Ladies of MorMonIsm

As you stand in the room, a woman separates from the group and makes her way towards you. "You're here for the ceremony, right?" she asks eagerly. "I'm so excited to be married to the church!" You realize that you are an elder, a member of the church with the authority to baptize converts and re-born members. Your eyes wander to a small stone pool at the front of the room. Some of the ladies sit beside it, while others pray and read in different corners of the space. A woman dressed in lingerie sits down next to the pool, her eyes darting around the room. "Is it okay if I go first?" she asks, addressing the group. The other ladies turn their heads in your direction and nod approvingly at their friend.

You pull out your phone and it immediately displays the phrases you'll need for the unusual ceremony you've stumbled upon. "Virgins of the Church of MorMon, we gather here today to join you in holy matrimony with the Holy Church." The words feel odd and foreign in your mouth as you recite them. You continue reading from the scripture, which explains the importance of giving oneself completely to Christ through the guidance of his elders. The next step, it says, is to cleanse the women of their original sin, which you assume means they'll need to be baptized in the stone pool in front of you.

You take a closer look around the room and notice the ladies sitting alongside the pool, some reading and praying while others look on with an expression of serene anticipation. A woman in short lingerie sits in a nearby chair, eager to be the first to enter the pool. The atmosphere is heavy with a sense of reverence and devotion as you realize the magnitude of what is about to happen.