Funny Mormons

We went with our family for a vacation in San Diego this last weekend. We took some time to visit the Mormon Battalion museum in Old Town San Diego. I had visited the historic site about 13 years ago, and heard that they had changed a lot since then, so I wanted to see it and I wanted my kids to learn about this part of history. I have an ancestor that was part of the battalion, so I have a personal connection to this story.

When we got there, we were greeted at the door by a pleasant Sister Missionary. We were quickly put into a group to start a tour. Another Sister Missionary was our guide. She started talking about some portraits on the wall when one of the pictures sneezed. Yes, that is right, the person in the portrait sneezed and then they started talking to each other. I won’t give away everything, because there are a few more surprises in the tour. I will just say, they have made the tour fun and engaging for the kids. At the end there are activities for the kids to participate in. Our kids (ages 6, 4 and 3) were very interested in each part of the tour.

Again, this post isn’t a “comedy funny” but it is just another example of how humor makes learning about history more interesting and engaging for kids and people of all ages.

You may have heard of Stephanie Nielson. She was in a near fatal plane crash that burned 80% of her body. After months of rehabilitation she started blogging about her new life. She shares touching stories of her gratitude and the love she has for her family. So why are we including a post about her on the Funny Mormons blog? Because amid her struggles and serious reflection, humor helps her to lighten the burden even for a moment. She has also found strength in the truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

For example she recently wrote that after her midnight soak in the hot tub with her husband (referred to as Mr. Nielson), he dares her to jump on the trampoline naked. Not only does she do it, but for nearly three minutes she says. Yes, that may seem a little over-the-top, but for someone that has been getting used to new skin all over her body, it must feel liberating to have skin to bare.

Stephanie has been featured in Mormon Messages, on the LDS Radio, on a panel at BYU, and recently I heard her on a radio commercial in Arizona for the Burn Center where she stayed after her accident. She has even been on Oprah (Click here for her funny Top 10 from the experience). She has inspired many with the way she has overcome adversity and has kept a positive attitude.

So even though this isn’t a “laugh out loud” post, it just goes to show that humor plays an important role in the lives of Latter-Day Saints in all situations.

…but Golden was not silent! I thought it has been a while since we had a post on J. Golden Kimball, so I thought I would include another story about him. Brother Kimball is well known for his outspoken ways. He says just what he thinks, whether it seems appropriate or not. This story is taken from The J. Golden Kimball Stories by Eric A Eliason.

J. Golden Kimball began one of his stake conference addresses supposedly, by saying, “Brothers and sisters, how many of you have read the Seventeenth Chapter of Mark in the New Testament?”
Many hands went up, and he said, “Well, you’re the people I want to talk to today! There are only sixteen chapters in Mark and my sermon for today is on liars and hypocrites!”

Many times I wonder after hearing so many funny stories about J. Golden Kimball, if many of them are just made up and attributed to him because he is one of the only Apostles that would have done something so outrageous.

Don’t try this at home kids.

Church Office Building from Marshall Miller on Vimeo.

(via reddit.com/r/lds)

I found a great blog recently called As Sistas in Zion. They have some clever posts about being Mormon. If you haven’t heard of this site, I suggest you go check it out. Tell us about any other funny LDS themed blogs or videos you have seen.

A couple videos that they posted on their site are pretty funny. The first one is about the term “sweet spirit” used in LDS culture to refer to someone that isn’t very attractive. It is a song by Sons of Provo.

The second one is an old LDS commercial starring Alfonso Ribeiro, known for his role as Carlton Banks from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. No, Ribeiro is not LDS, but at least he is honest in the video.

Have you ever wondered what a BYU Fraternity would be like? Well, BYU’s comedy club Divine Comedy put together a skit a while ago with their interpretation. Check it out below.

I remember doing crazy things like chugging root beer and staying up all night (no girls in apartment though). My roommates slept on the balcony and in an igloo they built in the snow. Yeah, crazy times. BYU students really know how to live on the edge.

I know it may not sound very “exciting” to people from other cultures, but it goes to show, you can have a good time and remember it too. To be it is better than waking up the next morning wondering what you may have done in your drunk stupor.

I’m not sure. I must be an exception! Here are a couple lds videos displaying our affinity for the dark arts.

Firebolt – Divine Comedy

Harry Potter Rap – Jefferson Snow

BYU Bell Tower Play Harry Potter Theme

I’m sure you could get all philosophical about why members of the LDS Church like Harry Potter. Probably for the same reason people like to make analogies between Star Wars and the Gospel. We’ll save all that from a different blog. How about we just enjoy our strange mormon humor!

Not only do you find funny Mormons making videos, comics or in stand up comedy shows, but you can also find them in General Conference. The subtle humor of the General Authorities often times gets the whole conference center chuckling. It is your turn to tell us what comments you found funny in General Conference this weekend. As I write this, Conference isn’t over, so pay attention in the next sessions and write down what someone said and share it with us in the comments section below.

We recently posted about Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio, the writers of Despicable Me. They are two Mormons that are pretty funny and good at writing funny screenplays. Well, they have been busy and another movie is coming out that they wrote. It is called Hop and it opens in theaters today (April 1, 2011). I watched some trailers and it looks pretty funny. It is about the heir to the Easter Bunny empire and how he is a rebellious teenager and runs away and then there is an attempted take-over at the Easter factory. I am interested to see how it all comes together. Watch the trailer and tell us what you think. Is this the kind of humor you like? Tell us in the comments below.

Many of us have probably seen some of the commercials for the LDS church. Most of them encourage family time and taking time to understand and teach our children. I saw one today for the first time, although it has been out for about a year. I thought it was very unique from the other commercials I have seen by the church.

It really made me chuckle because I have two little boys that have quite the imagination and we recently had a new baby, so I can relate to this situation. I also remember spending time with my dad as a child and how much it meant to me. He would coach our basketball teams (even though he wasn’t much of a basketball player) and would take us on other adventures. Do you have memories of spending time with a parent as a child?