O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads, and receive the pleasing Word of God, and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm forever.” —Jacob 2:50 RAV, 3:2 OPV
Mormon Kabbalah isn’t really new. Joseph Smith’s magical world views were based on folk magic, Hermetics, and Kabbalah. As the religion progressed, forked, and grew, the new denominations that were birthed from the death of the original church forged new paths with new teachings and understandings.
“Mormonism” is defined as nearly any church tied to the movement founded by Joseph Smith Jr. Yet the term “Mormon” is a nickname that some offshoots reject for a variety of reasons. The Latter Day Saint movement has over 100 denominations. There are about 70 or more denominations within it that identify as “Mormon.” The largest and
best-known Mormon denomination is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Though this sect now rejects the term, many of its branches embrace it. The Church of Jesus Christ and Community of Christ, among others, are also a part of the Latter Day Saint movement, but reject the title or nickname of “Mormon.”
The term “Mormon Kabbalah” is used for a few reasons. For one, it’s easier to say than “Latter Day Saint” Kabbalah,” even though that would be more accurate. Also, Joseph Smith Jr. identified himself as a Mormon, thus it only makes sense to honor him by using the name of the holy book he brought into the world, through the power of God. The Book of Mormon is a key scripture we use to teach Mormon Kabbalah, so again it makes sense to use this term. “Mormon Kabbalah” is really short for “the Book of Mormon plus Kabbalah.”
Knowing what “Mormon” is and why we use it, let’s turn our attention to the second term: “Kabbalah.” What is Kabbalah? It is from the Rabbinical
Hebrew “qabbalah,” meaning “tradition,” and from “qibbal” which is to “receive” or “accept” (Google dictionary). Kabbalah is traditionally viewed or defined as a Jewish mysticism that teaches the hidden secrets of the Torah. However, it is more than a “magical world view,” and more than a way of life, yet still a little of both, intertwined.
There are two main misunderstandings I encounter over and over when talking about Mormon Kabbalah. The first is that Kabbalah is a book. The second is that there is only one type of Kabbalah. This will not be an exhaustive look at Kabbalah by any means. However, it is the hope of the author to help readers and students better understand Mormon Kabbalah
in light of other types of Kabbalah.
Kabbalah in Judaism
Kabbalah, in Hebrew ,הָל ָּבַק comes from the root ל ָּבק meaning “reception.” While there are many meanings to the term Kabbalah, including “reception,” “tradition,” or “correspondence,” the idea of receiving is one common to the understanding shared between all the various schools. Historically speaking, Jewish Kabbalists developed their own sacred texts and use classical Jewish scriptures to explain and use mystical teachings.
Jewish Kabbalah came out of what is known as Merkabah mysticism and Hekhalot literature. This literature might have felt very at home to the early Brighamites (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), and to many fundamentalists in that branch of our movement today. The apostle Brigham Young taught that people needed the key words, the signs and tokens to get pass angel sentinels to gain access to God (see
JD 2:31).
Though practitioners generally believe that Kabbalah is from an oral Torah given by Moses or even from Adam, coming out of the garden of Eden itself, Jewish Kabbalah actually came to be around the 12th century. However, this doesn’t mean that Jewish Kabbalah is not as old as it claims to be.
Though there are many schools, in modern Judaism Lurianic Kabbalah is most widely taught and practiced. The main text of Lurianic Kabbalah is the Zohar, a collection of writings that include a commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah, more especially Genesis. The Zohar focuses on mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology. It is attributed to Shimon bar Yochai, also known as the Rashbi. However, it is more likely written by Moses de León in Spain. But, like the Book of Mormon, that doesn’t mean that Moses de León wrote it. It may have been given by God to the Jews as a form of restoration of their religion. One of the main points of the Zohar is strict observance to the Torah and it is written as a type of Midrash, making the style more familiar to the Jewish people.
Kabbalah in Judaism has gone in and out of style. It is currently seeing a
resurgence.
Christian Cabala & Hermetic Qabalah
During the Renaissance, Christian scholars became very interested in Jewish mysticism, especially Kabbalah. These scholars saw the Jewish people as having secrets that they believed they, the Jews couldn’t understand because of their rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. They then took Jewish ideas and reinterpreted them to fit with Christian theology. For example, the upper three Sephirot on the tree of life became the Trinity, with the other seven the earthly world. And this does fit, as the lower seven are the days of Creation. One of the beautiful things about the Sefirot is that they can be interpreted in so many ways.
During this same time period, Hermetic Qabalah arose alongside Christian Cabala, creating what we see today, a variety of Esoteric Christian, non-Christian, or even anti-Christian schools. Hermetic Qabalah draws on not only Kabbalah, but astrology, Alchemy, Pagan religions, neoplatonism, Gnosticism, hermeticism, and more. Hermetic Qabalah differs from the Jewish form in being a more admittedly syncretic system, however it shares many concepts with Jewish Kabbalah. It is the underlying philosophy and framework for a number of magical societies, like the Golden Dawn, and the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross. It would be impossible to go into detail on Hermetic Qabalah without getting into a number of esoteric and occult ideas, practices, and philosophies. And remembering that occult means secret, the task is even more difficult.
Mormon Kabbalah
Kabbalah is a mysticism, a theology, and a thaumaturgy; Kabbalah is the tradition of Israel, it is my doctrine, and thus it is a mysterious art, for my doctrine is too simple for mankind to comprehend.” —Doctrines of the Saints 125:7-8
Mormon Kabbalah is a new concept that arose in March of 2018 when the Lord told me to unite God’s people in Kabbalah. This may seem a contradiction to God’s command to Latter Day Saints to “preach unto the world, saying: You must repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ” (Doctrines of the Saints 12a:59 or DaC 16:6c2-d1 RLDS/CoC, 18:41 CJCLdS) . However, with the understanding of repentance as “teshuvah,” returning to God, and the Kabalistic knowledge that Israel means “Yashar-El, the path Straight to God,” then the idea that we would be united in receiving makes perfect sense (DoS:2g:20-26) . Mormon Kabbalah is about building a personal relationship with God, the very nature of true repentance.
God has said that Kabbalah is, firstly, a mysticism. Mysticism is the understanding that union with God may be attained through contemplation and surrendering ourselves to God. Or as Jesus put it, “not my will, but thine, be done” (John 22:42) . Kabbalah and mysticism, according to the same revelation, is a theology, and a thaumaturgy. Theology is the study of who God is, the nature of God, and religious beliefs in general. We are to build our own theologies, our own personal understanding of God. Thaumaturgy is miracle working, the gifts of the Spirit.
That anyone can study Kabbalah as it is “too simple for mankind to comprehend” reminds me of the words of Nephi: “I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath redeemed my soul from hell” (2 Nephi 15:7 RAV, 33:6 OPV). There are key differences between
the Kabbalah of Judaism, the Kabbalah of Christianity, and Mormon Kabbalah. These differences will be reviewed and explained over time as we delve into Mormon Kabbalah.
For now, the most important differences to point out are as follows:
- The focus on Jesus Christ as our saviour and emissary to Elohim
- The use of the New Testament, Book of Mormon, Brass Plates, and other works to understand the Torah
- Focus on personal growth, through Christ’s Grace, to separate us from Ego, enabling our true altruistic nature
The most important thing to know about Kabbalah is its fundamental doctrine: Love God, and love your neighbor as yourself. This is the key that binds Mormonism and Kabbalah.
Mormon Kabbalah is really all about perception. It is putting an end to looking at the scriptures to support the ideas of men, to use the Word of God as weapons against our fellows, or to build churches of men. Rather, it is to see the world as a mirror, to fix our broken selves, and understand that this is enough. It is a return to the marriage covenant between Israel and God, with a broken heart and a contrite spirt. As we build our own personal relationship with God, our evangelism becomes our actions, rather than our words. We don’t need to seek out those looking for God, the Lord will send them to us. And by returning to God personally, we are doing our part to heal the creation. Mormon Kabbalah is an invitation to receive God, personally, into your life.
Assignment 1: What is Kabbalah?
In more than 200 words, state what Kabbalah, the priesthood, the ministry, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ mean to you.