Moroni: The Golden Calf of Mormonism

While gathering info for a new article earlier this week, I came across an interesting story in Mormondom.

In 2009, the Deseret News published an article ‘20 little-known facts about the Mormon Angel Moroni statue’. They showed a different Moroni statue with each fact they shared, and one in particular caught my immediate attention.

 

Did You Know?

Sitting atop the Los Angeles, California temple is a Moroni statue unlike any other (#9 of 20). This Moroni, standing just over 15’ tall, is dressed in Mayan regalia, complete with the sandals, headband, robe, and a set of ‘gold plates’. Additionally, his robe is covered with the typical Mayan geometric patterns.

A pro-Mormon site said this Moroni’s garb is designed from the inspiration of the commissioned sculptor who was heavily influenced by the man he studied under whose specialty was in Mesoamerican cultures.

We’re wondering…

Which of God’s angels wears robes in the fashion of a localized pagan culture?

If angels are eternal, why did this Moroni fellow dress in the fashion of the day from whence he supposedly sprang? Is heaven filled with Mayan designs?

What do the Mayan geometric patterns have to do with God, or any temple clothing He commissioned for the Israelites?

Not to be outdone, there’s yet another angel we’d be remiss to not shine a light upon. In the November 2009 issue of the New Era Magazine, there’s an article about the many versions of Moroni statues, one of which is part  of the Hill Cumorah Monument.

 

This Moroni sits on a 365 ton marble obelisk. (That’s another story altogether.) His right arm is bent ‘to the square’ indicating the Masonic oath of loyalty to the false god Jahbulon. The other arm is fashioned to look as if he’s holding a set of gold plates…sigh… For images, see ‘Chad’s Random Musings’. This is the same oath Mormons take in the temple, at their baptisms, and when they vote ‘yes’ for induction of new General Authorities.

If these statues don’t fit the graven image warning God gave us, nothing does! See Exodus 20:4-6.

Two specific scenes from the Bible come to mind when I think about Moroni. The first is when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai to find his brother Aaron leading the Israelites in a frenzied orgy of worshiping the golden calf Exodus 32:1-35, and Paul’s episode of the trouble he faced in Ephesus with the silversmith Demitrius who was making false idol gods in Acts 19:19-29.

Ask your Mormon friends/loved ones what their thoughts are about Moroni and God’s endless warnings not to have graven images in your life!