On the latest Mormon Book Reviews, a recently rediscovered 22-foot painted panorama by C. C. A. Christensen is discussed with Devan Jensen, the executive editor at the BYU Religious Studies Center. Devan told me how Steven Olsen at the Church History Department rediscovered and acquired a rare, early panorama painted by C. C. A. Christensen that was used to proselytize Native Americans in Utah. Devan then told me how he got involved with the project and that the Church History Museum team identified the date of 1871 on the back of canvas. I mentioned to him that the earliest extant artwork of a Book of Mormon scene was identified by my friend Dr. Chris Thomas in his book "A Pentecostal Reads the Book of Mormon." In his book he described a painting of David Hyrum Smith that was dated to around 1874 according to Lachlan MacKay, Community of Christ historian and apostle. It was very exciting that I was able to identify an existing piece that is even older! In this episode we discuss the fascinating story of Christensen and his art. We then discuss each image of the panorama. The imagery is very striking for LDS art because it contains partial nudity and an early crucifixion scene. I then discuss the importance of the image of the cross in the Christian world, as well as the history of the use of the cross in the 19th and 20th Century Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The role of David O. McKay and his actions to modernize the Church, emulate 1950s Protestantism, and moving the Church away from Roman Catholic imagery like the cross is also discussed. The work "Banishing the Cross: The Emergence of a Mormon Taboo" by Michael Reed is referenced as well. This panorama was used as a proselytizing tool to convert the local Native American peoples. We briefly talk about the Bear River Massacre and the work of Darren Parry and Thomas Murphy. We also preview the upcoming Brigham Young Journals project and the Church History Symposium to be held next month (March 2022). This was an important and very exciting interview to conduct, and I want to thank Devan for coming on. The 2022 Church History Symposium will be held on March 10–11, 2022. The symposium will convene at the Brigham Young University Conference Center on March 10 at 9:00 a.m. and at the Church Office Building auditorium and Church History Library at Salt Lake City on March 11 at 8:45 a.m. Keynote speakers include Elder Gerrit W. Gong, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Sarah Barringer Gordon, University of Pennsylvania Professor of Constitutional Law and History. For a program, visit this link

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