And all it takes is one or two to open things up for all (p. 63)."
"Humans are constantly creating connective networks to facilitate the flow of power--water, interstate highways, cellular service, internet, social media, electricity, gas. Connections open and facilitate resources, information, pathways, and opportunities that otherwise wouldn't exist independently... In the same way that there are enabling powers through mortal networks, there is eternal power through a heavenly network (p. 65)."
"While some details of the spirit world and how the institutional Church operates in the eternal world are not fully revealed, the organization of families appears to be central. The network of heaven doesn't run through wires, cables, or pipes but through husbands, wives, and children connected by the keys and power of the priesthood... Indeed, this family unit and priesthood order will likely one day outlive the organization of the ecclesiastical Church (p. 67)."
"Sealing children to parents seems less about future heavenly living arrangements and more centered in heavenly loving agreements; less about hanging out together and more about reaching out forever (p. 68)."
"'How shall God come to the rescue of this generation? He shall send Elijah... and he shall reveal the covenant to seal the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers' (Joseph Smith). Through this patriarchal order of the priesthood, families are eternally connected into a celestial ministering network of Saints across dispensations as they help bring about God's work and glory, extending the blessings of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all so that none are lost. Finding and connecting the entire human family to God is the work of the last days, and our great offering to God (p. 69)."
"We personally visualize the great network like a crosscut of a huge tree, with thousands of lines connecting to one another and from dispensational ring to ring with myriads of possible routes back to the center... Everyone can and must be linked into the ordered family and kingdom of God. Through our Savior and His holy priesthood, none are to be lost (p. 72)."
"'Once you and I have made a covenant with God, our relationship with Him becomes much closer than before our covenant. Now we are bound together. Because of our covenant with God, He will never tire in His efforts to help us, and we will never exhaust His merciful patience with us... And should any stray, He will help them find their way back to Him' (Russell M. Nelson, p. 73)."
"How do we gather them back? That's where we come in. That is the work of the last dispensation and our great offering to God through His holy temple and the sealing work therein (p. 73)."
"Instead of offering up animals, we offer ourselves (p. 74)."
"Motivated by love, we vicariously do for others what the dead can't do for themselves, performing necessary ordinances in their behalf that open the door of salvation (p. 74)."
"Everyone will be invited to 'partake of his goodness' and 'all men are privileged and none are forbidden' because 'all are alike' unto Him, and He 'denieth none that come unto him' (p. 76)."
"If you want physical, tangible evidence that God remembers His covenant children, just study closely the Book of Mormon... that is crucial to the whole story and message: God reaching out to a family and their wayward children 'that they may know the covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off forever' (p. 76)."
"'How merciful is our God unto us, for he remembereth the house of Israel, both roots and branches; and he stretches forth his hands unto them all the day long' (Jacob 6:4, p. 77)."
"Before you read the allegory of the olive tree given... in Jacob 5, we first need to look at the question he was addressing... 'How is it possible that these, after having rejected the sure foundation, can ever build upon it, that it may become the head of their corner?' (p. 78)"
"Moral agency is central and eternal (p. 79)."
"Priesthood power is not like worldly power. Priesthood is not power over, but power through. As we act in accordance with these and other principles of the priesthood, our children will eventually, without compulsory means, turn to God and claim their birthright blessings as children of Abraham and heirs of the priesthood (p. 80)."
"'The commitment to aid one another across the veil can be classified as a covenant promise... It is how the covenant promises given to Abraham are realized' (D. Todd Christofferson)... This communal covenant outreach for and in behalf of those on the other side of the veil is 'necessary and essential' to our own salvation (p. 80)."
"The sealing ordinances are how the great network is organized and facilitated so that through loving family ties, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ extends to all (p. 82)."
"Words escape the horror of Jesus's death, but to believers, this voluntary sacrifice is our Lord's greatest act of love (p. 84)."
"Even if our present family situation feels close to heaven and abounds in blessed love, when it comes to sealing roots and branches through our ancestors and children, nobody has a perfectly formed family tree. All of us have disconnected lines because of divorce, death, remarriage, singleness, or unfaithfulness... There is only one answer... It is our Savior, Jesus Christ (p. 85)."
"Without Jesus Christ, there is no eternal family... Jesus Christ alone is able to make us holy and endow us with priesthood power and capacity to abide in the presence of God, lovingly linked with our loved ones (p. 86)."
"For our relationships to be fit for eternity, we must build upon the gospel of Jesus Christ (p. 87)."
"The Savior is the center of the sealing ceremony. We kneel over an altar of sacrifice that symbolizes our Lord's divine offering, expressing through humble bended knees that we will base our marriage upon His teachings and Atonement. We take each other's hand over that altar, signifying that our very eternal connection to one another is only possible because of His suffering, death, and power of resurrection (p. 87)."
"Striving to live by priesthood principles such as gentleness, temperance, kindness, patience, and love enable relationships to be healthy, trusting, and enduring. Relationships don't thrive on sin, pride, vanity, or compulsion (p. 88)."
"'The Restoration' isn't only about reestablishing the authorized Church, but it is about Christ putting all things in their intended heavenly condition (p. 91)."
"The sealing work for the living and dead in the Lord's house, while inspiring, is imperfect... The family organization of heaven will be perfected and restored to its proper and perfect condition (p. 93)."
"The following are some invitations related to the holy sealing we can each implement now:
1. Come unto Christ... Talk of Him, preach of Him, and rejoice in His divinity, Atonement, and grace...
2. Develop Christlike attributes... Continual repentance is essential... Extend forgiveness and mercy... pray to be filled with love...
3. Focus on family...
4. Build righteous relationships... visit that neighbor...
5. Be endowed with power...
6. Seal all you can...
7. Wait on the Lord for patience, faith, and hope (p. 93)."
"Sealing ties bind like divine tentacles, connecting lawful and rightful heirs preserved by priesthood and linked by love (p. 102)."
"Sealing... is central to understanding the Restoration (p. x)."
"Great truths of the next world have been revealed by the Lord in His mercy, but it's often general, and not specific, and some vistas of eternity yet remain obscured (p. xi)."
"The Lord's prophets are the appointed guides in this sacred territory... The President of the Church holds and governs the use of the keys of sealing and 'personally oversees its delegation to others' (p. xii)."
"As you study the doctrines and principles of sealing, we believe you will draw closer to Jesus Christ and the power of His great redemptive work (p. xiii)."
"God sees you... feel His justice, mercy, and love through His great plan (p. xiv)."
"Although Joseph Smith had implemented the broader doctrine of sealing in Nauvoo, it came line upon line and was yet underdeveloped when he was suddenly martyred in 1844... Brigham picked up where Joseph left off, seeking to forge the great 'chain' of linking the human family through priesthood sealing back to Adam and Eve... How do we create and bring everyone into the heavenly structure of the covenant family of God? (p. 2)"
"Brigham saw a great heavenly network. Not a network of rivers and roads, but of people and families--God's children 'joined together' by the sealing priesthood in a 'perfect chain from Father Adam to his latest posterity' (p. 3)."
"Heaven is organized and ordered (p. 3)."
"Sealing organizes the structure of the kingdom of heaven... 'heaven is organized by families' (p. 5)."
"Sealing bestows blessings upon the covenant children of the Lord, creating potential heirs of exaltation. Sealing is the divine organization that facilitates the Lord's eternal reach and rescue of all of God's children so that none are lost (p. 5)."
"Sealing empowers the ultimate dream to inherit eternal life in the presence of God and the Lamb and together with our loved ones, to progress eternally (p. 5)."
"'It isn't easy to translate our doctrinal framework into daily reality, because mortal family life is by its nature a continual struggle between the ideal and the real' (Bruce Hafen, p. 6)."
"The dream of deep and everlasting family connection and love yet calls to us. We're wired for it... Heaven would fail in solitude... Celestial living is both upward (connection to God) and outward (connection to family); loving God and loving others (p. 7)."
"Let's pursue the dream in faith, with hope, full of charity, and with a 'sure reliance to trust in the Lord and His love for His children'... particularly on 'unanswered questions about sealings in the next life' (Dallin H. Oaks, p. 8)."
"Jesus Christ is the way. Priesthood is the order. Family is the work. Sealing enables eternal connection. Pure love is everlasting. We are not alone. All are remembered in the covenant. Neither we, nor they, can be made perfect without one another. God's great divine plan is successful. Exaltation is possible. Family relationships can be perpetuated beyond the grave (p. 8)."
"'The great and grand secret of the whole matter... consists in obtaining the powers of the Holy Priesthood' (Joseph Smith, p. 9)."
"Too many of us do not deeply understand priesthood (p. 10)."
"The essence of the holy priesthood is more than ecclesiastical Church offices... priesthood is 'the authority and power of God,' that... can 'flow to all members of the Church--male and female--as they keep their covenants'... Priesthood ordinances... unlock 'the power of godliness' to be manifest in our lives (p. 11)."
"Priesthood... is a covenant order of persons living a life patterned after Jesus Christ, dedicated to doing the will and work of God, who are authorized and empowered by Him (p. 12)."
"If we had to summarize Godhood in one word, it could be parenthood (p. 13)."
"Eternal glory is embedded in eternal seed. Eternal life is family life (p. 14)."
"Priesthood is God's power and authority. We obtain God's power and authority by covenant righteousness through Christ's order [which] brings eternal [which] centers in continuing seed, or God's eternal family. God's eternal family is God's work and glory [which] can become our work and glory through eternal marriage and family (p. 15)."
"The patriarchal order can be conferred upon us through an eternal marriage sealing, it is true, but only those who learn to govern themselves and serve God and their families in righteousness will have power in the priesthood, in time or eternity (p. 19)."
"Heaven is not so much a place as it is an ability. Specifically, the endowed spiritual capacity to abide in celestial 'laws' and 'conditions.' If you live laws and principles of righteousness, through God's grace you can develop the ability to continue in eternal covenant relationships and 'the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven' (p. 20)."
"'You have got to learn how to be gods yourselves; to be kings and priests to God' (Joseph Smith, p. 21)."
"Priesthood is eternally tied to everlasting posterity... That work will bring God's glory, but it requires covenant hearts (p. 21)."
"'Our mission to the earth was to organize a nuclei of Heaven, to take with us, to the increase of which there would be no end' (p. 25)."
"Without being sealed to a spouse, we are limited in our eternal progression, or we 'cannot have an increase'... We are not intended to be solitary individuals. God has designed us and His work on a plan of interdependence (p. 26)."
"'Every kingdom is given a law'... The law of exaltation in the celestial kingdom requires sealing a man and woman by the power of the holy priesthood (p. 27)."
"A holy sealing is much more than a wedding... The bride and groom don't stand, but instead symbolically and humbly kneel across from one another at an altar... Vows aren't created and read by the couple, but instead God's revealed words for a sacred ordinance are spoken and agreed to in a solemn covenant (p. 29)."
"A temple sealing looks different than other marriages because it is--it is uniting covenant hearts for all eternity to do God's work and receive a fulness of exalted blessings (p. 30)."
"A holy sealing is founded upon following the teachings and laws of Jesus Christ in obedience, through sacrifice, living the higher laws of the gospel, being temperate and chaste, consecrating all we have and are to do God's work and will to build His kingdom (p. 30)."
"'I love you so much that I want to build a family of God with you. I want that family to be centered on Jesus Christ and His gospel. I want to pass on the blessings of the gospel to our children by giving them an heirship to all the truths, covenants, and ordinances of the priesthood. I am willing to commit to you and this by a solemn and sacred priesthood covenant in God's house. Will you do the work of God with me for eternity so we can become like God together?' (p. 30)"
"Exaltation is His work. When we choose to get sealed, we willingly become one and enter into 'partnership' with God, doing His work in our own home and family on earth (p. 31)."
"Creating an eternal union between a man and woman of God, to do the work of God, in the ways of God, is central to the temple marriage sealing covenant (p. 31)."
"Cleaving in total devoted chastity creates the relational environment for complete trust, union, loyalty, safety, and selfless care that is required to establish an eternal covenant family (p. 33)."
"Modern prophets teach that a husband and wife are equal partners (p. 34)."
"Our covenants with God and sealing to another are all based on agency (p. 36)."
"'That which is governed by law is also preserved by law' (p. 37)."
"The foundation of an eternal marriage is and must be on Jesus Christ. It is only through continual repentance, forgiveness, and grace--between God and each other--that the shortcomings of mortal marriage can be repaired and strengthened to endure for eternity (p. 38)."
"'The work' of God is family-centric, faith-based work. You have desires. You are called. You are ready to embark in this service (p. 39)."
"Let us be as Abraham, who 'against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations' and 'was strong in faith, giving glory to God' (p. 40)."
"God is creating a 'kingdom of priesthood' and a 'royal priesthood' through the ordinances, power, and blessings of the house of the Lord (p. 44)."
"Like sisterhood or brotherhood, priesthood is a covenant community of priests (p. 45)."
"Through temple ordinances we enter in and connect to this royal patriarchal lineage--the exalted family line of God that facilitates its blessings to flow to us as heirs and, through us, on to our children (p. 47)."
"There is only one general ordinance in the Church where we use the word 'heir,' and that is in sealing a child to his or her parents in the temple (p. 48)."
"We 'inherit' things from our parents... These things simply come to us... but right of birth... In the Lord's kingdom the concept of being an heir continues, only instead of inheriting earthly things, we are 'heirs according to the covenant... As faithful heirs of the exalted covenant, through the Savior's grace we can' inherit thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, dominions all heights and depths... exaltation and glory in all things, as hath been sealed upon their heads' (p. 49)."
"Those who are not born in the covenant can be sealed to their parents once their parents are endowed and sealed to a spouse, and thus they receive the blessings of being an heir equally, just as if they were born in the covenant (p. 52)."
"God desires everyone to become heirs of the covenant blessings of the patriarchal priesthood so that none are lost or denied opportunity for eternal growth and progression (p. 52)."
"It is January 28, 1844, and Wilford Woodruff is carefully drawing pictures in his journal. Embroidered hearts, to be exact, with twelve smaller hearts and a thirteenth larger heart, connected to one grand heart, all with keys inside of them (p. 55)."
"'Seal the hearts of the children to the fathers.'... This drawing... was not only showing Wilford and Phebe's eternal marriage sealing to each other, but also their connection into a network of kings and priests and queens and priestesses to God (p. 56)."
"Sealing keys validate all the ordinances of exaltation--including temple work for the dead (p. 60)."
"We can link ourselves and this last dispensation with our progenitors and prior dispensations (p. 60)."
"If eternal priesthood is familial, then we need our families, and they need us. Remember, heaven is relational and priesthood is parental. None of us can be perfected or exalted without one another (p. 61)."
"At times, connecting flights are seen negatively, but they are a marvelous solution to a major problem. Without connections, we wouldn't be able to travel everywhere in the world from wherever we live. We would be severely limited. It's the great web of regional carriers connecting to major national and international airports that makes it all possible. There's power in pathways of connection. And all it takes is one or two to open things up for all (p. 63)."
"Humans are constantly creating connective networks to facilitate the flow of power--water, interstate highways, cellular service, internet, social media, electricity, gas. Connections open and facilitate resources, information, pathways, and opportunities that otherwise wouldn't exist independently... In the same way that there are enabling powers through mortal networks, there is eternal power through a heavenly network (p. 65)."
"While some details of the spirit world and how the institutional Church operates in the eternal world are not fully revealed, the organization of families appears to be central. The network of heaven doesn't run through wires, cables, or pipes but through husbands, wives, and children connected by the keys and power of the priesthood... Indeed, this family unit and priesthood order will likely one day outlive the organization of the ecclesiastical Church (p. 67)."
"Sealing children to parents seems less about future heavenly living arrangements and more centered in heavenly loving agreements; less about hanging out together and more about reaching out forever (p. 68)."
"'How shall God come to the rescue of this generation? He shall send Elijah... and he shall reveal the covenant to seal the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers' (Joseph Smith). Through this patriarchal order of the priesthood, families are eternally connected into a celestial ministering network of Saints across dispensations as they help bring about God's work and glory, extending the blessings of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all so that none are lost. Finding and connecting the entire human family to God is the work of the last days, and our great offering to God (p. 69)."
"We personally visualize the great network like a crosscut of a huge tree, with thousands of lines connecting to one another and from dispensational ring to ring with myriads of possible routes back to the center... Everyone can and must be linked into the ordered family and kingdom of God. Through our Savior and His holy priesthood, none are to be lost (p. 72)."
"'Once you and I have made a covenant with God, our relationship with Him becomes much closer than before our covenant. Now we are bound together. Because of our covenant with God, He will never tire in His efforts to help us, and we will never exhaust His merciful patience with us... And should any stray, He will help them find their way back to Him' (Russell M. Nelson, p. 73)."
"How do we gather them back? That's where we come in. That is the work of the last dispensation and our great offering to God through His holy temple and the sealing work therein (p. 73)."
"Instead of offering up animals, we offer ourselves (p. 74)."
"Motivated by love, we vicariously do for others what the dead can't do for themselves, performing necessary ordinances in their behalf that open the door of salvation (p. 74)."
"Everyone will be invited to 'partake of his goodness' and 'all men are privileged and none are forbidden' because 'all are alike' unto Him, and He 'denieth none that come unto him' (p. 76)."
"If you want physical, tangible evidence that God remembers His covenant children, just study closely the Book of Mormon... that is crucial to the whole story and message: God reaching out to a family and their wayward children 'that they may know the covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off forever' (p. 76)."
"'How merciful is our God unto us, for he remembereth the house of Israel, both roots and branches; and he stretches forth his hands unto them all the day long' (Jacob 6:4, p. 77)."
"Before you read the allegory of the olive tree given... in Jacob 5, we first need to look at the question he was addressing... 'How is it possible that these, after having rejected the sure foundation, can ever build upon it, that it may become the head of their corner?' (p. 78)"
"Moral agency is central and eternal (p. 79)."
"Priesthood power is not like worldly power. Priesthood is not power over, but power through. As we act in accordance with these and other principles of the priesthood, our children will eventually, without compulsory means, turn to God and claim their birthright blessings as children of Abraham and heirs of the priesthood (p. 80)."
"'The commitment to aid one another across the veil can be classified as a covenant promise... It is how the covenant promises given to Abraham are realized' (D. Todd Christofferson)... This communal covenant outreach for and in behalf of those on the other side of the veil is 'necessary and essential' to our own salvation (p. 80)."
"The sealing ordinances are how the great network is organized and facilitated so that through loving family ties, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ extends to all (p. 82)."
"Words escape the horror of Jesus's death, but to believers, this voluntary sacrifice is our Lord's greatest act of love (p. 84)."
"Even if our present family situation feels close to heaven and abounds in blessed love, when it comes to sealing roots and branches through our ancestors and children, nobody has a perfectly formed family tree. All of us have disconnected lines because of divorce, death, remarriage, singleness, or unfaithfulness... There is only one answer... It is our Savior, Jesus Christ (p. 85)."
"Without Jesus Christ, there is no eternal family... Jesus Christ alone is able to make us holy and endow us with priesthood power and capacity to abide in the presence of God, lovingly linked with our loved ones (p. 86)."
"For our relationships to be fit for eternity, we must build upon the gospel of Jesus Christ (p. 87)."
"The Savior is the center of the sealing ceremony. We kneel over an altar of sacrifice that symbolizes our Lord's divine offering, expressing through humble bended knees that we will base our marriage upon His teachings and Atonement. We take each other's hand over that altar, signifying that our very eternal connection to one another is only possible because of His suffering, death, and power of resurrection (p. 87)."
"Striving to live by priesthood principles such as gentleness, temperance, kindness, patience, and love enable relationships to be healthy, trusting, and enduring. Relationships don't thrive on sin, pride, vanity, or compulsion (p. 88)."
"'The Restoration' isn't only about reestablishing the authorized Church, but it is about Christ putting all things in their intended heavenly condition (p. 91)."
"The sealing work for the living and dead in the Lord's house, while inspiring, is imperfect... The family organization of heaven will be perfected and restored to its proper and perfect condition (p. 93)."
"The following are some invitations related to the holy sealing we can each implement now:
1. Come unto Christ... Talk of Him, preach of Him, and rejoice in His divinity, Atonement, and grace...
2. Develop Christlike attributes... Continual repentance is essential... Extend forgiveness and mercy... pray to be filled with love...
3. Focus on family...
4. Build righteous relationships... visit that neighbor...
5. Be endowed with power...
6. Seal all you can...
7. Wait on the Lord for patience, faith, and hope (p. 93)."
"Sealing ties bind like divine tentacles, connecting lawful and rightful heirs preserved by priesthood and linked by love (p. 102)."
December 12, 2025
I really enjoyed the prior two books in this series. This one, not so much. The authors address the issues I had with the book. They are trying to write about things without actually writing about them. Either the information is too sacred to write about or unknown, and what they can write about is experienced so differently by different people with different life situations as to make it difficult to relate if you do not have the authors' same life experiences.
One passage I found especially Pollyanna was "As we act in accordance with these and other principles of the priesthood, our children will eventually, without compulsory means, turn to God and claim their birthright blessings as children of Abraham and heirs of the priesthood." (pg. 80)
I did appreciate this quote from Elder Gerritt W. Gong, "Our Savior is our Mediator with God, but He also helps bring us to ourselves and each other as we come to Him. Especially when hurt and pain are deep, repairing our relationships and healing our hearts is hard, perhaps impossible for us on our own. But heaven can give us strength and wisdom beyond our own to know when to hold on and how to let go." (pg. 90)
One passage I found especially Pollyanna was "As we act in accordance with these and other principles of the priesthood, our children will eventually, without compulsory means, turn to God and claim their birthright blessings as children of Abraham and heirs of the priesthood." (pg. 80)
I did appreciate this quote from Elder Gerritt W. Gong, "Our Savior is our Mediator with God, but He also helps bring us to ourselves and each other as we come to Him. Especially when hurt and pain are deep, repairing our relationships and healing our hearts is hard, perhaps impossible for us on our own. But heaven can give us strength and wisdom beyond our own to know when to hold on and how to let go." (pg. 90)
November 22, 2025
A beautiful book by Anthony and Cindy Sweat explore of the sacred and special holy sealing ordinance that takes place in the temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, why it is essential, and how it blesses us. The two authors draw from the scriptures and words of prophets, as they teach about the organization of heaven, God’s work and glory, the marriage sealing promises, covenant children as heirs, the great chain of the priesthood, the latter-day offering of temple work for the dead, and the centrality of the Lord Jesus Christ in perfecting God’s divine family.
Short, insightful and very well written.
Short, insightful and very well written.
October 15, 2025
The Holy Sealing
This book is the third book about the importance of the ordinances that happen in the Temples of the LDS church. The first book is The Holy Invitation. It helps prepare members to visit the Temple. The Holy Covenant, teaches us, about the covenants we make there and why we make them. The Holy Sealing discusses the last Temple covenant we make that unites families through all time and eternity. Read all three books in order. They are wonderful.
This book is the third book about the importance of the ordinances that happen in the Temples of the LDS church. The first book is The Holy Invitation. It helps prepare members to visit the Temple. The Holy Covenant, teaches us, about the covenants we make there and why we make them. The Holy Sealing discusses the last Temple covenant we make that unites families through all time and eternity. Read all three books in order. They are wonderful.
November 12, 2025
I enjoyed this short outline of the sealing power. My understanding is now expanded. The ceiling is much more than just having a family forever although that is something that I desire. I now understand that the ceiling ordinance in the ceiling power is the mechanism by which heaven is organized, and that the blessings and reach of the gospel of Christ is spread to others in a holy network that blesses lives and gathers Israel.
November 4, 2025
Excellent book !! I have thoroughly enjoyed the books on the temple by Anthony Sweat and appreciated his wife coauthoring this book with him. I followed along with the book while listening to the audiobook. Much research and footnotes are included with the book. I have learned so much about the temple from these books. Highly recommend
November 30, 2025
Maybe not my favorite of this series, but it could be I listened to it when my mind was easily distracted by other things. I did gain some insights on the sealing ordinance and the importance of linking generations of God's family together. I might recommend it to newer temple-goers, but others could glean some food for thought, as well.
October 18, 2025
Although sealing is central to the Restoration, sometimes we don’t understand it beyond “living together” in heaven. Sealing, however, orders eternity, links generations, secures blessings, continues priesthood, and enable exaltation.
November 7, 2025
A very short book that teaches some really valuable truths about the Plan of Salvation, the sealing ordinances, the Abrahamic covenant, the temple, etc. I really appreciated the authors' perspective on these topics. I would recommend this book to my friends.
November 19, 2025
My fondest desire and hope in Heaven. To feel God’s love.
For since the beginning of the world have not men heard nor perceived by the ear, neither hath any eye seen, O God, besides thee, how great things thou hast prepared for him that waiteth for thee. (D&C 133:45)
For since the beginning of the world have not men heard nor perceived by the ear, neither hath any eye seen, O God, besides thee, how great things thou hast prepared for him that waiteth for thee. (D&C 133:45)
December 19, 2025
great read
Informative and useful principles to use everyday easy reading when pondering with the guidance of the spirit. Would recommend for those getting ready for the Temple and for those who have gone Useful for all
Informative and useful principles to use everyday easy reading when pondering with the guidance of the spirit. Would recommend for those getting ready for the Temple and for those who have gone Useful for all
October 23, 2025
A lot of awesome information about the temple sealing in this book. I really enjoyed it!
October 24, 2025
Insightful.
November 1, 2025
Loved every word.
November 3, 2025
This was just what I was hoping for. It is a nice, succinct summary behind the doctrine of sealing to the promises of Abraham.
November 5, 2025
Libby. Very Insightful. I would have loved to read and learned such lessons before marriage years ago.
November 10, 2025
Such a good little book that is full of doctrine about sealings in the temple.
November 10, 2025
Meh. Don’t like the idea of being sneaky about sealing everyone’s mentioned in last chapter.
November 25, 2025
I loved deepening my understanding of the sacred sealing covenant I made with Candice and our Heavenly Father. This is one of the most impactful books I have ready in a long time.
December 3, 2025
Unlike the first two books in the series (both of which I gave 5 stars),I didn't really learn a lot in this book that I didn't already know.
December 3, 2025
Loved this one!
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