Archetypes and Truth

"And the sign said, 'The words of prophets are written on the subway walls / And tenement halls / And whispered in the sound of silence."

   ― Simon & Garfunkel

In order to understand the nature of Zion, we need to understand her opposite, Babylon, a bit better.

Zion is an archetype; so is Babylon. The truths of God hang upon a latticework of eternal archetypes (universal patterns) that stand in relation to one another.

Now, I do not say truth is relative, but I say, truth is relational.  To single out one truth from the Whole would be like plucking out one's eye: it would still look like an eye in our palm, but it will no longer be filled with light.  A retina that is disconnected from the optic nerve is not much good.

And so it is with truth: all truth is part of a living ecosystem and must not be quarantined from its sisters.

Let's pretend that we do pluck out our eye, and afterwards, believing the eye to be the light of the body (for isn't that what Jesus taught?), we pass the eyeball around at Church and sing songs about the blind, dead eye.  We treat the eye as a sort of idol.  This is what we often do with truths.

You've heard before, I'm sure, truth be defined as "things as they really are" (Jacob 4:13), but beware: 'things-as-they-really-are' burn like an uncontrollable wildfire, a chaos that must be tamed ― and in Christ they are unified in their proper forms; all truth is circumscribed into one great "whole."

Otherwise, the firebrands of truth we hold, disconnected from the Great Whole, have a tendency to become idols in our hands.

Be careful when playing with fire.

The Lie

​"So my fantasy / becomes reality / So I'll continue to pretend / My life will never end / And flowers never bend / With the rainfall."

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel

Are you surprised I have compared truth to an idol?  What sort of idols were you expecting, golden calves?  My dear friends, whatever did you think truth was, but a golden calf, when turned aside from the living God?

It is our common lot here on earth to perceive truth but poorly, in bits and chunks.  Alas, a partial truth can be indistinguishable from a lie.

But God's truths adorn the Tree of life like ornaments hanging from the Tannenbaum of Heaven ― they reflect His light divine in their ordered spheres.

In this way, a truth is "true" only insofar as it is connected to the True Vine.  But if we take our hedge trimmer out of the garage and cut away truth from its Trunk, like a bough, and place the bough in our living rooms and chapels to be adored (as if it were still connected to Him), the thing will invariably prove a cursing.

Jesus Christ is the Tree upon which all truths must be hung with care.  Christ Himself serves as an archetype, representing the Spirit of truth ― for "Christ" is a title, not a surname; it means "Messiah."

This archetypical aspect of Christ was best described by John in his testimony:

   And I, John, bear record
   that I beheld his glory,
   as the glory of the Only
   Begotten of the Father,
   full of grace and truth,
   even the Spirit of truth,
   which came and dwelt
   in the flesh.

(D&C 93:11)

Now consider that there must needs be opposition in all things.  Just as the "Spirit of truth" came to earth in the flesh to dwell among us in the form of Jesus the Christ, what might be its opposite?

   (1) What is the opposite of the "Spirit of truth"?

   (2)  Has that Opposite-Thing been manifest in the flesh upon the earth?

"Well Tim," someone says, "Satan was denied a body.  So there's no fear of him becoming incarnated, is there?"

Well, just as the Father sent His Son to the earth to guide us out of darkness, so too has the archetype we call "Satan" (itself a title, meaning "Accuser") selected sons to serve him, whom we call the sons of Perdition.

And so we come to the first thing we need to understand about Babylon: "Perdition" is the foundation upon which Babylon stands.

The spirit of Perdition is that spirit which deceives and lies.  Babylon is built upon the spirit of falsehood, even upon the "vain imaginations and the pride of the children of men" (1 Nephi 12:18).

   The spirit of that wicked one
   who was a liar
   from the beginning.

(D&C 93:25)

Just as Zion describes a body of believers who possess the Spirit of truth, Babylon is any body of believers (yes, believers) who possess the spirit of delusion (they are "deluded" because they believe an illusory truth, an imitation of the Spirit, but one that is powerless to save).

What, did you think Babylon was a kingdom of atheists and wicked people, generally?  No, Babylon is composed of false priests who have perverted the way of the Lord, specifically, and have ensnared the righteous into becoming idolaters.

This tug-of-war between the Spirit of truth and Perdition ― between Zion and Babylon ― always divides along the line of those who build their spiritual foundation upon the Rock versus those who trust in the Lie.

   But what is the great Lie?

Ba'al Bondsmen

​"Smiling faces try to understand / I saw a shadow touch a shadow's hand."

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel

Babylon is synonymous with idolatry, and idolatry is the act of twisting the Logos into a lie.

Now, before we proceed any further I want to say, I am an idolater.  Nothing I say in this post is meant to blame or shame anyone.  "Hi, my name is Tim, and I am a recovering idol addict."

So let's not be defensive; I have confessed to the sin of idolatry, and that's the first step towards repenting of it.  Join me.

Now that we've cleared the air, we should ask ourselves, "Why are idols bad?"

This is an excellent question.  I am a "why" kind of person.  I like to understand the reason for things.  Instead of disassembling toasters and computers to see how their components work together, I like to disassemble gospel principles to see how they relate to God and the world around us.

Why are idols bad?  Well, it is precisely because they're so good.  That is, idols are such an effective means of false worship, to the point we can hardly tell them apart from the true worship of the God of Israel.

Isaiah said it best when he described idols as "slippery stones."

   Among the slippery stones
   of the ravines
   shall be your fate;
   they indeed are your lot.

(Isaiah 57:6, Gileadi translation)

This is such a powerful image that Isaiah paints for us: an unsuspecting person is walking along the streambed, on their happy way, and they accidentally trip on a "slippery stone," falling to the earth and hitting their head.

Lights-out.  Such "shall be [our] fate" if we do not cast away the idols from the temples of our mind, and from the holy of holies of our hearts.

I think "slippery stones" is a beautiful metaphor for idols; first, idols seem so harmless, like small pebbles, and yet they lead to our downfall and spiritual death.  Second, the stone is "slippery" because it is so easily mistaken for the Rock.

In many ways Ba'al worship resembled the worship of Jehovah.  Ba'al was known to the Phoenicians as "the Lord of Heaven."  He was the Lord of Thunder (the God of Storms) and is depicted holding a thunder bolt (later, the Greeks would associate him with Zeus).

But the most important aspect of Ba'al was that he had power over life (fertility) and death (drought).

The ancients built temples to Ba'al.  Look at this prayer to Ba'al found among the Ras Shamra tablets discovered in the ruins of Ugarit, and see how it sounds eerily similar to our own temple-theology:

   Baal sets the season,
   And gives forth His voice from the clouds.
   He flashes lightning to the earth.
   As a house of cedars let Him complete it,
   Or a house of bricks let Him erect it!
   Let it be told to Aliyan Baal:
   'The mountains will bring Thee much silver.
   The hills, the choicest of gold;
   The mines will bring Thee precious stones,
   And build a house of silver and gold.'

It's striking, isn't it, how this might have been said of Solomon's temple.

So how do we tell apart the bride Zion from the false bride of Babylon?

Gideon's Grand Folly

​"An angry mob trailed along / They shot my brother dead / Because he hated what was wrong."

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel

You've heard the Old Testament story of Gideon, how he led men down to the water and watched who lapped it up like a dog, and took those 300 men to defeat the Midians (Judges 7).  Very good.  This is not that story.

​No one ever tells the rest of Gideon's story, so I shall.  The people were so impressed with Gideon's leadership that they wanted to make him their king.

Gideon refused (thankfully), but he asked them to donate the spoils of war they had plundered, the gold earrings of their enemies.

   And Gideon said unto them,
   I would desire a request
   of you, that ye would give me
   every man the earrings
   of his prey.

   And they answered, We will
   willingly give them.
   And they spread a garment,
   and did cast therein
   every man the earrings.

(Judges 8:24-25)

Umm, okay; where is Gideon going with this?  The last time someone asked the people for their gold earrings, it was Aaron, to build his golden calf (I have a bad feeling about this).

   And the weight
   of the golden earrings
   was a thousand and seven
   hundred shekels of gold.
  
   And Gideon made an ephod
   thereof, and put it in his city.

(Judges 8:26-27)

Oh, an ephod?  That's not as bad as a golden calf.  After all, the ephod was an emblem of the priesthood; in Exodus 28 we learn how beautiful the ephod was, adorned with precious stones.

So what was the problem?  Can't we honor God with this ephod; wasn't if for God's glory?

Gideon placed the ephod in a place of prominence in his city so the people could gather from near and far and see it.  The moral of the story:

   And all Israel went thither
   a whoring after it:
   which thing became a snare
   unto Gideon, and to his
   house.

(Judges 8:27)

Whoops.  The ephod became an idol, and led the people astray ― despite Gideon's good intentions.

I share this story to show that the very worst idols are the ones we put into the employ of our religion, thinking therewith to honor God, but in fact, end up making a mockery of Him.

Idols of Mahan

​"I do declare / There were times when I was so lonesome / I took some comfort there."

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel

You would think the righteous would not be so easily duped.  Do they not realize they are being seduced into committing idolatry?

Do we?  No, we don't, simply because we don't view it as idolatry; we see it as a genuine expression of our faith.  That's the falsehood, the old switcheroo: to trust in idols while believing it is a sign of our faith in God.

We see this principle in the story of Cain.  Did Satan tell Cain to stop serving God?  Oh no, quite the opposite.

The devil whispered to his son, Cain:

   Make an offering
   to the Lord.

(Moses 5:18)

Here we find the name-of-the-game.  Satan's trick has always been to get us to give the wrong offering; to place our trust in the fruit of the ground (Moses 5:19) rather than in the archetypical blood of the Lamb.

What "fruits of the ground" do we place our trust in today?

We must ask: why would Cain do it?  He wasn't stupid (neither are we).  To hedge his bets, perhaps, Cain did offer up blood in the end: the blood of his brother, Abel.

Anticipating this human sacrifice, the voice of the Lord came to Cain, saying:

   For from this time forth
   thou shalt be the father
   of his [the devil's] lies;
   thou shalt be called
   Perdition.

(Moses 5:24)

What was Cain's motive?  Why did he fall on this slippery stone?  The explanation we're given in scripture is very simple, and it is the same reason we have polluted our churches today.

   And Cain said:
   Truly I am Mahan,
   the master
   of this great secret,
   that I may murder
   and get gain.

(Moses 5:

Thus we see the creed of Babylon: to get gain.  Ever since, her sons have profited from religion by using God's name in vain, as Moroni warned us (Mormon 8:37-40)

This "war" (the War in Heaven, another mythological archetype) transcends our particular religious beliefs and practices.  For Zion and Babylon do not describe denominational differences, but the manner in which we employ our faith.

Is our faith put into the employ of Mammon, or does she serve her Master by caring for the poor and needy?

   Ye cannot serve God
   and Mammon.

(Matthew 6:24)

American Idol

​"And all the people said, 'What a shame that he's dead / But wasn't he a most peculiar man?"

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel
​
The Lord instructed His saints to "go ye out of Babylon" in 1831 (D&C 133:5).  The Lord wants us to cease our spiritual idolatry.  But how?

   Go ye out . . . 
   even from Babylon,
   from the midst of wickedness,
   which is spiritual Babylon.

(D&C 133:14)

Usually we think of "fleeing Babylon" as physically leaving a wicked city (like Sodom in 1900 B.C., or Zarahemla around 34 A.D., or Jerusalem circa 70 A.D.) ― the idea always being to get-out-of-Dodge before the places are laid waste and utterly destroyed.

But I don't think there's anywhere on earth we could go in order to escape wickedness.  It covers the whole earth in bondage (D&C 84:49-50).  It is everywhere, whether we live in Pocatello or Paris, Modesto or Mecca or Salt Lake.

And remember, Babylon is no longer a physical place.  The Babylonian empire ended in 539 B.C.  So this is figurative.  The way we flee Babylon is to abandon our idolatrous ways.

When I was younger I never understood what the big deal was about "idols."  Besides reading about them in the Old Testament, I didn't see what all the fuss was about.

After all, no one in my neighborhood was worshipping carved statues of Zeus; I didn't know of anyone who had shrines dedicated to the sun god in their basement.  Nary an incense stick in sight.

So I was genuinely confused about where all these troublesome idols were.  Could it be the ancient Israelites were just not as righteous as us, since they were always falling into idolatrous ways?

No, I'm afraid we're every bit their equal.  I came to realize that the worst kinds of idols are not the representations of the sun and moon and stars; it was never about the wooden relics.  For, the Lord was not concerned so much with the people's trinkets as He was with their testimonies: in what (or in whom) did they repose their faith?

As I grew older, I came to know that the greatest centers of spiritual wickedness were not geographical places, but religious spaces in which faith was neutered by dogma and creeds, by religions that invoked priestcraft and made idolatry a religious practice, marketing it in God's name.

You see, the best way to spread idolatry is to call it something else, something God-ordained.

Now I understand that "spiritual Babylon" refers to our defiled churches and religions that "have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant" (D&C 1:15).

What archetypical golden calves have we doctrinally-sanctioned?

What idols adorn the Covenant Path?

The False Gods We Worship

​"For a pocketful of mumbles / Such are promises / All lies and jest / Still a man hears what he wants to hear / And disregards the rest."

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel

Since 1831, the prognosis has only worsened.

   They seek not the Lord
   to establish his righteousness

Now, to be fair, establishing the Lord's righteousness is exactly what our churches and religions claim to do.  But this is where the Great Lie comes in.

Instead of teaching the pure principles of Christ's gospel, Babylon overlays the Rock with a veneer of manmade commandments.

Idolatry is nothing more or less than a people trusting in the lifeless "forms of godliness" that are powerless to save (2 Tim. 3:5).

It matters very little what our religious leaders say, but it matters a great deal what they do.  What do they do with their influence and wealth?  "I will shew thee my faith by my works" (James 2:18).

Follow the treasure, and if we do, we shall discover where the heart of the Church is (Matt. 6:21).

   but every man [every church]
   walketh in his own way,
   after the image of his own god

There are a lot of religions who claim to follow Jesus.  It's easy to claim anything; better to look at the fruits.  What fruits of faith do we find; what fruits meet for repentance?

Jacob, quoting Zenos in the allegory of the Olive Tree, prophesied of some pretty "wild fruit" in these times:

   And the wild fruit of the last
   had overcome that part
   of the tree which brought forth
   good fruit, even that the branch
   had withered away and died.

(Jacob 5:40)

I would refer you to 68 "wild fruits" that Clark Burt lists from scripture in one of the most jaw-dropping commentaries of the "awful state" (Ether 4:15) we find ourselves in, drawn directly from the word of God. (See, "Repentance: All Manner of Fruit and None of it Good," December 24, 2023, Given by the Finger of God.)

   whose image is in the likeness
   of the world

The things "of the world" shall perish; they cannot withstand the fire of God's wrath at the last day.  The caricature we have made of Christ shall be no more.  When we shall see Him, the Lie we have trusted shall be seen for what it is: worthless dross.

At that Day we shall see the Man who cleansed the temple with a whip; Jesus who prophesied that not one stone of that temple should remain; the Master who appeared to Stephen, and seeing Him in the clouds, declared God dwelleth not in temples made with hands.

Then we shall rue the Lie we harbored against such a Day, gazing upon the face of Him who rent the veil of the temple in twain, a temple befouled with the people's pride, and we shall know, as we peer into the eyes of Him whose body IS the temple, that our robes and garments cannot cover our shame.

   and whose substance
   is that of an idol

Ah, here we find the heart-of-the-matter.  What is the "substance" of an idol?  Well, it is lifelessness; it is death.  Idols are "dumb" (mute) and cannot speak the words of life.  This is all in contrast to the Living God, whose voice calls the Stars by name and makes them to sing, whose word summons planets into existence and heals the wounded soul.

I do not worry myself over "correct" doctrines, merely "living" ones.  Are they drawing strength from the Lord, or from themselves?  The only good doctrine is one that allows us to smell Christ's cinnamon breath upon our cheek.

I’ve encountered many doctrines that men preach with righteous zeal, but which are as dead as doornails.  And I have seen doctrines that men decry as heresy, but which illuminate Christ's face like no other.

   which waxeth old
   and shall perish in Babylon,
   even Babylon the great,
   which shall fall.

(D&C 1:16).

Notice that Babylon is "great"; she is impressive!  She looks like the complete package, and is arrayed beautifully in the ritual white of a bride.

But if we dare lift her veil, we shall behold her smile revealing a row of teeth like idols, and a breath that carries the stench of death.

What Are Modern Idols?

​"Asking only workman's wages / I come looking for a job / But I get no offers."

​   ― Simon & Garfunkel

​In college I first read President Spencer W. Kimball's talk, "The False Gods We Worship."

I liked the talk, but I had trouble relating to it because I didn't think I worshipped "gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know" (Daniel 5:23).

The examples President Kimball cited didn't seem to apply to me.  Hypothetically, I could see how wealth could become an idol.  But as a poor college student living off the land of others' mercy, I didn't seem to be in danger.  I had enough to pay for lunch at Taco Bell, and was content.

   ― "Stocks, bonds, investment portfolios" (none here)
   ― "Automobiles" (my dad's old Buick clunker I drove?)
   ― "Property" (living in an apartment off-campus with a roommate?)
   ― "Gods of stone and steel ― ships, planes, missiles, fortifications" (I was not a member of the ROTC)

Going through President Kimball's list, the closest thing that pricked my spirit was when he warned against "placing hope in the arm of flesh" ― which was something I struggled with.

Years went by and I found occasion to re-read the talk, and saw it in a new light.  But this time, I noticed that the positive examples President Kimball gave for what we should be doing with our time and money unwittingly created an idol for us to worship (this is true): the Church.

It was a lightbulb moment.  As you read the talk, you'll notice President Kimball extolling the sacrifices of people on behalf of serving the Church.  Finally it "clicked."  I understood.

You see, the ancients did not worship gold and silver and wood as if those trinkets were divine; for they knew those things weren't actually gods.

So why did they possess those lifeless objects at all?  Well, it was because their idols (they believed) helped them access the divine; through their idols they felt closer to their unseen gods; they believed their talismans earned them greater attention from their deities.

And that, my friends, is what we believe, too.  We trust in things like our temples and leaders to give us special access to God and His blessings.  In the ultimate irony, we have structured the Church around idols, such as priesthood keys, and taught the members to trust therein.

"But Tim," someone says, "I do not view the temple or my leaders that way.  I have sculptures of the temple in my home, and pictures of the Prophet on the wall, sure, but these things only remind me of the Lord and help me to 'think Celestial.'"

Thank you for proving my point.

Now, please don't misunderstand; humans have a tendency to turn things into idols, especially good things.  There's a subjectivity involved.  So maybe I shouldn't say the Church is an idol, but rather we treat the Church as an idol.

The classic example of this principle is the Bible.  No one argues that the Bible isn't a good thing; but it becomes an idol when we treat it as one.  "A Bible!  A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible" (2 Nephi 29:3).

As Gideon showed us, anything can be turned into an idol: an ephod, a temple, a Bible, and even a Church.  

But remember, Joseph Smith saw God in the Sacred Grove without any priesthood keys, without any Church, and certainly before there were any temples.

The only thing we need in order to come unto Christ is faith and repentance.

"Refuge" From the Storm

What is a "refuge?"  How will Zion serve as a "refuge" in the last days?

   And that the gathering together
   upon the land of Zion,
   and upon her stakes,
   may be for a defense,
   and for a REFUGE from the storm,
   and from wrath
   when it shall be poured out
   without mixture
   upon the whole earth.

(D&C 115:6)

If we add an 'e', it speaks volumes; a "refuge" is someplace that harbors refugees.

  Refugee, noun, "a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster."

Zion is ― (speaking not typologically or spiritually, but temporally) ― a network of "refuges."  This is referring to specific locations that have been appointed by the Lord for the gathering of His refugees in the last days (D&C 124:36).

If I may put a finer point on it, the purpose of Zion was never for the righteous to gather and shut the gates, bunkering-down while weathering the calamity to befall humanity, eating pork-and-beans from a can and playing Uno.  No, Zion was always intended as a place to which the righteous gather with celestial supplies so as to enable them to serve as nursing fathers and nursing mothers for the wandering and wounded refugees who wish to get out of the storm.

The scriptures describe this latter-day Zion as, foremost, a Refugee Camp, for succoring the wicked who have come to their senses and who desire to beat their swords into ploughshares.  That is why it is called a "City of Peace."

Think of it as a wildlife refuge, which protects endangered and weary souls.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service maintains numerous refuges across North America to prevent the despoliation of natural habitats for at-risk animals, like the Rainwater Basin Wetland in Nebraska that harbors millions of migrating geese and other birds every year.  Zion is a waystation for those traveling East towards Eden.

So when we come to it, Zion isn't something we pat ourselves on the back for having "achieved," grateful we have been spared destruction whilst our neighbors are hewn down like dry grass ― no, Zion is a community with a mission to care for those who have lost hope during a time when men's hearts shall fail them; she is a place that welcomes soldiers who finally desire peace.

Thus Zion's commission is to minister to the wicked who come to her walls seeking safety, who in their extremity have rekindled the hope to give God another chance.

   And it shall come to pass
   among the wicked,
   that every man
   that will not take his sword
   against his neighbor
   must needs flee unto Zion
   for safety.

​(D&C 45:68)

So let's not picture Zion as an exclusive resort for the righteous, but as a M.A.S.H. unit for those who have fled their war-torn ways.

"Refuge" Has a Special Meaning

Few realize that "places of refuge" have a particular meaning in the scriptures.  It is a term of art.

Once we understand the Biblical meaning of "cities of refuge" under the Law of Moses, we will never view them the same again.

A little background: Moses promised those who were accused of murder, whose skirts were sprinkled with blood, that they could "flee" to six sanctuary cities and there be protected (while awaiting a fair trial).

You see, back then, they didn't have law enforcement or legal systems like today.  If someone killed another person, the family of the victim could seek the life of the killer (an eye for an eye).

But what if it was an accident?  How about self-defense?  Well, your life was in jeopardy, so you had to flee to one of the six appointed sanctuary cities, which were called "refuges" (like Shechem or Hebron).

   He that smiteth a man,
   so that he die . . . 
   [but who did not]
   lie in wait
   [meaning it was not cold-bloodied murder but only manslaughter]
   I will appoint thee a place
   whither he shall flee.

(Exodus 21:12-13)

If the guy didn't "flee" to one of the refuges, then his life was forfeit.

What is interesting is that all six of the cities of refuge were the inheritances of the Levites (who didn't get a land grant in Israel, but who were appointed 48 cities to dwell in).  As we know, the Levites were the stewards of God's priesthood; so this symbolized that safety was found, foremost, in the knowledge of God (for, such was the true meaning of priesthood).

   And among the cities
   which ye shall give
   unto the Levites
   there shall be 
   six cities for refuge,
   which ye shall appoint
   for the manslayer,
   that he may flee thither.

(Numbers 35:6)

Today we're told to "flee" unto Zion.  This is beginning to make sense, I think, in this context.  We must flee to a city of refuge in order to avoid the vicarious guilt of the blood and sins of this generation (D&C 88:75); if we do not, our lives may become forfeit.

   Let them, therefore,
   who are among the Gentiles,
   flee unto Zion.

(D&C 133:12)

Could this shed meaning on the cryptic saying of the Lord, who told us to "stand in holy places?"

   But my disciples shall
   stand in holy places,
   and shall not be moved;
   but among the wicked,
   men shall lift up their voices
   and curse God and die.

(D&C 45:32)

It was to Shechem, one of the refuges, that Joshua gathered all of Israel at the end of his life, bringing the Sanctuary (what we would consider a mobile temple).  It was a "holy place."

Joshua presented the people before the Lord and issued the famous challenge, "Choose you this day whom ye will serve" (Joshua 24:15; really, read the whole chapter, it is excellent).

There, in a city of refuge, upon holy ground, the people covenanted with God and (this is quite fascinating) as a sign, Joshua took a rock (yes, a rock; what does that symbolize?) to be his witness, saying:

   Behold this stone
   shall be a witness
   unto us; for it hath heard
   all the words of the Lord
   which he spake unto us
   [here].

(Joshua 24:27) 

The best part is this: a man who fled to one of the cities of refuge, and who was not worthy of death, still had to remain there until the death of the high priest who was then-in-office.  At the death of the high priest, the man was free to return home and reclaim his property.

But if the accused left the city of refuge before the High Priest died, then he could be killed (Numbers 35:24-28).

All this to say, these places of refuge prefigured Christ, as a type and shadow of the great High Priest, whose death freed us from the penalty of sin ― just as the death of the Levite high priest meant the accused could return home again; so we, too, may be liberated from wrongdoing through the death of Jesus.

Let us flee unto Zion, which is to say, flee unto Christ, and find refuge.

A Brief Message Interrupts our Regularly-Scheduled Program

I was about to begin writing about the Day of the Lord (which some call great, and others terrible), but I felt a need to pause and say something from my heart first.  I don't think this is going to be popular.

You may have noticed I am reluctant to write about end-time events because I don't want to pour fuel on the fire of all the apocalyptic-junkies out there who are champing at the bit for the world to burn.

I am also reluctant to write about the end times because they are not, in fact, the end.  They are merely a culmination of an ordained cycle that endlessly repeats, and shall go on; but they do not bring the finality our finite minds crave.

If I may, eschatological events are eternal (like we are) and should not be viewed as discrete, temporal events, but as patterns and shadows of a larger, ongoing contest between good and evil, which stretches far beyond the workings of this world.

You would think we are a closed system, here on this earth, but we are not; the earth and its inhabitants are part of a wider cosmological order we know little about.  Nothing will be more humbling than, one day, seeing as we are seen, as one member of Christ's body among countless others, and we shall fall to the earth, and bow low to the dust, and beat our chest, pouring ashes in our hair, for the day of our pride and arrogance, that we would have boasted in our greatness and own strength.

And yet, God sees every sparrow that falls, and dresses the lilies of the field in His unending love.  

Let me suggest that our spiritual senses are awakened through symbols and through the divine mystery.  We should beware the snare of putting God's prophecies into nice, neat boxes ― as if we were playing Pin the Tail on the Donkey with the Book of Revelation, trying to speculate if the mark of beast is Elon Musk's latest invention, or something.  That's a fool's errand.

Christ was not a photo-realist; His teachings and parables, His everlasting Word, are those of an Impressionist painter trying to capture the light in their brushstrokes.

Monet's waterlilies were meant to capture our imagination with color and beauty, representing a moment in time that will not come again, not in exactly the same way, for the waterlilies that Monet painted at Giverny in an evening light have long since passed away.

Prophets of old were not trying to write a history book in advance, but they were trying to teach us something about the nature of God and of human existence, and our eternal destiny.  God is constantly trying to tell us something about the unseen Kingdom of Heaven.

So be wary of end-time teachings that assume a hyper-realism that Biblical authors did not intend.  I don't know why there are so many Christians who watch the news and try to make everything part of the tapestry of Gog and Magog and end-time events.

Our focus, rather, belongs on Christ and His eternal message of faith and repentance.  That message never goes out of date, no matter how many Mayan-calendar-cycles we go through (looking at you, 2012).

For, the Lord's truth transcends the particular times and seasons we navigate in this mortal coil.  Whether it is 2000 B.C. or 2000 A.D. (or 4039 A.D.), all we need concern ourselves with is repentance (D&C 11:9).

Do you not suppose Jesus could have awed us with His understanding of the universe and the hidden ways of reality?  Could Jesus not have pulled back the curtain of existence and laid bare the arm of Jehovah?

Well, He did exactly that, by telling us to have the faith of a mustard seed; by inviting us to seek what has been lost; and by commanding us to love one another.

But Western Christianity has not warmed to the doctrine of repentance; instead, in the Church, from the very beginning, we inherited the end-time scenario of our Protestant neighbors, popularized in The Voice of Warning (written by Parley P. Pratt in 1837 and updated in numerous reprints).

And then, in the Twentieth Century, the Church matched, if not exceeded, Evangelicalism's obsession with (and poor exegesis of) Biblical end-time prophecy.

For many, "prepping" for SHTF has become an idol, an industry fueled by misguided zeal.

Yes, we should be prepared, for God promised, "If ye are prepared ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30).  So I take seriously the charge to be prepared, as the wise virgins were, who took the Holy Spirit for their guide and were not deceived (D&C 45:56-57).

But teachings of the end-times in Christianity are generally riddled with fear, and fear always leads to being deceived.

Much of what we're taught about the Last Days is incorrect.  I do not know all things (and in fact, I know but little), but what God has shown me leads me to believe we do ourselves a great disservice by viewing our generation through the lens of exceptionalism, excusing our excesses and extortion of the earth in the belief it's all going to be over soon, thereby shirking our First Duty, given to Adam, to be wise stewards of the physical creation.  "What's the use, who cares?  God is going to blow things up soon enough."

"But Tim!" someone says, "Doesn't God want us to think He's coming soon?  Isn't this the Eleventh Hour?"

My dear friends, what does the hand of the clock do once it has reached Midnight?  Does the clock fall apart?  No, the hands move on to 12:01, and they complete another round.   God's course is one eternal round.

Let us be willing to wait upon the Lord for another 2000 years; let us not be impatient.  I do not say He delays His coming, but I say, let us live so that He may come to us today, even if He doesn't appear in the clouds for another millennium.

When we begin to understand we are gnolaum (endless beings), our mindset shifts.  That is why I study the stars and the movement of the planets, and contemplate the doings of the Lord on an astronomical scale.  The fact that it takes our sun 225 million years (!) to complete a single circuit around the Galactic Center of the Milky Way, brings me peace, and reminds me of the long-suffering of our God.

There is peace written in the heavens, in the endless cycles and movement of the stars, and in the heavenly conjunctions that span thousands of years, even eons.

Why are we in such a hurry?  Why are we in such a rush to the end?  Let us not be in a haste for the ruin of the world.

Our souls are as stars in the firmament, and our movements are measured in eternities, not years.

So let us relax; the Lord may, or may not, come in our lifetimes.  We will probably treat one another better if we took the long view.

No matter what the future holds, we can repent today, and come personally to know the Lord as we witness His handiwork upon the earth ― not to destroy it, but to save it.

The Coming Storm

Thank you for listening to that long rant.  Now back to the Day of the Lord.

Zion is a place of defense and safety, but we might wonder, from what do we need protection?  What storm does the Lord refer to when He says Zion is to be a "refuge from the storm" (D&C 115:6)?

What "calamity" (D&C 1:17) is coming?

To answer this question, let's turn to the prophet Joel, who mentions "the Day of the Lord" five times in his brief book of prophecy.  He sort of wrote the book on the subject.

Recall that Moroni quoted the words of Joel to Joseph Smith, so this text has special appeal to our times (JS-H 1:41).

In order to unlock the meaning of Joel's prophecy, we must understand the allusions and parallels used by the ancient prophets; they hearkened back to older prophecies.  Thus, almost all prophecy builds upon itself, redeveloping and recapitulating the types and shadows found in the words of God in new, novel ways.  It is glorious!

Now, the key to the Book of Joel is to know that he draws upon the imagery of Sinai and recasts Sinai in an end-time scenario.

Thus we see that Mount Zion (in the latter-days) is, in fact, Mount Sinai reborn ― and, as in former times, God shall speak and reveal His law.

   For out of Zion
   shall go forth the law,
   and the word of the Lord
   from Jerusalem.

(Isaiah 2:3)

But this time it won't be Moses coming down with stone tablets, for Joel says (and this is the part that Moroni quoted), that God

   will pour out my spirit
   upon all flesh;
   and your sons
   and your daughters
   [notice women are equal, as we return to an Edenic era]
   shall prophesy.

(Joel 2:28) 

With that backdrop, Joel describes environmental events that bear spiritual significance, mirroring Sinai:

   - A day of clouds and darkness
   - The sounding of a trumpet like thunder
   - The trembling of the people
   - Earthquakes
   - Fire

   The earth shall quake
   before them; the heavens
   shall tremble: the sun
   and the moon shall be dark,
   and the stars shall withdraw
   their shining.

(Joel 2:10) 

The rich meaning found in these words is that idols (the ancients worshipped the sun and moon and stars) would lose their luster; the glory of God would overshadow all else.

The gold (sun) of Aaron's calf; the silver (moon) of the people's earrings; the glittering jewels and sparkling stones that adorned their idols (stars) would be worthless compared to God's riches.

​How Do We Prepare for the Day of the Lord?

The burning question remains, "How do we prepare for the last days and what is to come?"  Lucky for us, Joel gives us detailed instructions on how we are to prepare for the Day of the Lord.

He describes a sevenfold list of imperatives in Joel 2:15-16.

   1.  Blow the trumpet in Zion (what does this mean?)

   2.  Sanctify a fast (what does this mean?)

   3.  Call a solemn assembly (what does this mean)?

   4.  Gather the people (what does this mean?)

   5.  Sanctify the congregation (what does this mean?)

   6.  Assemble the elders (what does this mean?)
  
   7.  Gather the children (what does this mean?)

I feel impressed to say that all those who heed the word of the Lord in doing 1 thru 7 shall be safely gathered in as wheat, and shall abide the Day of the Lord (see Malachi 3:2).

Samuel Says

As the Nephites stared-down their own version of the Day of the Lord, prior to Jesus's birth and the destructions that devastated their land at His death, a prophet stood upon the wall as a watchman on the tower, and prophesied.

Samuel the Lamanite said:

   Yea, except ye repent,
   your women shall have
   great cause to mourn
   in the day that they
   shall give suck;
   for ye shall attempt to FLEE
   and there shall be no place
   for REFUGE.

(Helaman 15:2)  

God is our refuge; those who "flee" to Him (meaning, those who repent and trust Him), shall encounter rest.

In the Book of Joel, the prophet gives three "types" of Christ in the first chapter, which provide the foundation for the rest of his prophecy; and it signals to me that no matter what may come upon us, if we are anchored in Christ, we shall endure all, and fear nothing.

The three symbols of the Messiah given by Joel are:

   - The Bridegroom (Joel 1:8) (for Christ is the Bridegroom and Zion His bride)

   - The grain and drink offering (Joel 1:9) (for Christ is the Bread and Living Wine)

   - The vine and fig tree (Joel 1:7) (for Jesus is the "true vine," even as Israel chopped Him down)

Now, I would like to leave my blessing upon you whom I consider friends, a blessing inspired by the spirit of Joel's words, it is this:

"May God bless you to be received into the family chamber of His Son, the Bridegroom, and to partake with Him the feast set before His bride, Zion, even as He takes her hand and places His garment upon her shoulder, and removes the veil from her face, to the joy of those assembled, declaring His redeeming love and tenderness to her, now and forever, Amen."

   God is our refuge
   and strength,
   a very present help
   in trouble.

​(Psalm 46:1)

A Lunch Date and a Proposition

​A couple of months ago a reader of the blog reached out and invited me to lunch.

​Having never met him before, I thought it would be prudent to meet in a public place (I also took the precaution of texting a friend to let them know where I would be, in case my body was found floating in a river the next day).  Safety first.

But I had nothing to fear.  He turned out to be a perfect gentleman and we hit it off swimmingly.  We met at a restaurant in downtown Salt Lake near my office; he ordered tacos and I had a burger.

As we sat down at the table, and because we were going to discuss faith and religion (the reason he wanted to meet), I suggested we pray together.  We clasped hands and he offered a beautiful prayer, setting the mood.

It soon became clear I was to receive a missionary message; he shared his witness of a new prophet-servant that God had called on the scene to prepare us for the Second Coming.  My new friend came to me in the role of John the Baptist, a kind of forerunner, inviting me to "come and see" what this new religious movement was about.

Because I have believing blood, I took the fellow seriously.  I spent the next hour asking honest questions and listening.  Having been a spiritual wallflower most of my life, I was flattered that someone would ask me to dance.

But there were red flags, and I was not in the market for a new spiritual yoke (by which I mean, leader).

After all, why slip into someone else's priesthood downline when I have already been adopted by my spiritual Father, Christ?

At the end of lunch, I said, "Thank you, but I really don't need someone else to receive God's will for me, when I speak to Him myself."

He seemed surprised I was not impressed with his accounts of angelic visitations and ordinations and divine promises; things he felt made his prophet-servant truly special.

Special?  Do visions and visitations make us special?  I think not.  Good heavens, I call that Tuesday night.  The thing that makes us special is not what we have received, but what we have become.

Have we become vessels of God's love (John 13:35)?  Have we condescended to become the "least" of all (Mark 10:43-44)?

After lunch we embraced and said goodbye; I walked back to work, grateful for the conversation because it had clarified something for me: What I crave is community, but not chewed-and-choked-communities structured around other men's claims to divine authority.  That's not brotherhood, that's bondage.

I seek communities filled with God's grace and charity (as opposed to the cankerous "keys" and wealth of Babylon), in which we are friends and neighbors who share equally in the blessings and privileges of God, being self-governed and leaderless (but not Shepherdless, led by our Master).

I tire of spiritual Nebuchadnezzars and their golden heads, and seek after those who are childlike and poor in spirit.
​
   And [in that day] they shall
   teach no more every man
   his neighbour, saying,
   Know the Lord:
   for they shall all know me,
   from the least of them
   unto the greatest,
   saith the Lord.

(Jeremiah 31:34)

But the question remains, how will Zion be organized?

Because Zion will always need builders and organizers, even if it is free from Pontiffs and Presidents.

How is Unity Achieved?

Even though I disagreed with some of the things my new friend said, there was ample common ground upon which to build friendship and fellowship.

For, unity is not achieved through getting every one to believe the same things.

Let me explain.  If you took two people and matched them in a singular moment of time when their beliefs were identical (they were of "one mind"), then in order for them to remain "one," neither could change or grow beyond those initial beliefs.

This poses a real problem because our beliefs are presently imperfect.  None of us possesses the full knowledge of God.  So we must make allowance for change and growth in our beliefs ― and in the beliefs of others.

What is our typical reaction when our friends change their beliefs?  Or when a child decides to walk a different path?  Do we view them as "wayward?"  Do we treat it as a deviation from what we originally shared, an apostasy, even a betrayal?

This is why it is foolish to attach our identity to imperfect and incomplete beliefs ― which become a noose if not loosened to accommodate greater light and truth from above.

I see this all the time in marriages: couples do not always grow in tandem in their faith journeys; their beliefs over time may fall out of alignment.  When this happens, a partner is prone to view the others' journey in a critical light, as a breach of trust.

But it isn't an issue of trust, but of faith.  Are we creating enough grace in our relationships that we can remain united notwithstanding our individual growth and change and differences?

Do we allow others to soar to new heights, or do we clip their wings?  Do we allow others to plummet to new depths, and are willing to stand beside them anyway?

​A grown bird looks quite silly in the nest of its youth; heaven help the person whose views remain the same as on their wedding day, for better or for worse.

The Key to Unity

What is the solution?  Let me suggest a shift in focus from what we believe ― (ever evolving for those seeking greater truth) ― to what we commonly desire.

For example, I desire greater intimacy with God.  Don’t you?  Even if we believe different things, our desire is "one" ― our hearts are aligned.

This is how we become "one heart."  I can be "one" with a Catholic or Muslim or prison inmate or anyone who shares a desire for greater intimacy with God.

Let's apply this concept to our relationship with the Lord.  Because (let's be honest) the Lord's beliefs look nothing like our own.  We are limited and myopic but He is not; the Lord sees all things as "they really are," whereas we "see through a glass darkly."

So how can we be "one" with the Lord when we're so far apart in faith and knowledge and everything else?

The answer, of course, is found in our shared desire.  We become "one" with God when the desires of our heart align with His ― yes, it's possible!

This doctrine is spread like morning dew throughout the scriptures, the doctrine of desires, and it holds the key to becoming "one."

Why else do you think when an angel or the Lord appears they always ask:

   What desirest thou?

(D&C 7:1)

How marvelous it is, the fact that our feeble, broken hearts can actually beat with the same holy desires as God's.

All we need to figure out, then, is what does God desire?

What Does God Desire?

What God desires is not as obvious as it appears; if we listened to the chatter all around us, we might think God desires us to be straight-laced, sitting-for-tea-and-crumpets, straight-A-students who watch polo at the Country Club and organize fundraisers for the preservation of pink poodles.  (For, this is what religions are famous for producing: well-to-do, smooth-faced hypocrites.)

So we might be surprised to learn that what God actually desires bears little resemblance to what we're taught in Church. 

   For I DESIRED mercy,
   and not sacrifice.

(Hosea 6:6)

Mercy, huh?  That's too bad, I was really hoping it was temple covenants.  Or tithing.

"Tim," someone says, "you sure talk about mercy a lot.  But don't forget about justice, okay?  Doesn't God desire justice?  How about giving a heaping pile of justice to all them free-loaders out there?"

I would respond to our Country Club friend:  "Well, yes, God is just ― but not in the way we suppose; for the justice of God is demonstrated in the way He grants unto all men according to their desires, as Alma taught."

   I know that he [God]
   granteth unto men
   according to their desire,
   whether it be unto death
   or unto life.

(Alma 29:4)

In case we missed his point, Alma makes it clear that this is the reason we can declare Him to be "a just God" (Alma 29:4).  In other words, God's justice is to . . . fulfil our desires?  Yes, whether "it be unto death or unto life."

Why don't we follow suit?  Why don't we dispense justice like God does, by granting others according to their desires (even if it is not in their eternal best interests)?

No, we prefer a "tough" love, a firm hand; we prefer to dispense a measured mercy.

We prefer Satan's program of catch-and-release: we catch others in their sin and spank the "hell" out of them until they get their act together, and then we release them on probation, keeping a close eye on them, seeking to impose what we desire for them (since we know better; and isn't it for their own good?).

It never ceases to amaze me how many different ways we can paint our pridefulness as "love."

Remember, the lashes with which we whip our neighbor are the lashes Christ received on our behalf.

Egypt Needs Pharaohs, Zion Does Not

I want to focus on this part of what Sam Powell said, "The modern preacher's call to repentance is [often] simply a call to remain in the slavery of Egypt, working harder and harder to make more bricks of our own self-righteousness.  The love of God calls us out; this is repentance."

Are we in Egypt, are we captives?  Well, the answer may come as a shock, for Lehi told his sons:

   Arise
   from the dust, my sons,
   and be men (!)
   and be determined
      (1) in one mind
      (2) and in one heart,
      (3) united in all things,
   [why? Why is this so important?]
   that ye may NOT
      (1) come down into captivity;
      (2) that ye may not be cursed
           with a sore cursing;
      (3) that ye may not incur
            the displeasure
            of a just God
            upon you
            unto destruction.

(2 Nephi 1:21-22)  

Ah, now we see what Lehi means by the "destruction" brought about by a "just God."  It doesn't mean God destroys us, it means our unrighteous desires do.

As Clark Burt wrote, "Pride left unchecked leads to destruction.  But not destruction by God, but by the people themselves when they seek to become a law unto themselves.  God on the other hand does not send the destruction or cause it to happen.  He works to save humankind."  ("Repentance: All But the Very Elect Will Be Deceived, Part 1," Given by the Finger of God blog.)

Consider: what if we (as a people) ― who have not become equal, and are not united as "one" (D&C 105:4) ― are currently experiencing the fulfilment of Lehi's words?

   (1) Has the Church been brought into captivity?
   (2) Has the Church been cursed with a sore cursing?
   (3) Has the Church groaned with the death-pains of its own destruction?

I want to suggest that being "destroyed" does not mean we're annihilated or swept off the earth.  It doesn't mean we (or the Church) cease to exist.

Rather, in the Book of Mormon we learn that peoples and the Church of God are "destroyed" when they lose their spiritual identity and blessings ― even as they go on for generations, business-as-usual, blithely unaware that they have in fact already been "destroyed."
 
Have our churches been swallowed by the Great and Abominable Mother?  Have they been ruined, even as we preceived it not (JS-H 1:19)?

​Don't panic, we are not cast off forever.  The Lord is, above all else, a seeker of lost lambs.

Let us become "one" and await His rescue.

The Restoration's Relationship to Zion

The Restoration through Joseph Smith is like a rare and valuable coin ― a 1933 gold Double Eagle, as it were ― but it would be foolish to assume that the Double Eagle is the only coin of the Realm.

As wonderful as the Double Eagle is, it does not even begin to describe the greater currencies the Lord has in circulation, including the legal tender of "holy men that ye know not of" (D&C 49:8).

Those of us gathered in and through the Restoration have been blessed by it, and I am grateful, but the Restoration is but a small finger lake that stretches back to a great ocean; we are a tributary, not the ocean itself.

And so the Lord's promise "to gather all things in one" excites me.  I cannot wait for our weary caravan to meet up with other sojourners from distant lands at the Oasis we call Zion.  Just imagine what they can teach us, with their foreign treasures and fresh testimonies.

So I seek Zion with the understanding that the Iron Rod is non-denominational.  Zion will be far more ecumenical than we have supposed.  Her borders will stretch to include all peoples, kindreds, nations, tongues, traditions, and religions over whom the Lord has shepherded; His fold will reach into new heavens and new earths, where all those who cling to their -isms shall look terribly out-of-date.

As I read this list, an awareness settled upon me of my profound ignorance.  How limited my education has been, and narrow my vision.  There is a whole world I have yet to explore.

The Lord popped my prideful bubble with a pinprick of His Spirit as I contemplated my vast ignorance.  I imagined the vaulted libraries of heaven for which I haven't even been issued a library card yet.

Zion is so much more than what we have imagined in our Sunday School classes.  Before us lies an infinite University, the likes of which we cannot fathom; there are countless tomes of Creation's courses that lie unopened at our feet.  There are Everest-truths our finite minds have yet to conceive, standing as-we-are at the base camp, near the bottom, looking up at the summit shrouded in the mystery of the Lord's day-cloud.

How long it will take us to absorb it all, I cannot say; had we ten lifetimes to learn about this earth, it would be but a drop in the ocean.  But I can't wait to gaze beyond the horizon of our faith and witness the wonders of God hidden from the world in Christ Jesus. 

Here is my hope in Christ: that enduring to the end shall be but a delight, no matter how many lifetimes it might take to experience all of the divine emanations of God as numerous as the sands upon the shore, until, after endless waves of the surf have washed over me, I shall at last become part of the ocean itself.  

"You must begin with the first [principle of the gospel] and go on until you learn all the principles of exaltation.  But it will be a great while after you have passed through the veil before you will have learned them.  It is not all to be comprehended in this world; it will be a great work to learn our salvation and exaltation even beyond the grave."

(Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 348)

Pack your backpack and grab your Trapper Keeper: looks like we're headed to Summer School.​

Zion is an Inheritance

As an attorney I used to practice estate planning.  One day a client walked into my office and shared a tale as old as time.  Their elderly mother had grown feeble and needed to move in with one of her adult children.  My client's sister offered her home, and so it came to pass that Sister cared for Mother until she passed away.

Well, Sister must have felt a bit entitled (having assumed the burden of nursing an aging parent), so what did Sister do?

One day, shortly before Mother's death, Sister drove Mother to a law office and got her to sign legal papers amending her trust and will, making Sister the sole beneficiary of Mother's estate.

That's right: she got Mother to disinherit her other children.  You might think that was greedy and selfish, but remember, which child was the one sacrificing for dear-old-Ma, day-in and day-out?  She had earned it, so she thought; she deserved the inheritance more than her siblings, after all she had done.

After the funeral, my client and the other siblings found out what Sister had done and were livid; they wanted to sue Sister and have the amendment declared null and void.  That way, the trust would revert back to the original, which divided Mother's estate equally among her children.

Well, I told my client the truth: it was nearly impossible to overturn a will after the death of the testator (or in this case, testatrix).  The only way to do so was to show undue influence or a lack of competency at the time of signing.

But I accepted the case (as my legal-eagle hero Perry Mason would have done), warming to the challenge.  I retained one of the chief experts on Alzheimer's in the state, a university professor whose specialty was interpreting gray matter and lesions in the brain.  Using MRI scans of Mother's brain taken shortly before her death, the expert was able to persuade the judge that based on her advanced stage of Alzheimer's, Mother lacked the mental capacity to understand what she was doing when she disinherited her other children.

The judge revoked the amendment and restored things to the original.

The point:  I share this story to illustrate how awful we can be to family.  We think Zion is the inheritance of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that the Church is the sole beneficiary of the covenants God has made to His children.

But has God disinherited the rest of humanity?  Who are the heirs of the Fathers?

God does not treat His children unjustly or unequally.  Even as we are squabbling here below over our inheritance, God is up there shaking His head.  "All I have shall be given them (D&C 84:38); why are they fighting over real estate in my holy city?"

The Song of Zion

The promises of Zion are manifold, but broadly speaking they fall under two categories: (1) restoration and (2) reunification.

   (1)  Under restoration, we see the Lord fulfilling the covenants He made with the Fathers under the new and everlasting covenant given to Enoch and renewed through Noah.

   (2)  Under reunification, the peoples of God shall be gathered at last into One Fold (3 Nephi 15:17), culminating in Zion from above merging with Zion from below (see, The Deeper Magic: Translation and Tarrying).

This is described beautifully in what is called the "Song of Zion" found in D&C 84:98-102, which I love.  I am looking forward to it being put to music and sung by angels.

   The Lord hath brought again Zion

Who brings again Zion?  Not us.  We are participants, sure, but the work is God's.  We are but water-boys for Him who is the Living Water. 

   The Lord hath redeemed his people, Israel

When does the spiritual redemption of Israel occur?  Has it already?  Yes, even from before the foundation of the world (Alma 13:3), which redemption was perfected in the meridian of time (Moses 7:45-46).

So this seems to be referring not just to Israel's spiritual redemption, but also to Israel's latter-day temporal salvation.

   According to the election of grace

How are we redeemed?  Is it because we're righteous and have obeyed the Word of Wisdom and paid Tithing?  No, it is by "the election of grace."  What does that mean?  It sounds very Pauline; as Latter-day Saints we don't "do" grace very well.  Or election.

   Which was brought to pass by the faith

Ah, faith ― now this is something we can relate to; surely faith is one thing we can take credit for.  Nope; this is not talking about our faith, but that of the Fathers:

   And covenant of their fathers.

This is hard to hear for those of us who have been raised hearing we're the "greatest generation held in reserve" for the last days, being taught we're the head-of-the-class and valedictorian and the quarterback and captain of the cheerleading squad, all-in-one.

Consider rather, the fact that we don't have a starring role in bringing forth Zion.  As shocking as that sounds, it is what the scriptures teach: we merely get to "assist" in the building of the New Jerusalem (3 Nephi 21:23).  We are not its architects or master stonemasons (we're the water-boys, remember, that the Lord sent out to baptize believers?).

   The Lord hath redeemed his people,
   And Satan is bound and time is no longer.
   The Lord hath gathered all things in one.

The Lord gathers all things "in one" ― this does not say the Lord gathers all things into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (which, as I've pointed out before, has no unique identity anywhere in scripture once Zion is formed; in other words, the institutional Church ceases to be a going concern once we're brought into the company of the General Assembly and Church of the Firstborn, which is also called the Church of the Lamb).

   The Lord hath brought down Zion from above ("righteousness" - see Moses 7:62).
   The Lord hath brought up Zion from beneath ("truth" - see Moses 7:62).
   The earth hath travailed and brought forth her strength

What is this referring to, the earth's travail?  What is the earth giving birth to?  I love this prophecy, as you know if you have read The Deeper Magic: Signs and Seasons.

   And truth is established in her bowels;
   And the heavens have smiled upon her;
   And she is clothed with the glory of her God;
   For he stands in the midst of his people.

(D&C 84:99-102)

He stands!  I love this last reference to God "standing in the midst of his people."  He's not sitting down, He's not on His throne; no, He's out mingling with His children; He's out in the streets and in the cafés, in the homes of His friends.

The Pure in Heart Shall See God

God is found in the most unlikely of places.  If we had access to 'Find My Friends' (John 15:15) to locate Him, where would He be?

Well, that's quite a shock: He is not where we expect Him to be, which is why the scriptures say He "is hidden."

   Verily thou art a God
   that hidest thyself,
   O God of Israel.

(Isaiah 45:15)

You would think God would want to be on the 10 o'clock news, His face posted on billboards ― not on milk cartons.

But this is all quite deliberate, the way He has chosen to be concealed from the world.

But why?  As Job and David both cried out, "Wherefore hidest thou thy face?" (Job 13:24; Psalm 44:24).  Where is He?

What kind of celestial game of Hide-and-Seek is this?  Ah, that is the point, isn't it?  To require us to seek Him.

   But if thou shalt seek
   the Lord thy God,
   thou shalt find him,
   if thou seek him
   with all thy heart
   and with all thy soul.

(Deut. 4:29)  

Notice this is not a casual pursuit; we must seek Him with "all our heart."  This, for me, is the essence of what it means to be "pure in heart."  For what could be purer than a heart seeking God with real intent?

​​   Verily, thus saith the Lord,
   let Zion rejoice,
   for this is Zion―
   the pure in heart.

(D&C 97:21)

Those who have "found" God are known by the love He has filled them with (John 13:35); the defining attribute of the "pure in heart" is childlike love.

Thus purity is far more than chastity, for a prideful man is as impure as an immoral one (if not more so).

Pride clings; love lets go.  Perhaps this is the reason God dwells apart from our institutions, because we must wander off our religious reservations to find Him.  Why?  He dwelleth not in unholy temples; because finding Him has always been an act of faith.

   Blessed are the pure in heart:
   for they shall see God.

(Matt 5:8)

"Purity of heart" has nothing to do with institutional affiliation.  It has nothing to do with one's religious beliefs.  This does not say "Blessed are the pure in doctrine."

Allow God to surprise us when, and where, and how, we least expect it.

"One day during my last term at school I walked out alone in the evening and heard the birds singing.  I remember now the shock of surprise with which the sound broke on my ears.  It seemed to me that I had never heard the birds singing before and I wondered whether they sang like this all the year round and I had never noticed it.

"As I walked on I came upon some hawthorn trees in full bloom and again I thought I had never seen such a sight or experienced such sweetness before.  I came then to where the sun was setting over the playing fields.  A lark rose suddenly from the ground beside the tree, and then everything grew still as the sunset faded.

"I felt inclined to kneel on the ground, as though I had been standing in the presence of an angel; and I hardly dared to look on the face of the sky, be­cause it seemed as though it was but a veil before the face of God."

  ― Bede Griffiths, The Golden String, An Autobiography (1954)

An Equal Inheritance

I began this post by stating Zion is, foremost, an inheritance.  But the problem (and the chief reason she has eluded us) is Zion cannot be inherited except in equal shares per stirpes (as they say in legalese).

You see, a hierarchy that creates inequality cannot bring forth Zion, which is why our Church organization prevents the very thing we seek.

We find in the Vision of Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon a description of a higher reality (heaven) that is so remarkable ― so foreign to things here on earth ― that we wonder if they were writing fiction:

   We saw the glory of the celestial
   . . . and he makes them EQUAL
   in power, and in might, 
   and in dominion.

   [For] the glory of the celestial
   is ONE, even as the glory
   of the sun is ONE.

(D&C 76:92-96)

Equal with God?  And we cannot even become equal with each other.

Notice it says God "makes them equal."  We are not equal by nature, for God is far greater than we are.  But we become equal in status, by virtue of Christ's intelligence ― as (wait for it) "joint heirs."

   And if children, then heirs;
   heirs of God, and joint-heirs
   with Christ.

(Romans 8:17)

The scriptures make plain that eternal life (like Zion) is gained in only one way: through inheritance.

   And the Lord said unto me:
   Marvel not that all mankind,
   yea, men and women . . . 
   must be born again,
   being redeemed of God,
   becoming his sons
   and daughters;

   and thus they become new
   creatures; and unless
   they do this, they can
   in nowise INHERIT
   the kingdom of God.

(Mosiah 27:25-26)

The only ones who inherit are heirs; and the only way to become an heir is to become a son or daughter of the Testator who is dead; and the way we become God's sons and daughters is to be born again after the manner of His Son, whose heart was filled with pure love.

   If they should have charity
   they would not suffer
   the laborer in Zion
   to perish.

(2 Nephi 26:30)

I say, let us not wish for the end of the world and the destruction of the wicked; let us pray instead for a new beginning and the redemption of those who are lost.

"I was suddenly made aware of another world of beauty and mystery such as I had never imagined to exist, except in poetry.  It was as though I had begun to see and smell and hear for the first time.

"The world appeared to me as Wordsworth describes it, with "the glory and freshness of a dream."  The sight of a wild rose growing on a hedge, the scent of lime-tree blossoms caught suddenly as I rode down a hill on a bicycle, came to me like a visitation from another world.

"But it was not only my senses that were awak­ened. I experienced an overwhelming emotion in the presence of nature.  It began to have a kind of sacramental character for me.  The song of the birds, the shape of the trees, the colors of the sunset, were so many signs of this presence, which seemed to be drawing me to itself.

"It is as though a veil has been lifted and we see for the first time behind the façade which the world has built around us.  Suddenly we know we belong to another world, that there is another dimension to existence.  We see our life for a moment in its true perspective in relation to eternity.  We are freed from the flux of time and see something of the eternal order that underlies it.

"We are no longer isolated individuals in conflict with our surroundings; we are parts of a whole, elements in an universal harmony."

  ― Bede Griffiths, The Golden String, An Autobiography (1954)