In a recent article in Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, John Ferguson, Jana Riess, and I share results from the 2016 Next Mormons Survey regarding observance of the Word of Wisdom among self-identified American Mormons. We find that there is a high degree of variation in Word of Wisdom compliance. Less than half (45%) of American Mormons, for example, said that they had fully abstained from tea, alcohol, coffee, tobacco, marijuana, or other illegal substances in the last six months. While we might be tempted to assume that this represents mostly inactive Mormons, we found that full compliance increases to only 53% of American Mormons who say they attend church weekly. In other words, even among active, church-going Mormons, only about half say that they are “squeaky clean” Word of Wisdom observers. (More highlights from the article are available here and the full article is available for purchase from Dialogue for $1.99 here).
Perhaps most surprising (to some) were rates of Word of Wisdom violation even among those who report they have a current temple recommend. Among this group, a full 18% said they have had coffee in the last six months, another 18% said they have had tea, and 11% said they have consumed alcohol. One in ten say they’ve consumed tobacco and one in twenty say they’ve had marijuana.
This is surprising, of course, because temple recommend holders are required to report that they are in compliance with the Word of Wisdom in order to qualify for their recommends.
Some possible explanations for this apparent contradiction include:
First, perhaps many of these individuals desire a temple recommend for social or family reasons. After all, who wants to miss a family wedding or be known as a second class citizen in a strong Mormon community because they don’t have a current recommend? They may strategically make the choise to use “carefully worded denials” when asked about their Word of Wisdom observance in the temple recommend interview process.
Second, it is possible that many of these individuals are honestly answering this question in the affirmative, but are interpreting the Word of Wisdom differently than the official orthodox interpretation allows for. Perhaps they are interpreting the Word of Wisdom in such a way, for example, as to focus on moderation and addiction rather than a check-list of do’s and don’t. This would be possible because interviewers are specifically instructed in Handbook 1 that they “should not add any requirements to those that are outlined in the temple recommend book,” usually leaving interviewees to interpret the meaning of the questions for themselves.
Another explanation might also be that some interviewees may simply be unaware of the prevailing orthodox interpretation of the Word of Wisdom and so simply answer “yes” out of ignorance. This is of course possible, but I tend to think unlikely for most people in this category given how salient the Word of Wisdom is to Mormon cultural identity and how frequently it is hammered home in missionary discussions, youth lessons, etc.
Using the Next Mormons Survey, we can take a closer look at these temple recommend-holding Mormons who report consuming the three most commonly consumed Word of Wisdom substances in the last six months: coffee, tea, and alcohol:
| Coffee | Non-herbal tea | Alcohol | |
| Convert | 34.7% | 25% | 24.4% |
| Born in the Church | 11.9% | 15.6% | 5.5% |
| Millennial | 27.4% | 25% | 15.8% |
| GenX | 20.6% | 17.5% | 12.9% |
| Baby Boomer/Silent | 4.9% | 11.1% | 2.7% |
| Male | 26.4% | 23.6% | 15.2% |
| Female | 11.9% | 13.9% | 7.4% |
| White | 17.1% | 18.6% | 10.3% |
| Nonwhite | 31.5% | 15.6% | 17.1% |
| Income < 50K | 15.9% | 20.9% | 11.6% |
| Income 50K-100K | 21.3% | 18.5% | 10.3% |
| College degree | 18.2% | 13.3% | 10.8% |
| Less than college degree | 17.7% | 21% | 11.2% |
| Lives in Utah | 4.5% | 9.4% | 1% |
| Does not live in Utah | 26.9% | 23.7% | 17.1% |
| Democrat and leaner | 40.6% | 33.8% | 25.7% |
| Independent | 12.3% | 18.5% | 4.3% |
| Republican and leaner | 10.8% | 12.4% | 6.2% |
| LDS Church should “preserve traditional teachings” | 14.2% | 14.0% | 8.1% |
| LDS Church should “adjust beliefs in light of modern circumstances” | 32% | 37.2% | 21.6% |
This table is showing us the percentage of current temple recommend holders in each of the row categories who say that they’ve had either coffee, non-herbal tea, or alcohol, respectively.
Some general trends are evident: Mormon temple recommend holders who are younger, converts, men, non-white, and those who are politically and theologically liberal are generally more likely to report consuming coffee, alcohol, or non-herbal tea than those who are older, born in the church, women, white, and politically/theologically conservative, respectively.
It is also interesting to note that recommend holders most likely to drink coffee are converts, Democrats, and racial/ethnic minorities. Those most likely to drink alcohol are converts and political/theological liberals. Also, notably, alcohol consumption among Utah recommend holders is nearly non-existent– it is almost exclusively among non-Utah Mormons that we find alcohol consumption among recommend holders.
Recall that our three hypotheses from before about the prevalence of Word of Wisdom violations among current temple recommend holders include: 1) “carefully worded denials” in the interview process, 2) more open interpretations of the Word of Wisdom among many recommend holders, or 3) ignorance of the Word of Wisdom requirements.
Does the information above help us critically evaluate the likelihood of any of these competing hypotheses? What are other possible explanations? Also, what are the implications for contemporary Mormon religious practice/belief if somewhere between 10%-20% of temple recommend holders do not comply with prevailing interpretations of one of Mormonism’s most salient cultural markers? What else can we learn from this information?
Discuss.
Benjamin Knoll
Benjamin Knoll was an active PermaBlogger at Rational Faiths from 2015-2020. At the time, he was a political science professor at a liberal arts college in central Kentucky. He's since changed careers and now works in the private sector, running business survey research projects. Born and raised a seventh-generation Mormon (on his mother's side), he is now an active Episcopalian who earned a Diploma in Anglican Studies from Bexley-Seabury Seminary in 2022. Indeed, we may say that he follows that admonition of Joseph Smith—that we should "embrace all, and every item of truth, without limitation or without being circumscribed or prohibited by the creeds or superstitious notions of men, or by the dominations of one another, when that truth is clearly demonstrated to our minds, and we have the highest degree of evidence of the same."
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This is very interesting and just sets my appetite for the book.
I don’t know if I have any thoughts about the why other than your hypothesis that the social pressure to be a card carrying member outweigh the cost of telling a fib.
Very interesting analysis. While not asked in the survey, I find it interesting how ‘moderation’ in diet, coffee, tea and alcohol is self defined and self-policed. Especially in light of the many really obese temple goers (acknowledging that medical conditions and heredity do have an influence on obesity). It seems to me that as Mormons and humans, we’re just pretty darn good at rationalization and interviewers really don’t want to confront the interviewee.
Frankly, I’ve always been bothered by how the Word of Wisdom went from “not by way of commandment” to a litmus test for worthiness. Further, the selective nature of which parts of the Word of Wisdom are considered to be deal breakers for worthiness is also bothersome. Have a cocktail here and there, and you may be denied your recommend. Tell your bishop that you have steak nightly in the summer months, and it’ll probably be laughed off.
Exactly!
A side by side comparison of D and C 89 and the current orthodox interpretation of the Word of Wisdom are vastly different.
Section 89 says …”to be sent by greeting; not by commandment or constraint”/“…. to offer up sacraments before him. And behold, this should be sine, pure wine (not grape juice), of the vine, of your own make”/“all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man …with prudence and thanksgiving” / “flesh of beasts and of fowls …are to be used sparingly”/ “ and barley for the all useful animals, and for mild drinks.”
Orthodox Mormons say….”NO wine or beer, no tea or coffee ( which is never stated in the scripture) but herb tea and decaf, but not not caffeinated coffee. No drugs that are illegal but it’s okay if they are prescription or OTC but not to extreme, AND the WOW is a commandment. Also, don’t smoke…….anything, not just tobacco.” Anything above and beyond these parameters is okay and doesn’t need to be reported to go to the temple. Good health and diet is a choice suddenly.
For me, it is arbitrary to say I need to moderate coffee (not caffeine though because that’s not why we forbid coffee. We forbid coffee because it’s hot. But we don’t forbid Hot chocolat because it doesn’t have addicting caffeine?…) and yet I don’t moderate meat intake. I am no longer an active LDS Mormon but I feel that even though I consume tea and occasional alcohol, eat meat sparingly, find healthy foods in general, try to take care of my health without , I adhere most closely to the only revelation on record from God in Section 89 more closely than many current TBM recommend holders. I resent the compulsion of a WOW “commandment” that controlled my temple worthiness and attendance. I believe Section 121 says about what kind of Priesthood (or lack of) compels and controls.
Not to argue all of your points, but it should be noted that the word of wisdom was not recognized as a commandment when it was received. It was, as you cited, “to be sent by greeting”. However, President Young presented it as a covenant at General Conference in 1851 and asked for a sustaining vote. At that point, it becomes a commandment. Still, it was not a requisite for temple recommends until instituted by President Grant in 1921.
I read this article this morning and planned how I was going to respond but Sean and Joel beat me to it for the most part.
I would say that in fact about 98% of temple recommend holders as well as all other members do not live the word of wisdom. Everyone focuses solely on alcohol, coffee, tobacco, tea,and drugs. (I’m not sure where drugs got in there since it has never been added to the actual scripture) However almost everyone easily disregards the rest of the word of wisdom.
Sean mentioned obesity. With rare exception I don’t believe you can be obese and be living the word of wisdom. The funny thing is that while someone may hide the fact that they drank a cup of coffee, it’s impossible to hide the effects of not eating with “prudence”. It’s right out there for everyone to see yet nothing is said about it. To me it seems a bit hypocritical for an obese person to step up to a pulpit and preach obedience to the gospel.
Also as Joel mentioned, how many members obey the command to eat meat sparingly, only in winter, cold and times of famine?
The word of wisdom also says to eat fruits and herbs in the season thereof. Essentially meaning fresh food. It does not say to eat chemical laden processed food from a box.
There is a promise of health in the navel and marrow in the bones, to walk and not be weary and run and not faint and that the destroying angel will pass by, but I believe those blessings are reserved for those who live the word of wisdom, not those who merely abstain from coffee, tea, alcohol, tobacco and drugs.
Totally agree!!
I have a 2 hour drive to go home from a work trip.
Driving always makes me sleepy.
Which is better and healthier:
A) 4 oz coffee that guarantees me to stay awake.
B) 32oz Mountain Dew (yes it takes that much)
C) Straight caffeine pills
D) Nothing and fight fatigue the whole drive (Yes I have almost fallen asleep and gotten in a wreck)
I’m sorry, the 4 oz of coffee is going to win over the diabetic inducing drink and the insanity of straight caffeine (which makes me psychically ill).
That’s why I’d answer “yes, in the last 6 months I’ve had coffee and yes, I live the word of wisdom”
I found it kind of amazing that when I started using caffeine (after a lifetime of total non caffeine use) to deal with a medical problem I was not given a recommend but when I went back with green tea pills, I was cleared to have a recommend again. So essentially what was banned was boiling water. Shaking my head and feeling no guilt.
Many active Mormon friends of mine use marijuana, myself included. If you do a careful reading of Section 89 it’s not hard to find the part that says herbs are good for the body. I high recommend them.
Yes, the WoW seems to be widely open for interpretation. There are just so many inconsistencies as has been pointed out, yet it is a temple recommend question that must be answered YES.
There is just so much I don’t get. For example, I laugh when someone in church will say that they had some tea, and quickly add, “but it was herbal tea”. Where is there any “revelation” that in spite of the WoW saying simply “hot drinks”, to say that it means coffee and tea; to then getting parsed down to “herbal tea” is OK. And if its hot drinks (tea and coffee), what about iced tea or iced coffee, since people seem to be quick to say that it’s not about caffeine. Why is it OK to drink a 44 oz. Mtn. Dew or other caffeinated soda, with either loads of sugar and other chemicals, but an iced tea with some lemon juice and maybe a small sweetener will keep me out of the temple?
I also agree with comments about obesity and eating meats. What strange universe is it that if I want iced tea that I have to walk the local convience store to make sure that someone I know from church isn’t in there so I can buy. It’s TEA!!
Regardless of how someone may wish to interpret the Word of Wisdom, the fact is that the church has officially defined “hot drinks” as coffee and tea (green and black which are the same tea plant). It does not matter if the coffee or tea is hot or cold, caffeinated or not it is against the word of wisdom. There is no room for personal interpretation on this point.
I found this info helpful:
Coffee, tea, and alcohol were among the list of provisions that the Church recommended for the westward trek in 1846.50# per person. Church leaders used wine for the sacrament at Sunday meetings and at the dedication celebrations for the temples in Kirtland, Ohio, and Nauvoo, Illinois. Brigham Young chewed tobacco for most of his adult life. (He acquired this nasty habit before he converted to Mormonism, and he struggled valiantly to give it up, managing to quit for a nine-year period between 1848 and 1857.) Young encouraged some early Latter-day Saints to begin vineyards in Utah, sending one group of Swiss immigrants to southern Utah to start the Dixie Wine Mission. Their vineyards were very successful, and they sold wine all over the Western United States in the late nineteenth century. Young had no tolerance for drunkenness, vulgar behavior, or the domestic violence that sometimes resulted from alcohol abuse, but he and other Latter-day Saints in the late nineteenth century did permit a small intake of wine or Danish beer.
So why are Mormons today teetotalers, when their pioneer ancestors weren’t? The fact that early Latter-day Saints regarded the Word of Wisdom differently than Mormons do today isn’t evidence of hypocrisy but of historical change. Here are some reasons:
It allied Mormons with the temperance movement. In the early twentieth century, American culture began examining food and health issues more strictly, with alcohol being a particular concern. The LDS Church was in favor of the temperance measures of the day and began substituting water for wine in sacrament meetings in July 1906. Fifteen years later, the Church made strict adherence to the Word of Wisdom a requirement for temple admittance, with no exceptions.
It helps build a Mormon identity today. After the Latter-day Saints gave up the practice of plural marriage, strict compliance in living the Word of Wisdom became another way of signifying Mormon identity. Today, keeping the Word of Wisdom helps bond the Mormon community as well as strengthen individual Latter-day Saints.
It saves Mormons from modern addictions that are potentially very serious.This reason could be the most compelling one of all for today’s zero-tolerance policy. Nowadays, addictive substances are more widely available than ever before, and a Mormon has to learn to say no to the small things so that she’s in the habit of saying no when someone offers her a drug that could ruin (or take) her life.
By the way, the Word of Wisdom contains an explicit mention that Mormons should eat meat sparingly and in times of cold or famine, if at all. Also, Joseph Smith taught that animals have spirits. But most U.S. Mormons are unabashed carnivores, and the Church has never taken an official position on vegetarianism. Lorenzo Snow, the Church’s president in the early 20th century, emphasized his wish that all Latter-day Saints would stop eating meat, but Joseph F. Smith, the prophet who followed him, didn’t stress this counsel.
Interesting article… and I enjoyed the comments too!
I am an active Temple Recommend holder… Actually, just renewed it this month! Looking at the chart above, I am Caucasian, Non-Hispanic, CISHET Female, “Born in the Church” to a inactive mother and non-member father (neither of whom ever followed the WOW), 37 years old, Married, 2 children, Income under 50K, College Degree, Living outside Utah, Liberal, and a mix of orthodox and progressive on doctrine…and I do abstain completely from non-prescription drugs, tobacco, alcohol, coffee, and non-herbal teas. I am obese, however, and an “unabashed carnivore” as one commentator put it…
So take my comments for what you think they are worth 🙂
The prevailing idea I have heard is that the WOW has a few hard and fast rules, as currently interpreted for our times from the original text… and that these are commandments, not so much because of health aspect, but because it’s a test to see if we can obey God in the small things. Think of the story of the man wanting to hire a driver for a dangerous road, he asked each applicant how close they could get to the edge of the cliff, and hired the one who said he wouldn’t even TRY to get close to the edge rather than the many who flaunted their ability to drive within inches of the edge.
But there is a trend, at least outside the “Mormon Belt” (granted I never lived in that area of the country) that the SPIRIT of the text is that we should avoid anything addictive or that could interfere with revelation and communication with our Heavenly Father.
I rather prefer the spirit interpretation, as it obviates the nitpicking over terminology or inconsistencies in application.
I think that the reasons for the data collected in the study are probably due to two of the three theories discussed in the article here:
1) “carefully worded denials” in the interview process:
Many people are social/cultural LDS, not necessarily doctrinal “TBMs”, and so their commitment to what they view as arbitrary standards that will keep them from actively participating fully in the culture of their choice/birth isn’t something they lose sleep over. And that’s totally ok! I welcome them as much as I do the so-called “TBMs”. I stand with Elder Uchtdorf in his statement that the Church isn’t for the perfect.
2) more open interpretations of the Word of Wisdom among many recommend holders:
For some, they reject the modern interpretations and focus on the original text. They may look to the fact that it was a “greeting” and NOT a commandment when originally introduced. They may see how it was originally implemented and that many of the leaders at the time of the introduction used tobacco and alcohol throughout their lives. They may see that the modern interpretation doesn’t fit their own personal revelation on the matter… Personally, I think that God will judge the hearts of each individual. As I said at the beginning of my comments, I rather agree with the Spirit of the Law approach. For example, I abstain from caffeine because it gives me terrible headaches! It’s not in the WOW that I should, but it’s just common sense for me. Coffee, non-herbal teas, and alcohol – I admit – I avoided as a young person because of the cultural and doctrinal “conditioning” I had from being raised by my very devout grandmother. Although when living with my mother I would make her coffee every morning, and cleaned up after her sometimes rowdy alcoholic partying. But now, I personally can’t stand the smell of coffee or alcohol, it makes me nauseous. As for tea, I like herbal teas just fine, I see no need to partake in the black or green teas that the Church says we shouldn’t. I don’t judge those who do, it’s not my business! And besides, I could use a bit more self-restraint in the meat eating department, so I don’t feel like I have room to talk.
3) ignorance of the Word of Wisdom requirements:
I don’t think this idea holds much water. If you have a Recommend, you must have been in the Church for at least a year and the WOW is a central tenet. If you haven’t been exposed to the Church’s stance on the issue, I really doubt that you have been paying much attention!