Establishing Zion

 

A Glorious Day of Restoration

By Elder Kyle S. McKay

General Authority Seventy and Church Historian and Recorder

...the gathering is not simply a grouping of friends, relatives, or like-minded people. The purpose for gathering is to be gathered unto God, in His presence. Ancient Israel carried the traveling tabernacle, a symbol of God’s presence. The same is true for modern Israel. Joseph Smith declared that the “main object” for the gathering of modern Israel is “to build unto the Lord a house whereby He could reveal unto His people the ordinances of His house and the glories of His kingdom, and teach the people the way of salvation.” In short, the purpose for gathering was to establish Zion, a place where God can dwell among a people with whom He is comfortable dwelling in His temple.