above: a 17th century Byzantine Sakkos, or Bishop’s robe, embroidered with the imagery of incarnation and cosmic communion.

Chapter 7 of The Book of Moses tells the story of how God prepared Enoch to bring a city fully into communion with God. Enoch needed first to preach repentance and to baptize, then to guide the people up the holy mountain into the presence of the Church of the Firstborn, of Jesus Christ, and of God the Father. To do so, he needed to be enrobed and prepared to administer in the ordinances of the lesser and greater priesthood (preparatory repentance and consummatory ascent being their respective functions according to D&C 107:18-20). This chapter portrays Enoch as the archetypal initiate, who becomes the archetypal initiator.

Read the rest of this entry »