Page - 158 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 05/02

The film does not set out to reject Catholicism outright. Despite prominent voices to the contrary, most Mormons view Catholicism as a positive “prepara- tory gospel” that (re)introduced Christianity in the Americas.62 Certainly, a folk Catholicism based more on tradition than on readings of the Bible probably lies at the heart of what Mormons tend to refer to as a “simplistic” Lamanite faith. It is problematic to call Nacho a Lamanite; Jack Black is hardly Native Ameri- can, and while his character lives in the especially indigenous Mexican state of Oaxaca, Nacho himself is probably criollo (creole) or possibly mestizo (or mixed race). Alejandro Hermosilla Sánchez argues that Nacho Libre is symptomatic of a US cinematic tradition that caricatures – rather than comprehends – mestizo identity.63 Hermosilla Sánchez correctly identifies the fact that Nacho’s charac- ter largely diverges from Mexican understandings of mestizaje, but he does not mention how Hess’s religious referent leads him to present the titular character as Lamanite regardless of the degree of indigenous blood he may (or may not) have. The fact that Nacho lives in an indigenous space marks him as Laman- ite regardless of his genetic ancestry. In stark contrast to Mexican racial dis- courses that posit mestizaje as a strategy for “de-Indianizing” a population with genetic ties to indigeneity,64 notions of Hemispheric Lamanite Identity tend to emphasize the fact that racially hybrid individuals maintain an Amerindian (and thus Lamanite) essence. Whether or not Nacho can truly claim ties to Lamanite progenitors, he certainly has received his spiritual upbringing in a Catholic or- phanage in a highly indigenous state. As a result, he has acquired the “childlike” faith that Mormon leaders like Kimball saw in the Church’s Lamanite members. As such, Nacho must eventually temper this faith with greater knowledge and (spiritual) maturity. Hess highlights Nacho’s immature faith through his relationship with his teammate, Steven. At one point, Nacho advises Steven to “pray to the Lord for strength” as he prepares for his first fight. Steven replies, “I don’t believe in God; the film’s release, BYU Magazine continues to publish stories on Hess and his productions, a practice that certainly keeps films like Nacho Libre in Mormons’ collective memory. See Rogers 2018a; Rogers 2018b. 62 Bruce R. McConkey popularized the notion that the Catholic Church was the Great and Abominable Church mentioned in the Book of Mormon with the publication of the Mormon Doctrine in 1958. Here he stated that “it is also in the Book of Mormon to which we turn for the plainest description of the Catholic Church as the great and abominable church”. See McConkey 1958, 130. However, the First Presidency of the Church demanded that he amend his assertion. In the second edition, he walked back the claim to a degree, asserting instead that “the titles church of the devil and great and abominable church are used to identify all churches or organizations of whatever nature – whether political, philosophical, educational, economic social, fraternal, civic, or religious – which are designed to take men on a course that leads away from God and his laws and thus from salvation in the Kingdom of God.” See McConkey 1966, 100. 63 Hermosilla Sánchez 2015, 17. 64 Bonfil Batalla 1987, 41–42. 158 | David S. Dalton www.jrfm.eu 2019, 5/2, 141–165