28 And after God had appointed that these things should come unto man, behold, then he saw that it was expedient that man should know concerning the things whereof he had appointed unto them;
29 Therefore he sent angels to converse with them, who caused men to behold of his glory.
30 And they began from that time forth to call on his name; therefore God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of redemption, which had been prepared from the foundation of the world; and this he made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works.
The context is Alma-2 answering a question about Adam and Eve leaving the garden of Eden (see verses 20-21.) It occurs to me that a generic pattern is outlined in these verses, a pattern which reminds me of the archetypal story of Adam and Eve (found in Moses 5). Here is a bulleted list of details from the verses above:
- [God] saw that it was expedient that man should know concerning the things whereof he had appointed unto them;
- Therefore he sent angels to converse with them,
- who caused men to behold of his glory.
- They began from that time forth to call on his name;
- therefore God conversed with men,
- and made known unto them the plan of redemption, which had been prepared from the foundation of the world
- this he made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works.
Keeping in mind that glory is connected with the idea of being clothed in white (see here, here and here), I see definite temple connections here: special foreordained knowledge is delivered to men by angels according to their faith/repentance/holy works, which causes them to behold of God's glory (robes?) and call upon His name.
This article discusses biblical use of the term "calling upon the name of God" and how it is associated with ritualistic settings (building altars, for example). Another indication that these verses in the Book of Mormon are contextually appropriate and are speaking to temple themes.
