The doctrine of Christ and the temple

I have spoken with people before who argue that the Book of Mormon does not contain the fullness of the gospel as claimed in e.g. the D&C, because it doesn't contain temple ordinances. I have also heard people claim that temple ordinances are not necessary because they are not included in the Book of Mormon. Even in Joseph Smith's day, several people made that claim and reorganized the church based on that notion.

I think this KnowWhy at the Book of Mormon Central is totally fascinating. It demonstrates how Nephi relates the doctrine of Christ to the temple. If you have not read it, at least this part gets the point across

Hopkin argued that Nephi’s presentation of the doctrine of Christ relied “upon imagery of the high priest’s divine ascent” performed on the Day of Atonement, when the priest went “from the east end of the Temple (at the altar of sacrifice) to its west end (in the holy of holies).” In the doctrine of Christ, Hopkin compares repentance and baptism to symbolically passing by the altar of sacrifice (repentance) and the molten sea (baptism) while entering in through the “gate” or temple door into the “holy place.”

Once they’ve entered through the gate/temple door, “the worshiper can receive the baptism of fire and see by the light of the Holy Ghost, symbolized by the blazing menorah or lampstand.” From there, they must “press forward” by “feasting upon the word of Christ” (2 Nephi 31:2; 32:3)—invoking the symbolism of the table of showbread.

At this point, Nephi “cannot say more” (2 Nephi 32:7). “The worshipper is left at the veil, seeking to speak the tongue of angels by a reliance on the word of God and the gift of the Holy Ghost.” To move further, Nephi urges that we must pray (2 Nephi 32:8–9)—the symbolic function of the altar of incense (see Psalm 141:2; Revelation 8:3–4)—but he himself cannot divulge anymore. Standing at the veil, the worshipper must ask and knock for themselves, to “speak with the tongue of angels” (2 Nephi 32:2) in order to pass through the angelic cherubim who guard the way into the holy of holies—where the Lord will “manifest himself unto you in the flesh” (2 Nephi 32:6).

I previously posted about the similarities between 2 Nephi 31 and 3 Nephi 11, that also defines the doctrine of Christ. Interestingly, this chapter is Jesus' own word when he visits the Nephites. Where is this sermon taking place? By the temple.

And now it came to pass that there were a great multitude gathered together, of the people of Nephi, round about the temple which was in the land Bountiful (3 Nephi 11:1)

Another interesting parallel is found in 3 Nephi 27. Here, Jesus explains his gospel. He does so in terms very similar to 2 Nephi 31 and 3 Nephi 11. Based on that, it is very hard to draw a line between the doctrine of Christ and the gospel of Christ. I think it really is the same. What happens next in 3 Nephi 27 and 28, is that the 12 disciples get a wish fulfilled. I noticed some similarities to 2 Nephi 32. Keep in mind that 2 Nephi 32 contains Nephi's comments after he has explained the doctrine of Christ, just as the latter part of 3 Nephi 27 and 3 Nephi 28 contain the events after Jesus has explained his gospel. Read the last paragraph quoted from the BoM Central article again and compare with this:

The three disciples were caught up into heaven and saw and heard unspeakable things and it was forbidden that they should utter (3 Nephi 27:14). This is after Christ has promised that whatsoever they ask, they shall receive and admonished them to "knock" (3 Nephi 27:28-29). After this experience they became "as the angels of God" (3 Nephi 28:30). I don't know if this is intentional. It seems an event quite unrelated to Jesus defining his doctrine, yet the parallels to 2 Nephi 31-32 are striking. If we view this experience of being caught up into heaven as some sort of temple-like experience, we see that all three chapters in the Book of Mormon where the doctrine/gospel of Jesus Christ is defined are closely linked to each other and all closely linked to the temple.

Ultimately, the doctrine of Christ is "the way" (2 Nephi 31:21). In the temple, both ancient and modern, we symbolically walk this way back to the presence of our Heavenly Father. This point is also illustrated in the Exodus (see this post), their way being through the desert to the promised land and ripe with doctrine of Christ and temple-symbolism. The gospel/doctrine of Christ and the temple are inseparably connected. The Book of Mormon contains lots of temple references, even though the ordinances are not explained in detail. Rather, the Book of Mormon authors at this point frequently state that they are not allowed to write more, but invite the reader to "knock", exercise faith and not harden their hearts, so that they can be given "the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full." (Alma 12:10).

So in order to answer the criticism I referred to above, I would say: The Book of Mormon contains lots of temple references. In addition, what the temple symbolizes; the doctrine of Christ and "the way" back to the father, is clearly laid out in the Book of Mormon, more so than any other scripture in my opinion. The ordinances making manifest the "power of godliness" (D&C 84:20) are not explained in detail, but an important doctrinal point in the Book of Mormon is that the mysteries of God are often revealed individually rather than collectively and are available to anyone who seeks and exercises faith. This point is also clearly conveyed in the Book of Mormon.