I went back inside an LDS chapel for the 3rd time since we resigned from the church in 1998. All three times have been for funerals---my mother, a niece, and last Thursday, one of my older sisters. This chapel is in central Alabama, where my wife and I lived for almost the first five years of our marriage from 1979 to 1984. I was ward mission leader, EQP, and ward clerk at various times in that ward.

As we were walking down the hallway, I noticed this very familiar painting on the wall:

https://www.google.com/search?q=christ+appears+to+the+nephites+painting&tbm=isch&imgil=ZlNv8quZlxg0IM%253A%253BvEZ5H8vea-ZkYM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fvarsinainen.blogspot.com%25252F2010_11_07_archive.html&source=iu&pf=m&fir=ZlNv8quZlxg0IM%253A%252CvEZ5H8vea-ZkYM%252C_&usg=__tVI8MeYQTIX94STaeSi8agJYSQI%3D&biw=1680&bih=872&dpr=1&ved=0ahUKEwi8_YOtnOXOAhUGPiYKHYHzB80QyjcIPA&ei=Bm7DV7ziN4b8mAGB55_oDA#imgrc=ZlNv8quZlxg0IM%3A

(Sorry if that's a bad link.)

I got a kick out of that painting still being used, for several reasons. The painting depicts the "Nephites" dressed like ancient Mayans, rather than like Hebrews, whom they were supposed to be. This event supposedly took place in 33 AD. Had the Nephite culture and dress been swallowed up by the native Americans by that time?

Also, modern Mopologists assert that the DNA evidence of the "Nephites" has disappeared because of "founder effect" and "genetic drift." So, who are the people in the painting supposed to be? The descendants of the Nephites who came from the Middle East, or are they all Asian-descended people who emigrated to the Americas 12,000+ years ago? Did Jesus even know whom he was visiting? When Jesus arrived, did he tell the Asian-descended people in the crowd to butt out of his promised-people party?

The other funny thing in the painting is the step-type pyramids, which didn't come into vogue until the Mayan classic period beginning around 300 AD.

I realize that TBMs don't know enough about the issues to even be aware of such anachronisms. I just thought it was kinda funny that they still use those paintings.

That's a great thought--Jesus descends on his anti-grav' escalator, looks around, and says "Who the hell are you? You're not not Jews!!"

Some of us would have a good giggle about the really really buff men in the temple murals of BOM days!
It always seemed to be very cartoonish to me.
They will claim it's an artist rendering and not to be accurate!
The more I think of these dozens of photos and painters, the funnier it is!

In reality, the whole shootin' match is a con-artist rendering and not to be accurate!

The church commissioned Arnold Friberg to do these Book of Mormon paintings, as well as others. Friberg's parents were converts to Mormonism and he was baptized at age eight.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_Friberg

Friberg seemd to have a thing for big muscles. See this painting of his for a non-Book of Mormon example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_Game

Here's an old seminary joke: Why did the Nephites have such big arm muscles? From scripture chasing with gold plates.

His paintings always make me laugh. The heads are way to small! Does anybody know why?

Reason (obvious): When the prophet speaks, the thinking has been done.

With NO THINKING needed, the result is a small brain and small head.

Hahahaha! I should have thought of that :-)

Good grief! That picture has been around since I was kid growing up in the 1970's! It's still around!??

I found myself thinking, after taking Introductory Art at the university level, that art in Mormonism left a WHOLE lot to be desired. I decided that they certainly refrained from spending much on their artwork, you know, they just come up with something to give those peons the general idea.

Maybe I'm being unfair as I admit that I have not seen tons of the cult's artwork, but what I've viewed in lesson books, church magazines, ward houses, temple square exhibits, and the Salt Lake Temple left me feeling like it was mediocre at best.

My fav: Joe sitting at a table with plates & scribe behind curtain.

LDS: Can u PLEASE erase that memory from my brain (used in mish open-houses) -or- convince me it was accurate & truthful?

My favorite part:

Magic Jesus appears to the Jews-turned-Mayans in the midst of the rubble and destruction -- and death -- supposedly caused by his far-away death and resurrection.

Yet he doesn't say, "Gee, I'm sorry for the mess and the death. I know you guys had nothing to do with killing me, it's just that me and my dad felt the need to destroy stuff and kill people as a show of power. Even though we planned all this from the get-go. Of course, your puny little lives are nothing as far as we're concerned, since we're gods...oh, well."

Asshat.

So sorry about the loss of your sister.

I hope she had a nice funeral to remember her by.

The mural hanging on the wall is just a reminder of how fake everything is in Mormonism, especially its holiest of scriptures.

Like you needed that reminder at your sister's funeral (not!)

"So sorry about the loss of your sister."

Thank you. She (Janis) was a true latter day saint. She raised her own three kids, and took in our deceased older sister's four kids and raised them too. She also took care of our mother for the last two years of her life. During her adult lifetime, she had taken in more than 70 people into her home to live at one time or another. She was the effective matriarch of our family.

"I hope she had a nice funeral to remember her by."

She did. Her three kids were there, and two of them spoke. The remaining nine of her siblings made it, with two of our sisters coming in from Missouri and Arizona. There were probably 120 people there, including some Mormons I hadn't seen in more than 30 years. All of our family went to her burial, at a little country cemetery in our father's ancestral area in Macon County, Alabama. She's buried next to our parents and many other relatives.

The really weird part is that Jesus lifted a woman out of Haight-Ashbury circa 1969 and placed her by his side in this 33A.D.
Scene. I wonder what his secret message is?

"The really weird part is that Jesus lifted a woman out of Haight-Ashbury circa 1969 and placed her by his side in this 33 A.D.
Scene."

LOL. The Age of Aquarius.

That's another funny thing about this painting: the people are dressed like the Aztecs of the 15th century were when the conquistadors encountered them. I doubt that 1st century Mayans dressed in all of that finery. That's like an artist painting a depiction of 1st century Brits, and dressing them up like Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth.

Another anachronism that appears in Friberg's paintings is that Nephi, Abinadi, and some others apparently liked to manscape--hair, hair, what hair? We use Nair.

It's struck me of recent years just how homoerotic Friberg's paintings are.

Which, considering he painted for a homophobic organisation, is rather ironic.