The Book of Mormon: A Latter-day Guide to Manhood

[ZealoulyStriving]

Last year as I was reading through the Book of Mormon again, I was inspired to really notice all the father-son(s) dynamics, I then realized that beyond being the "keystone of our religion" and our "latter-day survival guide", it is specifically directed at men. I believe Mormon was inspired to include the things he did because the Lord knew in the days it would come forward masculinity and manhood would be under attack and the accounts in the Book of Mormon can help to counter that trend. The Book of Mormon addresses:

*how to be a good husband (Lehi)

*how to be a good father (Lehi, Jacob, Enos, King Benjamin, Alma(s), Helaman ben Alma, etc...)

*how to be a good mentor (Captain Helaman)

*how to be a good friend/companion (Ammon ben Mosiah, Alma ben Alma)

*how to be a good leader and citizen (Chief Captain Moroni)

The Book of Mormon is literally a "How to Manual" of being a man.

[mikbone]

Alma 48: 17 Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.

Im pretty sure that Mormon named his son Moroni based off the reasoning of the above verse.

Captain Moroni is a great example of manhood.  

The best example is Christ.

Unfortunately, many artists, directors, and writers have portrayed Christ as a weak gentle man with feminine characteristics.  

He was not.

The Book of Mormon give us a lens to better understand the masculinity of Christ.

[mikbone]

It really confuses me when I walk around BYU campus and see effeminate males.

Are we reading the same text?

[ZealoulyStriving]

43 minutes ago, mikbone said:

It really confuses me when I walk around BYU campus and see effeminate males.

Are we reading the same text?

 Which shows we are not teaching or following the text properly! 

Maybe this is one of the ways we are "treating lightly" the Book of Mormon?

[mikbone]

Not my Jesus.

https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2024/02/02/effeminate-image-of-jesus-sparks-culture-war-in-spain

Notice how the artist totally missed the wrist nail wounds.  It’s like he didn’t even read the text.  He probably just recalled the stories of his youth and is trying make Jesus Christ into his perceived perfect person.

Unfortunately, its a common mistake.

Edited April 19 by mikbone

[Vort]

Nails through the wrist as a method of crucifixion is a kind of specialized knowledge or information that researchers and historians know about, but it isn't widely known among regular people.

[mikbone]

Not my Joseph

Hail to the man.

[mikbone]

22 hours ago, Vort said:

Nails through the wrist as a method of crucifixion is a kind of specialized knowledge or information that researchers and historians know about, but it isn't widely known among regular people.

I've done a bit of research on the wounds. 

If you wanted to put nails in a secure location without breaking the bones then one would go in-between the 3rd and 4th metacarpal and depend upon the transverse metacarpal ligaments to prevent tearing.  The second would go between the distal radius and ulna and depend upon the DRUJ (Distal Radial ulna joint) for support.

The side spear wound would have to go into the 9-10 or 10-11 intercostal space and be large enough to drain the plural effusion.  In the above x-ray you can see the plural effusion on the left side of the image (the patients right) where the water has totally displaced the lung so that it can no longer inflate.  Christ's physical death was likely due to asphyxiation secondary to the scourging & crucifixion.  the artist's depiction of the side wound above is way to small and pretty.  The soldier must have been pretty good at his work if he drained the effusion with a single thrust.  

John 19:34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.

John 20:27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.

This is what we use to drain plural effusions in the hospital.  And this needs to be emptied...  This is the normal color of a plural effusion. 

The nail in the foot is also a curiosity.  Most of the time you see artists display the Lord with a nail thru the arch of the foot (highly unlikely). 

This is a heel bone (Calcaneus) that was found in Israel

There is ample literary evidence for Roman crucifixions (ie. Josephus, Plautus, Senneca).  Archaeological evidence for Roman crucifixion was unearthed in 1968. That year, a construction crew accidentally dug up several tombs in northeast Jerusalem.  Inside the tombs were several ossuaries, including one inscribed with the name Jehohanan (Yehohanan), which contained skeletal remains of an adult male, including his heel bone with a nail still embedded in it.  The anthropologist who examined the remains determined that Jehohanan had been in his twenties when he was crucified in the first century (ca. AD 7-66). Further study has revealed that Jehohanan had likely been crucified with a leg on either side of the cross and the nail driven in sideways through his heel. 

https://biblearchaeologyreport.com/2021/04/02/top-ten-discoveries-related-to-jesus/

I have personally placed many calcaneal traction pins.  You can do it without breaking the bone.

A nail placed from dorsal to plantar thru the arch of the foot would be unstable, likely causing a metatarsal fracture and would cause the ankle to roll over and supinate.  

Most common use of a calcaneal traction pin nowadays.  External fixator for tibia pilon fracture. 

 

Edited April 20 by mikbone

[Traveler]

Some time ago I wondered about the physical appearance of Christ.  I thought it odd that many claim to know Jesus Christ but at the same time I wondered if they knew him well enough that they could pick him out in a crowd.  I have a brother that I ski with, we meet at the ski resort.  We know each other so well we do not even have to plan on where or when to meet.  We can spot each other on the lifts or the slopes because we are so familiar with each other.

When Jesus walked among us as a man there were some that immediately recognized him (even a rather impious heathen lady) and some that despite all the evidence could not recognize him (even the most respected pious among the Jews). 

I have come to believe physical appearance is likely not the best means of recognizing Christ.  I speculate that Jesus is likely shorter than most men of this modern age.  I have no idea concerning the pigment of his skin, the color of his hair or his eyes.  I speculate that he does not look so much like me.

Anciently there was a great King of the East that had spies in various areas (including in and around Jerusalem) that heard of Jesus and his miracles and teachings.  I speculate this great King was of the sort that were among those that sought Christ from the star when He was born and also perhaps related to or was Prester John or of a line of Prester Johns.  This great King was converted that Jesus was the Christ and knew of plots to kill Jesus.  So, he commanded his spies deliver a letter to Jesus along with an artist that was commanded to draw a portrait of Jesus.

It was believed that Jesus hand wrote a letter to this king that was delivered with the drawn portrait.  Though the portrait was lost in time the letter was presumably preserved among “Christians” in the East that became to be known as Nestorian Christians.  The letter that is claimed to be written by Jesus is the only original document text of possible sacred ancient documents known to exist today concerning the Christ.  This document has been tested and proven to be written at the time of Jesus upon parchment available only around the Jerusalem area – thus extremely unlikely a fake.   I am amazed that this document is not better known but what is more astonishing to me is how many “Christians” do not care about such a document just because it was not included in our (their) “Western” Bible.

I am convinced that in this day and age – it is quite dangerous to know anything of the “man”hood of Christ – for a great many reasons, including some religious (Christian) reasons.

 

The Traveler