The Mysteries of God – The Beginnings

Course Manual

“

And he also taught them concerning the records which were engraven on the plates of brass, saying: My sons, I would that ye should remember that were it not for these plates, which contain these records and these commandments, we must have suffered in ignorance, even at this present time, not knowing the mysteries of God;

For it were not possible that our father Lehi could have remembered all these things, to have taught them to his children, except it were for the help of these plates;

…

I say unto you, my sons: Were it not for these things, which have been kept and preserved by the hand of God, that we might read and understand of his mysteries and have his commandments always before our eyes, that even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief;

”

– King Benjamin  [ see Mosiah 1:4-7 (RAV) or 1:3-5 (LDS) ]

Written for use in the School of the Prophets

The Church of Jesus Christ in Christian Fellowship

About this course

This course is intended as an introduction to the Plates of Brass as a foundational text for “Mormon Kabbalah”.  It approaches the book by comparing it with existing texts in order to discover how it supports, builds on, or even completely rethinks what we might consider “Mormon Theology.”   

This course will focus on the Book of Beginnings: The First Book of Moses as recorded on the Plates of Brass.   It will attempt to use First Moses as an introduction to  Mormon Kabbalah, and lay out a framework for future courses to build on.  It will also use the Genesis account for comparison as a way of creating depth through the fusion of multiple perspectives.

This is not a “religious” class, in the sense that participants need not be “believers.” But anyone attending should come with an openness to truth and should NOT seek to convince or convert one another to whatever views they cherish.  Nor should participants set out to tear down (or even disapprove of) each other’s “incorrect” ideas.  We are here to share ideas and learn from one another, not to establish or enforce a consensus of truth.

The discussions are intended to be approached by a small group of interested participants (half a dozen?) who have read the reading, compared the comparable sections, considered the suggested questions, and formulated their own questions and opinions about the content so that by gathering as a group and discussing the content, we can all benefit from the insight and opinion and curiosity of each other,  thus turning the key of unity to unlock the door of understanding.

As groups are formed that choose to study this material together, when possible, try to include a person who has studied this course previously, so that the best of the ideas from previous discussions are spread out to ever increasing numbers of people, and the understanding of the overall group will become brighter over time.

Course Materials

All reading for this course is available in the course’s reading packet via PDF download.  You might also want to use the original source material, including:

• The Torah of Moses from the Plates of Brass
• The Inspired Version of the Bible
  • Genesis .. some of which are also available in the Book of Moses found in the LDS Pearl of Great Price, and the JST footnotes in the Bible published by the LDS Church.
• The Book of Mormon
  • Books of Nephi, Alma, Jacob
• Doctrines of Saints
  • Revelations of David Ferriman
• Teachings and Commandments
  • St John
• The Tsohar
  • The Book of Abraham, Zenos, Melchizedek