Temples & Sacred Geometry Part 6: Numbers, Space, and the Presence of God
Let’s take this topic to its most basic level: the practice of paying attention to the ways shape, proportion, number, space, and physical design can communicate spiritual ideas.
Temples & Sacred Geometry Part 5: Shape and Form
We are not merely human beings divided into work, play, and families. What we do in each segment of our lives bleeds into the others to make us whole. When we find balance in Christ Jesus, we truly connect with the Presence of God.
Temples & Sacred Geometry Part 4: Building Zion
And they had all things common among them; therefore, they were not rich and poor, bond and free; but they were all made free and partakers of the heavenly gift. ” –4 Nephi 1:4 [1:3] For many people, the word temple brings to mind sacred architecture, a beautiful building set apart from the ordinary world. Throughout scripture, mountains, sanctuaries, tabernacles, and holy cities have served as places where the Heavens and the earth meet. Yet if the story of the Restoration teaches us anything, it is that God never intended His presence to remain confined within walls of stone. The temple eventually leaves the mountains. The true temple(s) walks into villages, entering homes where it/they sit(s) around dinner tables. Visiting hospitals, it/they embrace(s) the lonely, welcome(s) strangers, and feed(s) the hungry. True temple(s) comfort(s) those who mourn. The true temple(s) is/are not diminished when leaving sacred buildings. Rather, this fulfills its true…
Temples & Sacred Geometry Part 3: Becoming the Living Temple
The purpose of sacred architecture is not merely to build holy buildings, it is to build a holy people.
Temples & Sacred Geometry Part 2: The Restoration as Living Creation
Rather than viewing sacred architecture as static, in Mormon Kabbalah we see every temple as a living lesson. Each one expands our understanding of God’s relationship with humanity.
Temples & Sacred Geometry Part 1: The Pattern of Heaven
Throughout history, people have been drawn to sacred places. Across cultures and civilizations, mountains, temples, circles of stone, gardens, tabernacles, and sanctuaries have been built with remarkable care and intention.
Chereb of the Saints
Therefore, I shall give unto thee my sword, that I will stretch out my hand and smite Egypt with the many wonders which I will do in the midst thereof; and after that Pharaoh will let you go, and I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians.” –3 Moses 29-30
One thing I noticed while reading the scriptures growing up, which seemed to be bypassed or ignored at church, is that prophets and holy men in scripture carry around a surprising number of unusual objects. Moses had a staff, Lehi had the Liahona, Joseph Smith had a Seer Stone, etc. When I would ask about it, people would say that was how things were, if they answered at all. As a child, that pacified me, and I grew into a similar opinion, that they were just a subpart of the stories. The answer is actually much deeper, and far less strange, than it first appears.
The Individual and the Sacred Community (with a Video)
Mormon Kabbalah does not choose between the individual and the community. It teaches that both are sacred. The individual soul is precious, and the spiritual community is precious. When the two grow together, they create something far more powerful than either could create alone.
Meeting in Reverence Before the Lord
“And [Raphael] said unto them, in the temple of the Lord: Behold eight tasks shall I give unto thee, teach thy people to do these each in their proper order.” -Book of Remembrance 25:2
As we meet together as Saints, some have asked the proper way to organize services. The correct answer of course is, by the Spirit. That said, the Lord has given us instructions on this topic through Raphael, as he spoke to Adam and Eve. These instructions should be used in our home temples, in our Synagogues, Tabernacles, and Temples for personal and group worship. And these may be used by seekers, disciples, and ministers. They are given to the world to be received in the spirit.
Why We Worship Together as Saints
“And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped.” -Exodus 34:8
Speaking to a friend recently, I was told that while she saw much value in the Church of Jesus Christ in Christian Fellowship as a place for those seeking a spiritual home, rejected by the world and the worldly, she didn’t understand many of the things we allow for or do. She called our observance of the Holy Days as found in the Torah to be “moon worship,” and called the tallit, robes of the priesthood, etc, “silly costumes.” She didn’t understand why we needed to do much more beyond accepting one another. She saw worship, classes, services, and the rest, as something silly from a long ago and forgotten time.
Neum and Kabbalah
Behold, I am Neum, the Oracle, reader of the stars—I am she who pours out the libations for YHVH; I am she who still dances in prophecy when the daughters do sing, and the young men do play their harps and beat their drums.” -Neum 2:1-2 Neum is not a traditionally recognized Kabbalistic text in the sense of being a part of the core Kabbalistic literature like the Zohar, Sefer Yetzirah, or Bahir, but it certainly contains themes, imagery, and spiritual ideas that align closely with Kabbalistic principles. There are a few reasons why Neum can be seen as resonating with Kabbalistic thought, even if it isn’t classified as a Kabbalistic book. Let’s review a few of these reasons. The Mystical Relationship Between Israel and God One of the central motifs in Neum is the depiction of Israel as the bride of God, which is a key Kabbalistic concept. In Kabbalah, particularly in the writings of the Zohar, the relationship…
Multiple Mortal Probations
Note: This article originally ran February 8, 2020.
“Thus are the five stages of man: Intelligence, Spirit, Flesh, Soul, and Resurrected Being; the final being all stages in one, a Morning Star—forever complete.” –Melchizedek 4:9
The Church of Jesus Christ in Christian Fellowship has no official position on gilgul (גלגול, Hebrew for “rolling”), past lives, reincarnation, or multiple mortal probations (or MMP). There are a number of views on these within the Latter Day Saint movement, from their necessity to reach the highest degrees of Heaven, to outright disdain. Here we will introduce you to some of these concepts as they relate to both the Latter Day Saint movement and Kabbalah. Please note that this is just an introduction. More study on these topics is encouraged.