Who was the boy I saw represented in a painting in a Mormon church lobby?

Laffopuritain

New member
yes, my ward has the same picture.

If you look closely, Jesus and Mary both have Halos. It was not painted by an LDS member, but likely a Catholic. The LDS use art from different denominations and cultures, even when that art isn't exactly 'accurate' to our beliefs.

The Caucasian Jesus is a common theme, though, and (for me at least) i think it would be better for faith to represent him as a Middle Eastern man.
 
My brothers married women of the LDS faith some years back, and the rest of our family has attended three baptisms and a funeral in three of their churches. I noticed that all of the buildings were the exact same plan, so maybe this painting is also on the walls of all their churches(?) and people are familiar with what I'm talking about. Only yesterday did I really look at it, and haven't been able to ask anyone. The painting APPEARS to be a representation of a young Jesus teaching in the temple surrounded by his elders, as is recorded in the New Testament of the bible. But, then, I thought maybe that's supposed to be Joseph Smith, who I know little about. The reason I'm wanting to know is that the boy in the painting looks northern European. He has reddish-blond hair, pale skin, and his features are DEFINITELY not like any people indigenous to the middle east. The adult men around him are more ambiguous in appearance.
Hally M just gave me a great clue I hadn't thought about. The men standing around the boy were all wearing robes and had beards in the Hebrew tradition, so I guess this had to be a representation of Jesus. it was a framed painting on the wall of the entry area, though, not a mural.
A poster who answered below spoke of a painting in his ward, but this was NOT that picture. There were no halos, and no Mary, just male elders. So, the question becomes: Why does Jesus look SO Anglo there, when He clearly was not? And at this point in modern times, why would such a painting be the first thing people see when they enter the church? It must be important, no?
 
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