Lafferty family always drinking lemonade to their very traditional temple attire, Under the Banner of Heaven creator Dustin Lance Black leans into the most interesting quirks of the religion.
The beginning of Under the Banner of Heaven episode 3 features a flashback to Allen and Brenda’s wedding, with the entire Lafferty family attending the temple for a formal ritual. Notably, each attendee wears a completely white outfit, with the women’s white dresses and veils matching the men’s white suits and bonnets. However, this all takes place directly before the actual wedding in Under the Banner of Heaven, with the rest of the characters changing into more modern and common wedding outfits by the time Brenda and Allen say their vows.
Under the Banner of Heaven’s white outfits are part of the strict attire for ceremonies performed in the Mormon temple, which the real-life Brenda Lafferty, Allen, and family were required to do before getting married in the church. The all-white outfits are a significant aspect of the Mormon temple’s “sealing” ordinance, with the attire meant to symbolize purity. At the time of Under the Banner of Heaven’s true story, the ceremony included women vowing to “obey their husbands” and be anointed with oil on their bodies, both of which happen to Brenda in the series. All of those in the temple must wear the outfits and be involved in the endowment ceremony, which is why all of Under the Banner of Heaven’s characters are wearing the traditional white attire for the Mormon wedding rather than just Brenda and Allen.
Mormon Weddings Are Actually Pretty Mysterious
While the white attire of the pre-wedding Mormon ceremony is well-documented, the actual process of the rituals is harder to prove because non-Mormons aren’t allowed in the temple and the Latter-day Saints aren’t allowed to divulge what happens. As Under the Banner of Heaven makes a point of including in the ceremony, the ritual for Mormon weddings is quite secretive, with the simply referring to it as “sacred.” The reason why Brenda and Allen had to go through this ritual is that they were being married at the Salt Lake City LDS Temple, which meant they had to go directly through the church in order to be “sealed” as man and wife, with only other Mormons in attendance of the ceremony.
Although the LDS temple robes aren’t commented on by any of Under the Banner of Heaven’s characters, episode 3 does point out the unusual aspects of the ritual that women are subjected to. Dianna and Matilda discuss not being warned about the strange ceremony details with oil rubbing due to being adult converts, while Brenda is more uncomfortable with vowing to “obey” her husband, as she and her new sisters-in-law want to maintain their free agency. In addition to the flashbacks to real-life historic Latter-day Saint events, Under the Banner of Heaven is bringing to light many aspects and rituals of the faith that are not well-known or understood outside the religion.
How The Show Stayed True To Mormon Wedding Customs
When it came to actually depicting a Mormon wedding complete with temple customs in Under the Banner of Heaven episode 3, the creative team worked diligently to make everything as authentic as possible. The intentional secrecy surrounding the sealing ceremony made this process difficult, but the show's creator and showrunner Dustin Lance Black, who himself used to be a member of the church, was able to gather enough details to make it work. He consulted with Latter-day Saints who were during the show's setting on the accuracy of costumes, and Under the Banner of Heaven's costume and set designers took pains to produce original murals, outfits, and more. The goal was to be authentic and respectful while still being true to the real story's events.
