[Intro - Atmospheric, building cosmic soundscape] [Piano and strings gradually layer in][Soft drums begin to pulse] [Verse 1 - Building, confident, storytelling] April seventh, eighteen forty-four A funeral sermon, but something more King Follett's dead, the mourners weep But Joseph has a secret to keep He stands before the temple, tall "I'll tell you now the truth of all" "I'm going to tell you," hear him say "How God came to be God this day" [Pre-Chorus - Rising] Eight thousand souls beneath the sky "The great secret—I will not hide" "If I fail to do it, understand, I'll renounce my prophetic stand" [Chorus - Massive, anthemic] God himself was once as we are now An exalted man upon his mortal brow You have got to learn to be gods, don't you see? The same as all gods have done—eternally The head of the gods called a council to meet Concocted the plan, made creation complete This is the secret, the truth profound— As man is now, God once was found [Verse 2 - Declarative, building intensity] "God the Father dwelt on earth like you, The same as Jesus Christ, this much is true He laid down his body, his life, his breath Then took it up again—conquered death" "God never had the power to create your soul— Intelligence eternal is the whole" "From age to age, self-existent, free— Co-equal with God in eternity" [Verse 3 - Joseph's grandiosity] [Slight key change, building to peak] "I have the Bible in four tongues," he proclaimed "Hebrew, Latin, German, Greek—I'm not ashamed" "I am learned, know more than all the world combined" "The Holy Ghost is in me—he's not blind" "I shall comment on the very first word Of Genesis itself—let truth be heard And if I fail, let my calling cease— But I won't fail—I bring you peace" [Pre-Chorus - Powerful] "From one small degree to the next you'll climb From a small capacity to glory sublime From grace to grace, exaltation to exaltation rise Until you sit enthroned in the skies" [Chorus Variation - Peak energy, triumphant] God himself was once as we are now (He spoke with power, solemn vow) You have got to learn to be gods, all agree (The same as all gods have done—can't you see?) The head of the gods—yes, gods, plural, more— Called a council divine from heaven's floor This is the secret that sets us free— As God is now, man may be [Extended Bridge - Tonal shift, stripped down arrangement] [Music drops to piano and soft strings] [Spoken-word quality, uncertain] Eighty-one days later—Carthage Jail The prophet's voice would tell no more tale But the teaching spread through Zion's land Lorenzo Snow confirmed it: understand— "As man now is, God once was, As God now is, man may be"—this was the cause [Music builds slightly - adding bass, drums] A century passes, then comes the test A reporter asks the prophet blessed "Tell me about the teaching, please explain— That God was once a man on another plane?" [Music nearly stops - single piano] President Hinckley, nineteen ninety-seven: "I don't know that we teach it—path to heaven" "I don't know that we emphasize it much" "I don't know a lot about it and such" "I don't think others know a lot about it too" [Pause] The great secret... forgotten, through and through. [Final Chorus - Returns to epic with ironic edge] [Full arrangement crashes back in] God himself was once as we are now— (Or so the prophet taught with solemn vow) You have got to learn to be gods, don't you see? (Unless we don't teach it anymore, maybe?) The head of the gods called a council to meet— (But we don't emphasize it on the street) This is the secret that made us unique— (Now hidden from the investigators we seek) [Extended Outro - Atmospheric, unresolved] [Choir returns with "Ahhhh"] [Piano plays motifs from the chorus] [Strings swell and fade] Eighty-one days between the sermon and the death The king gave his folly one final breath "I am learned," he said, "more than all the world" But now his great secret lies unfurled Taught for a century, then put away The gods of the council have nothing to say [Soft spoken word over fading music] "If I fail to do it, It becomes my duty To renounce all further pretensions To be a prophet..." [END]
