#1 (11/11/98) (1½ pp.)

THE VISION OF ALL -- the ultimate macro and micro parallel

Abstract: Contained within the pages of the Book of Mormon as we now have it is a coded vision of all, via a macro parallel to the history of the Lehite people from beginning to end, and a micro application of that history to an individuals spiritual progression through life.

Welcome to the first Greater Things e-mailing.

At present I am working on uploading (in bite-size pieces -- e.g. 20,000 bites) all of the book, The Vision of All: Our Past, Present, and Future as Foretold in Book of Mormon History.  Though around 4,000 photocopies of this book have been circulated in the past, it has never been officially published. It is now being made available to all the public for the first time, via the internet. As I convert the text to HTML, you will see the links show up in the Vision of All table of contents.

This work, first published (photocopy) in 1989, was the very first which I would classify under this web site heading, "Greater Things."  It is the inaugural piece.  The title comes from Isaiah 29, "...the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed."  The premise is that while the sealed portion (remaining 2/3) of the Book of Mormon is yet to come forth, there is contained within the pages of the Book of Mormon as we now have it a coded vision of all, via a macro parallel to the history of the Lehite people from beginning to end.   In other words, the history of the Book of Mormon, via analogy, is the most clear and comprehensive chronological prophecy available today: hence, the Vision of All.

That is Part I of the book.  Part II addresses the macro parallel between Lehite history and the spiritual progression of an individual through life.   In other words, Book of Mormon history shows the pattern of spiritual progression from birth, through rebellion, through rebirth, to perfection in Christ -- the Vision of All.

Hence "our" in the subtitle, "Our Past, Present and Future as Foretold in Book of Mormon History" includes us collectively as well as us individually, pointing toward the establishment of the kingdom of God (1) spiritually in our lives and (2) literally on earth -- those two being parallel: (1) the gospel and (2) the government of God; (1) the word and (2) the law of the Lord.

One of the most marvelous aspects of parallels is the requirement they have of both the left and the right-brain being engaged.  The left-brain is needed for the analytical part of the comparisons, and the right-brain is needed for the intuitive reading between the lines.  Parallels by design are not identical matches (which would make the left-brain completely happy, with no requirement of the intuitive).   Rather, their pairing highlights the variation as much as the similarity.  Yet they are not so flexible as to allow for just any application (which would make the right-brain happy, with no requirement for analytical scrutiny).  This blend of the left and the right-brain is wholly in keeping with the emphasis they place on the kingdom of God being both temporal and spiritual, earthly and heavenly -- and that these ideally are to come together, even as man and wife -- the bridegroom and the bride.

This dual nature is a theme which is carried throughout the various chiasms and parallels; repeated, emphasized, embellished, illustrated, over and over again; so that there might not be left any excuse for the children of men, but that they might have ample opportunity to see and hear plainly the words and ways of God.

Thanks again for your interest in Greater Things.  May you be richly fed by the words of life.

Sincerely, your friend and brother in Christ,

Sterling D. Allan
sterlingda@enol.com
http://www.greaterthings.com

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p.s. Tell your friends and you may qualify to win a trip to the New Jerusalem!

pp.s. Check out Rich Kuchinsky's update to the contemporary parallels from Helaman 1.
http://www.greaterthings.com/Books/Vision/Ch-5-6_Past/Hel1scenario.htm

ppp.s. I've finally got the music page with a good start on it.
http://www.greaterthings.com/musicind.htm#Music