The Mormon Universe
A visual interpretation of The Book of Abraham.
In 1835, a Mr. Michael H. Chandler was conducting a traveling exhibit of Egyptian mummies. When he passed through Kirtland, Ohio, Joseph Smith viewed, and was fascinated by the mummies and particularly interested in the ancient papyri that was bound to the chest of one of them. Joseph had the church buy the mummies and papyri for $2400, and set about "translating" the hieroglyphics found on the papyri. The result can be found in the body of Mormon scripture known as "The Pearl of Great Price". Facsimiles of the original hieroglyphics are carried by all Mormons as part of their canon of holy scripture.
Notes:
1.,2.,3. - The Celestial Kingdom will have internal divisions. These divisions are characterized by varying levels of personal glory, determined by the valor of the person residing there. To reach the highest level, one must practice polygamy. These people will become Gods and will go on to create worlds, if they feel so inclined. See Journal of Discourses Vol. 16, p.166
4. - The Earth is where spirits arrive from a place called "The Pre-Existence". Here, they are charged with taking up a body of flesh and bones. The amalgamation is what we know as a human being. Once a human being becomes a Mormon, he is known as a "Saint". Upon death, the spirit and body separate. The body turns back to earth, and the spirit lingers on, still upon the Earth, but in a dimension not detectable by human means. At the end of the "Latter Days", all spirits will be obliged to re-unite with their re-constituted, and original vessels. This is in preparation for the "Final Judgment", and a probable one way trip off the planet, courtesy of God. You see, the Earth is in for some big changes, and only those who are prepared will be able to take the heat. All others would likely get burned up if allowed to remain in the presence of God. Some alternate locations, with reportedly some pretty good amenities, will be available to the bulk of the human population. See Brigham Young Addresses, 1860-1864, Sermon delivered on July 14, 1861.
5. - One place to be avoided if at all possible, is the ominous "Outer Darkness". This will be the part of the universe where Satan and all his followers, i.e., murderers, adulterers, and Democrats, will be "cast", and where they will remain throughout the eternities, cogitating over their sins.
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Brigham
Young, on the importance of polygamy for reaching the highest state of glory.
From a talk given August 31, 1873
This doctrine of baptism for the dead is a great doctrine, one of the most glorious doctrines that was ever revealed to the human family; and there are light, power, glory, honor and immortality in it. After this doctrine was received, Joseph received a revelation on celestial marriage. You will recollect, brethren and sisters, that it was in July, 1843, that he received this revelation concerning celestial marriage. This doctrine was explained and many received it as far as they could understand it. Some apostatized on account of it; but others did not, and received it in their faith This, also, is a great and noble doctrine. I have not time to give you many items upon the subject, but there are a few hints that I can throw in here that perhaps may be interesting. As far as this pertains to our natural lives here, there are some who say it is very hard. They say, "This is rather a hard business; I don't like my husband to take a plurality of wives in the flesh." Just a few words upon this. We would believe this doctrine entirely different from what it is presented to us, if we could do so. If we could make every man upon the earth get him a wife, live righteously and serve God, we would not be under the necessity, perhaps, of taking more than one wife. But they will not do this; the people of God, therefore, have been commanded to take more wives. The women are entitled to salvation if they live according to the word that is given to them; and if their husbands are good men, and they are obedient to them, they are entitled to certain blessings, and they will have the privilege of receiving certain blessings that they cannot receive unless they are sealed to men who will be exalted. Now, where a man in this Church says, "I don't want but one wife, I will live my religion with one," he will perhaps be saved in the celestial kingdom; but when he gets there he will not find himself in possession of any wife at all. He has had a talent that he has hid up. He will come forward and say, "Here is that which thou gavest me, I have not wasted it, and here is the one talent," and he will not enjoy it, but it will be taken and given to those who have improved the talents they received, and he will find himself without any wife, and he will remain single for ever and ever. But if the woman is determined not to enter into a plural-marriage, that woman when she comes forth will have the privilege of living in single blessedness through all eternity. Well, that is very good, a very nice place to be a minister to the wants of others. I recollect a sister conversing with Joseph Smith on this subject. She told him: "Now, don't talk to me; when I get into the celestial kingdom, if I ever do get there, I shall request the privilege of being a ministering angel; that is the labor that I wish to perform. I don't want any companion in that world; and if the Lord will make me a ministering angel, it is all I want." Joseph said, [p.167] "Sister, you talk very foolishly, you do not know what you will want." He then said to me: "Here, brother Brigham, you seal this lady to me." I sealed her to him. This was my own sister according to the flesh. Now, sisters, do not say, "I do not want a husband when I get up in the resurrection." You do not know what you will want. I tell this so that you can get the idea. If in the resurrection you really want to be single and alone, and live so forever and ever, and be made servants, while others receive the highest order of intelligence and are bringing worlds into existence, you can have the privilege. They who will be exalted cannot perform all the labor, they must have servants and you can be servants to them. (Journal of Discourses Vol. 16, p.166)
Brigham Young,
on the ascent of man.
From a sermon delivered on July 14, 1861.
Jesus Christ came here because his Father came here and he was begotten of the Father, and he was born of the virgin Mary as my mother bore me and as my father begot me and as you begot your children. What, is it possible [p.138] that the Father of Heights, the Father of our spirits, could reduce himself and come forth like a man? Yes, he was once a man like you and I are and was once on an earth like this, passed through the ordeal you and I pass through. He had his father and his mother and he has been exalted through his faithfulness, and he is become Lord of all. He is the God pertaining to this earth. He is our Father. He begot our spirits in the spirit world. They have come forth and our earthly parents have organized tabernacles for our spirits and here we are today. That is the way we came...
...As I said this morning, it is not all that were going to be cast into hell to dwell eternally with the devils. There are only a few who will go into everlasting pain and they are they that reject the gospel. Who will be saved in the celestial kingdom of God? They that have the oracles of truth and obey them. Where will the rest go? Into kingdoms that God has and will prepare for them and there are millions of such kingdoms.
There is as many degrees of glory as there are degrees of capacity and to them will be meted out according to their faith, and goodness and the truth that abides in them and according to the light God has imparted to them. Those nations have lived and died, millions and millions of them, and have had no knowledge of the Son of God. Will they be condemned and cast into hell? No, but they will be judged without law. They that have had the Old and New Testament, will they be cast into that place they say has no bottom to it? No, all they that have [lived] according to the best light they have will have all the glory they anticipate. Who will go into the presence of the Father and the Son? Those who have had the priesthood on the earth, those who have enjoyed the oracles of divine truth, possess the keys and power of this priesthood that God has revealed in this day, those that live so that can prepare themselves to dwell with the Father and the Son. Can anybody else? Let me pause and ask this question: can any other person come into the presence of the Father and the Son? It would take a year to tell all that is in the gospel and then we stop and say we only just commenced. Yes, millions live on the earth that will come up in the morning of the first resurrection. What are those people trying to do? They are trying to learn the position they occupy and the relationship in which they stand to God and to one another. We are trying to build up Zion, first in the hearts, then in our houses, and in our neighborhoods, and by and bye we expect to return to the place where God built the garden of Eden. Do you know where that is? It is in Jackson County, Missouri. Now don't any of you run crazy about it and be scared, and do not jump up so high in the air that you will fall down and hurt yourself. Be careful, be modest, mild, sincere with yourselves, and let the Lord have his own, and come to the conclusion that if he built it there it is none of my business. Can any of the divines of the day tell where it will stand? No. Where will it stand? On Jackson County, Missouri, North America. Here the people are trying to build up Zion in their hearts, in their houses and in their neighborhoods. Are we saints yet? We are trying to be and when we are instructed enough and have purified ourselves enough we will return to that place where the Lord commenced his work and where he will finish it. We will build up Zion and holy temples unto the Lord and we will enter therein and be baptized for our forefathers and our mothers, they that were good, that loved truth, that lived according to the light they had, they that would have received the gospel if they had the opportunity. We will attend to all the ordinances of the gospel for them, for the men and women that have lived in the flesh and died without the benefits arising from the gospel and the living priesthood. Thousands and millions of these will come up in the first resurrection by thousands and millions. This may appear strange to talk to the people, but it is true. We will go
and build up temples. We started a temple here. Shall we finish it? I don't know whether we shall or not before we go back to Jackson County, but it will be finished by and bye, and we will enter into this temple and receive the ordinances for the just. How will we find out who to administer for? By revelation. Jesus will visit his disciples and inform them that such a man lies so and so, go through with the ordinances for him and prepare him for the resurrection. And then here comes the apostle Peter, James, John, Joseph, Hyrum and somebody that has this power who will lay on hands on these men and give them power to resurrect this man and that man and they will go all over the world resurrecting the people. These are some of the first principles of the gospel. Do the Twelve Apostles understand them all? I do not and I am one of the Twelve. I have an eternity before me in which to learn. I have learned a great deal already. All that can be saved in the celestial kingdom will be saved there, and all that can be saved in the terrestrial kingdom will be saved there, and also in the telestial kingdom. And there are other kingdoms, multitudes of them to meet the capacity of the people that we are in the habit of seeing and conversing with every day. Will the Lord destroy this earth? No, he is going to baptize it with fire and with the Holy Ghost to prepare it to come into his presence again. Will he destroy the animal creation? No, they are made by him and they have abided their creation, and everything he has created has abided their creation except man, the lord of the soil of all the earth, to whom the Almighty committed the earth and the fullness thereof, to Adam and his posterity, to the kings of the earth, but they have forefited their fight and title, and they are the only ones that have transgressed. The brute creation has kept the law by which they were made; the vegetable kingdoms, the animal kingdom has kept the law by which they were made and the earth has kept the law by which it was made, and it has honored God and will be baptized and brought forth in the resurrection. We find out what we are and what we are here for, and how we are here to live forever. This is the object and design of the creator. Those intelligent eyes I now see sparkle with eternal life; they are made to exist forever. The human family are endowed with the most precious attributes God could bestow on any being in the world. They are endowed with attributes like unto himself to improve upon; to improve upon every fine feeling, upon every right and judgment, and upon every moment of time; to improve all to the glory of God, to prepare to dwell with him in his presence.
(from Brigham Young Addresses, 1860-1864, A Chronological Compilation of Known Addresses
of the Prophet Brigham Young, Vol. 4 [Salt Lake City: Elden J. Watson, 1980])