The Priesthood pages explain the authority claims beneath the Church of the Firstborn: the Aaronic, Melchizedek, and Patriarchal orders; the Holy Order restored through Joseph Smith; the Kingdom framework of Nauvoo; the Endowment and crowning temple blessings; and the Patriarchal line carried into the modern work.
Core Pages
Aaronic Priesthood
The preparatory Priesthood of repentance, baptism, outward ordinances, stewardship, and consecrated temporal order.
Melchizedek Priesthood
The higher Priesthood, including the Apostolic/High Priesthood and its relation to the later sealing keys of Elijah.
Patriarchal Priesthood
The order of eternal family government: fathers and mothers, kings and queens, priests and priestesses.
The Holy Order
Joseph Smith’s Nauvoo order and the scriptural phrase, the Holy Order of God.
The Priesthood Line
The claimed line from Joseph Smith through Benjamin F. Johnson, Alma Dayer LeBaron, Ross Wesley LeBaron, and Fred C. Collier.
Law of Succession
The broader succession question: birthright, Patriarchal Priesthood, apostolic presidency, and the need to distinguish those claims carefully.
Council of Fifty
The Kingdom of God council organized in Nauvoo and its relationship to Joseph Smith’s final Kingdom work.
Temple & Ordinances
A reverent overview of the temple and its relationship to the Endowment, the Second Anointing, Priesthood, and the Father’s Family Order.
Church of the Firstborn
The higher Family Order of the Father, distinct from the preparatory Church of Jesus Christ.
Endowment
The Nauvoo temple ordinance that teaches, covenants, and prepares the Saints for the Father’s Family Order.
Second Anointing
The crowning temple blessing connected with the fulness of the Priesthood, sealing keys, and exaltation.
Related Doctrine Pages
Key Publications
- The Church of the Firstborn and the Holy Order of God
- The Nauvoo Doctrine on Priesthood, Part 1: The Concept
- Analyzing the Different Orders of the Patriarchal Priesthood
- The Apostleship: Apostolic Succession and Authority of the Twelve
- Priesthood and the Law of Succession
- Office of the One Anointed & Appointed