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In the
Mormon theology Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects o ...
and
cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in Latin by German philosopher ...
there are three degrees of glory (alternatively, kingdoms of glory) which are the ultimate, eternal dwelling place for nearly all who lived on earth after they are resurrected from the spirit world. Members of the largest denomination in the
Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...
,
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
(LDS Church) believe that the apostle
Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
briefly described these degrees of glory in
1 Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-au ...
15:40-42, and in
2 Corinthians The Second Epistle to the Corinthians is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author named Timothy, and is addressed to the church in Corinth and Christians in the ...
12:2.
Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, h ...
elaborated on Paul's descriptions based primarily upon a vision he received with
Sidney Rigdon Sidney Rigdon (February 19, 1793 – July 14, 1876) was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement. Biography Early life Rigdon was born in St. Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, on February 19, 1793. He w ...
in 1832 and recorded in
Doctrine and Covenants The Doctrine and Covenants (sometimes abbreviated and cited as D&C or D. and C.) is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. Originally published in 1835 as Doctrine and Covenants of the Chu ...
(D&C) . According to this vision, all people will be resurrected and, at the
Final Judgment The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...
, will be assigned to one of three degrees of glory, called the
celestial Celestial may refer to: Science * Objects or events seen in the sky and the following astronomical terms: ** Astronomical object, a naturally occurring physical entity, association, or structure that exists in the observable universe ** Celes ...
,
terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...
, and telestial kingdoms. A small number of individuals who commit the unpardonable sin will not receive a kingdom of glory, but will be banished to
outer darkness In Christianity, the "exterior darkness" or outer darkness is a place referred to three times in the Gospel of Matthew (8:12, 22:13, and 25:30) into which a person may be "cast out", and where there is " weeping and gnashing of teeth". Generally, ...
with Satan where they will be " sons of Perdition".


History

In April 1830, the
Church of Christ Church of Christ may refer to: Church groups * When used in the plural, a New Testament designation for local groups of people following the teachings of Jesus Christ: "...all the churches of Christ greet you", Romans 16:16. * The entire body of Ch ...
was organized in upstate New York. By October of that year, the church had grown to between seventy and eighty disciples. That fall missionaries were sent west to convert the Native Americans in Missouri. They passed through
Kirtland, Ohio Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,937 at the 2020 census. Kirtland is known for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1831 to 1837 and is the site of the movement's first ...
, where they encountered widespread success among the congregations of
Sidney Rigdon Sidney Rigdon (February 19, 1793 – July 14, 1876) was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement. Biography Early life Rigdon was born in St. Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, on February 19, 1793. He w ...
, adding hundreds of additional converts.Bushman, Richard Lyman, and Jed Woodworth. "Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling" Vintage Books, 2007. e-book location3261 of 17510 Many of these members, including Rigdon, had formerly been members of the
Disciples of Christ The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...
led by Alexander Campbell. The doctrines of the new Church of Christ had not been completely developed or understood yet in Kirtland, especially with Joseph Smith in New York and missionaries having moved on to Missouri. As such, many early Kirtland converts retained Disciple of Christ doctrines and practices.Staker, Mark L. Hearken, O Ye People: the Historical Setting for Joseph Smith's Ohio Revelations. Greg Kofford Books, 2009. pages 320-338 Regarding the
afterlife The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving es ...
, Disciple of Christ leader Alexander Campbell published in 1828 a vision he had received of "three kingdoms" where he wrote, "While musing upon the three kingdoms, I fancied myself in the kingdom of glory after the final judgment." He went on to explain that heaven was divided into "the Kingdom of Law, the Kingdom of Favor, and the Kingdom of Glory" where the deceased would enter based on levels of faith, works, and Abrahamic lineage. Disciples of Christ also believed that most people would be numbered among the sinners sent to a "lake of fire and brimstone" outside of heaven. In 1831 Smith and the Latter Day Saints in upstate New York migrated to what had become the center of Church membership in Kirtland. Smith and Rigdon studied and prayed intensively together, and after comparing the
Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude ...
, the Bible and Smith's earlier revelations, they concluded that "God rewarded everyone according to the deeds done in the body" and "the term 'Heaven,' as intended for the Saints' eternal home must include more kingdoms than one."


The Vision

On February 16, 1832, while working on translation of the New Testament passage in the upstairs bedroom of the John Johnson home, Smith and Rigdon received what was known to early Latter Day Saints as "the Vision." It detailed a heaven divided into three degrees of glory, the Celestial, Terrestrial, and Telestial Kingdoms, where resurrected beings would go after the final judgement. Assignment to a particular kingdom in the resurrection is contingent upon the desires and actions exhibited during mortal and post-mortal life. Critically different from Disciple of Christ beliefs was that in Latter Day Saint theology, virtually all would be saved, to include sinners, a distinction that caused some to apostatize from the young church. The LDS Church teaches that these different kingdoms are what Jesus was referring to when he said " my Father's house are many mansions" (). Additionally, that
1 Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-au ...
speaks of these three degrees of glory, comparing them with the glory of the sun, moon, and stars.Smith, Joseph Fielding, and Bruce R. McConkie. "Doctrines of Salvation: Sermons and Writings of Joseph Fielding Smith: Volumes 1-3" Deseret Book, 2012. e-book location 6488 of 19330


Response by early Latter Day Saints

Christian universalism Christian universalism is a school of Christian theology focused around the doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a right relationship with God. "Christian universalis ...
, or the idea that God would save all of humanity, was a prominent and polarizing religious belief in the 1830s. Many converts to the early church disagreed with Universalism and felt the Book of Mormon justified their views. When news of "the Vision" reached the branches of the church, it was not well received by all and seen by many as a major shift in theology towards Universalism.Brooke, J. L. (1996). The refiner's fire: The making of Mormon cosmology, 1644-1844. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. e-book location 1149, 1320, 2858 of 6221 An antagonistic newspaper wrote that with "the Vision" Joseph Smith had tried to "''disgrace'' Universalism by professing ... the salvation of all men." The branch in
Geneseo, New York Geneseo is a town in Livingston County in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. It is at the south end of the five-county Rochester Metropolitan Area. The population of the town was 10,483 at the 2010 census. The English nam ...
was particularly apprehensive. Ezra Landon, a leader of the Geneseo branch who had convinced a number of others against the Vision, told visiting missionaries that "the vision was of the Devil & he believed it no more than he believed the devil was crucified ... & that he Br Landing would not have the vision taught in the church for $1000." Joseph Smith sent a letter to the branch making clear that disbelief in the Vision was an excommunicable offense, and after refusing to change his position Landon was excommunicated.
Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his death in 1877. During his time as chu ...
said,
It was a great trial to many, and some apostatized because God was not going to send to everlasting punishment heathens and infants, but had a place of salvation, in due time, for all, and would bless the honest and virtuous and truthful, whether they ever belonged to any church or not. It was a new doctrine to this generation, and many stumbled at it. ... My traditions were such, that when the Vision came first to me, it was directly contrary and opposed to my former education. I said, Wait a little. I did not reject it; but I could not understand it.
Joseph Young __NOTOC__Joseph Young (April 7, 1797 – July 16, 1881) was an early convert to the Latter Day Saint movement and was a missionary and longtime general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was an elder br ...
, Brigham's brother, said, "I could not believe it at first. Why the Lord was going to save every body." "The Vision" was not published until five months after it was received, and after the first two years was rarely mentioned in the 1830s or early 1840s. After the tepid reception of "the Vision", Joseph Smith gave instruction to missionaries to "remain silent" about it, until prospective converts had first believed the basic principles.


Celestial kingdom

The celestial kingdom is the highest of the three degrees of glory. It is thought by the LDS Church to be the " third heaven" referred to by the
apostle Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
in the
King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of K ...
of
2 Corinthians The Second Epistle to the Corinthians is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author named Timothy, and is addressed to the church in Corinth and Christians in the ...
and it is said to correspond to the "celestial bodies" and "glory of the sun" mentioned in
1 Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-au ...
.


Inhabitants

The celestial kingdom will be the residence of those who have been righteous, accepted the teachings of Jesus Christ, and received and lived up to all of the required ordinances and covenants. Individuals may accept and receive these ordinances and covenants during their mortal lives. For those who did not have the opportunity while living, they will have the opportunity in the post-mortal spirit world, where they can accept ordinances performed on their behalf by LDS Church members in temples. All children who die before the age of eight automatically inherit the celestial kingdom without the reception of ordinances. The celestial kingdom is the permanent residence of God the Father and Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith taught that "a white stone is given to each of those who come into the celestial kingdom, whereon is a new name written, which no man knoweth save he that receiveth it." This white stone will become a
Urim and Thummim In the Hebrew Bible, the Urim ( he, ''ʾŪrīm'', "lights") and the Thummim ( he, ''Tummīm'', meaning uncertain, possibly "perfections") are elements of the ''hoshen'', the breastplate worn by the High Priest attached to the ephod. They are ...
(or seer stone) to the recipient.


Relation with celestial marriage

Smith taught that only those individuals who are sealed in
celestial marriage Celestial marriage (also called the New and Everlasting Covenant of Marriage, Eternal Marriage, Temple Marriage) is a doctrine that marriage can last forever in heaven. This is a unique teaching of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ...
to a spouse will be permitted to enter into the highest degree of celestial glory. These individuals will eventually become " exalted". It is believed that this cannot be comprehended in the world; rather, it is said that the learning and understanding of salvation and exaltation will occur even beyond the grave. Like other ordinances, the sealing to a spouse may occur during mortal life or may be accepted by the parties in the afterlife and performed by proxy in a temple.


Location

Smith also taught that the earth will also receive a celestial glory. Smith taught the earth, like the planet where God resides, will be "made like unto
crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...
and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon".


Terrestrial kingdom

The terrestrial kingdom is the middle of the three degrees of glory. It is believed by LDS Church members to correspond to the "bodies terrestrial" and "glory of the moon" mentioned by the apostle Paul in the King James Version translation of The word "terrestrial" derives from a
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
word meaning "earthly".


Inhabitants

According to Doctrine and Covenants Section 76, those who will inhabit the terrestrial kingdom include those who lived respectably but "were blinded by the craftiness of men" and thus rejected the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ when it was presented to them. It also includes persons who rejected the "testimony of Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it" in the spirit world and those who "are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus" after having received it. Ultimately, the kingdom of glory (either the celestial or the terrestrial) received by those who accept the testimony of Jesus will be based on God's knowledge of whether they "would have received it with all their hearts" as manifested by their works and the "desire of their hearts". Those who inherit the terrestrial kingdom "receive of the presence of the Son, but not the fulness of the Father." Smith taught that translated beings abide in the terrestrial kingdom until they are judged at the Final Judgment, after which they will enter into the celestial kingdom.


Telestial kingdom

The telestial kingdom is the lowest of the three degrees of glory. It is believed by LDS Church members to correspond to the "glory of the stars" mentioned by the apostle Paul in the King James Version translation of . “Telestial" is a term with no prior usage, and it was not made clear if the word was meant to be part of the vision or an invention by Smith or Rigdon. Historian Mark Staker points out that Rigdon had elementary experience with Latin and Greek, and that the word reflects the idea of being far off or reaching the end.


Inhabitants

According to the book of Doctrine and Covenants, those who will inhabit the telestial kingdom include those "who received not the gospel of Christ, nor the testimony of Jesus." It will also include "liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie", as well as "murderers, and idolaters". Because of their refusal to accept Jesus as their Savior, these individuals will remain in spirit prison for 1,000 years during the
millennial Millennials, also known as Generation Y or Gen Y, are the Western world, Western demography, demographic Cohort (statistics), cohort following Generation X and preceding Generation Z. Researchers and popular media use the early 1980s as start ...
reign of Christ. After the 1000 years, the individuals will be resurrected and receive an immortal physical body and be assigned to the telestial kingdom.Ludlow, Daniel H. ed.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism
Macmillan Publishing Company, 1992 pages 259-260, 367-368, 431, 1443, 1470
Smith taught that individuals in the telestial kingdom will be servants of God, but "where God and Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end"; however, they will receive the ministration of the
Holy Ghost For the majority of Christian denominations, the Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost, is believed to be the third person of the Trinity, a Triune God manifested as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, each entity itself being God.Gru ...
and beings from the terrestrial kingdom. Despite these limitations, in LDS Church theology being resident in the telestial kingdom is not an unpleasant experience: "the glory of the telestial ... surpasses all understanding". Smith also taught that just as there are different degrees of glory within the celestial kingdom (), there are different degrees of glory within the telestial kingdom. He stated that "as one star differs from another star in glory, even so differs one from another in the telestial world." In the telestial kingdom, each person's glory will vary depending on their works while on the earth. Smith and Rigdon stated, "we saw the glory and the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore".
Bruce R. McConkie Bruce Redd McConkie (July 29, 1915 – April 19, 1985) was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1972 until his death. McConkie was a member of the First Council o ...
suggested that by implication this means that "most of the adult people who have lived from the day of Adam to the present time will go to the telestial kingdom."


Son of perdition


Role in temple ordinances

During the original
endowment Endowment most often refers to: *A term for human penis size It may also refer to: Finance * Financial endowment, pertaining to funds or property donated to institutions or individuals (e.g., college endowment) *Endowment mortgage, a mortgage to ...
temple ordinance, church members moved between
ordinance room In temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), an ordinance room is a room where the ceremony known as the ''Endowment'' is administered, as well as other ordinances such as Sealings. Some temples perform a progre ...
s that represented the three different kingdoms of glory. In most newer LDS temples, the majority of the moves between rooms have been replaced with changes in lighting to represent changes from one degree of glory to the next. In some of the church's older temples (e.g., the
Salt Lake A salt lake or saline lake is a landlocked body of water that has a concentration of salts (typically sodium chloride) and other dissolved minerals significantly higher than most lakes (often defined as at least three grams of salt per litre) ...
, Idaho Falls Idaho, Manti Utah, and Cardston Alberta temples), the classic version of the endowment ceremony is still done by moving from room to room. Every LDS temple includes a celestial room—representing the celestial kingdom—that is separate from the other ordinance rooms.


Hypothesized influence of Emanuel Swedenborg

Some, including
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into se ...
historian
D. Michael Quinn Dennis Michael Quinn (March 26, 1944 – April 21, 2021) was an American historian who focused on the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was a professor at Brigham Young University (BYU) from 1976 until ...
, have argued that various parts of the plan of salvation were influenced in part by
Emanuel Swedenborg Emanuel Swedenborg (, ; born Emanuel Swedberg; 29 March 1772) was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian theologian, scientist, philosopher and mystic. He became best known for his book on the afterlife, ''Heaven and Hell'' (1758). Swedenborg had a ...
's book '' Heaven and Hell''. In ''Heaven and Hell'', Swedenborg wrote that " ere are three heavens" that are "entirely distinct from each other."Emanuel Swedenborg, " Heaven and its Wonders and Hell From Things Heard and Seen". (2001 translation) and (1958 translation). Swedenborg called the highest heaven "the Celestial Kingdom." He also stated that the inhabitants of the three heavens corresponded to the "sun, moon and stars." Swedenborgian writings were spread widely in New England in the early 1800s by Swedenborgian missionaries. In 1839 Smith met with a recent Latter Day Saint convert from Swedenborgianism, Edward Hunter, and told him, "Emanuel Swedenborg had a view of the world to come, but for daily food he perished."Quinn, D. M. (1998). Early Mormonism and the magic world view. Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books. e-Book location 15236 of 23423 Others, including Smith's biographer
Richard Bushman Richard Lyman Bushman (June 20, 1931) is an American historian and Gouverneur Morris Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia University, having previously taught at Brigham Young University, Harvard University, Boston University, and the Univ ...
have argued it is more likely that Smith and Swedenborg developed their ideas independently based on
1 Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-au ...
chapter 15.
Richard Lyman Bushman Richard Lyman Bushman (June 20, 1931) is an American historian and Gouverneur Morris Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia University, having previously taught at Brigham Young University, Harvard University, Boston University, and the Uni ...
, '' Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling'' (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005), p. 198–99.
Hamblin, William J.br>"That Old Black Magic."
FARMS Review ''Mormon Studies Review'' is an annual academic journal covering Mormon studies published by the University of Illinois Press. Previously, until and including its 2018 issue, the journal was published by Brigham Young University's Neal A. Maxwell ...
12.2 (2000): 225-394. The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. 1 December 2009.


See also

* Christian views on hell § Latter Day Saints *
Empyrean In ancient cosmologies, the Empyrean Heaven, or simply the Empyrean, was the place in the highest heaven, which was supposed to be occupied by the element of fire (or aether in Aristotle's natural philosophy). The word derives from the Mediev ...
*
Holy of Holies (LDS Church) The Holy of Holies or Holiest of Holies is a room in the Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), wherein the church's president — acting as the Presiding High Priest of the church — enters to act as ...
* Seven Heavens


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Degrees Of Glory 1832 in Christianity Conceptions of heaven Doctrine and Covenants Heaven in Christianity Latter Day Saint concepts of the afterlife Latter Day Saint doctrines regarding deity Latter Day Saint terms