one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first, the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms.
Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honor, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lined,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances;
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slippered pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;
His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank, and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

Image result for shakespeare the ages of man

Shakespeare had his ages of Man.  The Gospel also has its stages for Man.  Faith. Repentance.  Baptism.  The Gift of the Holy Ghost.  Endure to the End.

Because Baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost have an age limit on them, we half get in the habit of thinking of these as the Mormon ages of Man.

 

I was bored.

The reality is that they are a process that repeats over and over.  The heavenly ascent is a spiral.

When bored, I doodle.

Which suggests that there is a final stage of Faith, Repentance, Baptism, the Gift of the HG, and Enduring to the End.

Perfect Knowledge.  Total Rejection of Sin.  Salvation–Perfect Purity.  Exaltation–Perfection–Perfect Communion.  Eternal life–participating in God’s work–making one’s own end the immortality and eternal life of man.


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