Zion 21.0 would be the Lord’s project.

Joseph Smith said, “In regard to the building up of Zion, it has to be done by the counsel of Jehovah, by the revelations of heaven; and we should feel to say, ‘If the Lord go not with us, carry us not up hence.’”*

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* “The Government of God,” Times & Seasons, July 15, 1842. See Elizabeth A. Kuehn et al, eds., The Joseph Smith Papers: Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842 (Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2020), 284, available here.

Established through authorized servants.

The First Presidency emphasized in 1936, “The United Order will be established by the Lord in His own due time and in accordance with the regular prescribed order of the Church.”* It is not our role as individuals to re-institute the system of consecration revealed in the 1830s or re-establish Zion on our own initiative.

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* “Editorial: Warning to Church Members,” signed by Heber J. Grant, J. Reuben Clark Jr., and David O. McKay, Improvement Era, Aug. 1936, 488, available here. In this statement, “United Order” referred to the economic system of Zion.

Sustainable.

Households would consecrate property as they join Zion 21.0. They would also consecrate the current and future wages or salaries they receive from employment and any nonwage gains. These are the main resources Zion 21.0 would have available to provide an income for its member households on an equal basis, ensure that educational and health care needs are met, and pay for other Storehouse functions. To be sustainable, Zion 21.0 would balance its resources with its expenditures and live within its means. Zion 21.0 could operate without relying on the resources of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If Church leaders chose to contribute Church funds to Zion, that would increase Zion’s resources and boost the number of households that could participate in Zion.

Equalized income level.

One of the key decisions to be made in the planning stage would be the target equalized income level for households in Zion 21.0. This decision has crucial implications for how many households could be part of Zion 21.0 at any given time. Given some level of surplus generated by Zion households, the total number of households that can join Zion and receive supplemental payments would be higher if equalized income levels are set at a lower level than if they are set at a higher level. Zion 21.0 would not set equalized income levels at a poverty level, however. One of the hallmarks of Zion is that “there [are] no poor among them” (Moses 7:18).

Regulating resources and needs.

Some households would join Zion 21.0 owning significant property to contribute and earning levels greater than their need-adjusted equalized income level. These households generate a surplus. Other households that join Zion would earn less than their equalized income level. These households would receive a supplement to their earnings, drawn from the surplus generated by other households. To live within its means, Zion 21.0 would have to ensure that the surplus is large enough to cover the needed supplements and other expenditures.

Church members would apply to join Zion 21.0 much like members apply to serve a mission. A mission application is prayerfully reviewed by Church authorities. They consider whether the applicants are spiritually prepared, have the physical capacity to serve, and have needed financial support. At times, there may be more people who want to serve in a particular way or a particular place than can be accommodated. Some applicants must then wait until the appropriate time or serve in some other capacity.

Similarly, members who are willing to be part of Zion 21.0 would prepare an application. Joining Zion is not merely, or even principally, an economic matter. Zion members would have charity, pure hearts, and the highest standard of conduct and devotion to the Lord. As with a mission or entry into the temple, a series of Church leaders would make a determination about an applicant’s preparation or worthiness to be part of Zion.

Applicants would also report their economic conditions before entering Zion 21.0. With this information, leaders can ensure that, as a whole, the members of Zion would bring enough resources to support Zion members at the target standard of living. Some balance is needed between the households whose means outside of Zion are limited and the households able to make a larger financial contribution. Zion 21.0 would be expanded as quickly as it can be done in a sustainable way.