38carrots Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Do you imagine Jesus as traditionally depicted in North America (tall, lean, light skinned, blue eyed) or as a dark Semite? Or do you imagine him at all? Does it matter to you how he really loked? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 As a child I imagined him to look like the statue I saw in a church. Somewhere else I saw a painting and then revised my mental picture. LOL Nowadays, I "see" Him more in terms of attributes rather than a concrete face with features. I "see" Him as compassion, as a loving father, as a protector, as being just, etc. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I would expect Jesus to look like any person from that part of the world. But it matters not a bit to me. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 No, it doesn't matter to me really. I always picture him like the painting in my Sunday school. Tanned, long brown hair with no friz even though it appeared to be a dry climate, very clean and kind looking, a beard the seems to get regularly combed. Totally unrealistic in all likelihood. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolt. Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 (edited) I don't really "picture" Jesus at all, but it's pretty obvious that he wasn't white. It matters to me that the particular Caucasian-style inaccuracy is based on racist ideals of beauty and goodness -- being simply inaccurate isn't the same as that. Edited December 15, 2015 by bolt. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I've actually never seen a fair skinned, blue eyed depiction of Jesus...at least not one that made any lasting impression. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Although on an intellectual level, I know that Jesus probably looked more like this: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a234/1282186/ From a lifetime of religious artwork, I imagine him as a more fair skinned, tall, good looking person. It's funny, how I assume Jesus would be good looking too, not plain. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Doesn't matter to me in the least what He looks like. But I suppose I picture Him the way He is depicted in EO icons. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I picture him as dark but mostly I picture him as healthy and manly. NOT the weak looking image I often see. Also why would his hair be long? Did Jewish men wear their hair long? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Although on an intellectual level, I know that Jesus probably looked more like this: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a234/1282186/ From a lifetime of religious artwork, I imagine him as a more fair skinned, tall, good looking person. It's funny, how I assume Jesus would be good looking too, not plain. I imagine him as good looking too. He was a perfect man after all. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexigail Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I imagine him as dark skinned, but I was raised with icons like this: http://www.easterngiftshop.com/media/ecom/prodsm/Icon%20of%20Christ%20(2)Email.jpg http://www.saintchristopherhoc.org/images/ChristIcon.jpg so I suppose it's a matter of what we're exposed to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I'm a non-Christian, but I still have a mental picture of Jesus. I imagine he looked like the picture that's been floating around, but with long hair. I can't seem to get rid of the idea that he had hippie hair. I saw someone online yesterday make the argument that since his friends had names like Luke and John, obviously Jesus was white. :banghead: There was so much incorrect about that statement, I didn't even know how to reply. 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amira Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I don't really have a picture in my head of how he looks, but he definitely doesn't look like any image I've ever seen. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 There's actually a whole book that talks about how Jesus's depictions is related to race. http://www.npr.org/2012/11/19/165473220/color-of-christ-a-story-of-race-and-religion-in-america 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I don't really "picture" Jesus at all, but it's pretty obvious that he wasn't white. It matters to me that the particular Caucasian-style inaccuracy is based on racist ideals of beauty and goodness -- being simply inaccurate isn't the same as that. "White" is a pretty broad term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I was never taught much of the surfer Jesus thing. My churches didn't depict Jesus anywhere but felt boards for children's church. But my brain makes him a short, dark Jewish man with warm eyes and a warmer smile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 (edited) Well, if Jesus was Jewish in the first century I imagine he looked like every other Jewish man in that area. I used to think of God in heaven as old with a white beard and then thought to myself one day, "What if he looks like young black man--probably really tall, like a basketball player. With a bald head." For a minute it took me back and I thought, "No...God can't look like that." And then I thought, "Eh, why not." After that little game in my own mind, I don't give a fig what Jesus/God looks like. He's God no matter what he looks like. Edited December 15, 2015 by Garga 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocassie Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 My mental physical image is that of the large painting we had in the entrance lobby of our school. It is actually the expression in his face and body language which so fascinated/captivated me as a child that I recall when thinking about Jesus. He was probably more "white" - lean, tall, lighter skin although tan, and I think light brown eyes - in the picture. Logically I know that he was Jewish and would look such, but I still picture him like that painting. It's kind of like I still picture my elementary school teachers (well some of them) as they were when I attended. I know they have aged and whatnot but in my head they look just like they look then. Going forward, I like to see paintings/statues/prints/movies/etc. show a more accurate portrayal of Jesus' ethnicity, but I am not bothered by inaccuracies. Well, other than to be specifically offensive. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbgrace Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I don't care or think about his physical looks. But when I was growing up my parents had this picture hanging in our house-the one of the long hair, bearded Jesus standing at the door knocking. Christian Book.com link to that picture. So it's the one stuck in my mind, even though I realized long ago it's not realistic. I don't think he's blue eyed in that picture or anyone I've ever seen though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I too don't "picture" him but would expect him to blend in in the Middle East. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 (edited) When I was growing up, our faith tradition emphasized the not knowing about Jesus's appearance, even to the extent of condemning attempted artistic renderings. We were often read this quote from Isaiah and told it meant that Jesus was very ordinary looking, maybe even a little ugly, because that was the opposite of what would be expected. After all,"God does not look on the outward appearance but the heart." Isaiah 53 …2For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. 3He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. i have no personal opinion on this subject. Edited December 15, 2015 by Onceuponatime 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMamaBird Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 There's been a rendition of Jesus going around FB lately. I kind of like it! He'd probably be skinnier though, I imagine. We have a print called "Laughing Jesus" which is your traditional looking Jesus in the middle of a deep belly laugh. I really like that one! He's always portrayed so solemnly, but I like the laughing picture because he was also human and surely had a sense of humor and enjoyed the occasional chuckle, who doesn't? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I grew up thinking of the white guy version, just like most Americans (or at least, white ones) in the 1980s. I don't think that's nuts. It's how he has appeared in European art for thousands of years. I was really confused by "Black Jesus" for a long time as a kid --- I didn't get it --- now I know, I was doing the same thing! Irony alert!! But really. It's OK. It's still OK to think of the guy however you want. Historical accuracy is not the important thing here, I don't think*. * Unless you are bigoted against Middle Eastern people. Then we get that irony alert again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HRAAB Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Robert Powell, with those blue eyes, in Jesus of Nazareth. I've had that image in my head ever since I first saw the movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I grew up thinking of the white guy version, just like most Americans (or at least, white ones) in the 1980s. I don't think that's nuts. It's how he has appeared in European art for thousands of years. I was really confused by "Black Jesus" for a long time as a kid --- I didn't get it --- now I know, I was doing the same thing! Irony alert!! But really. It's OK. It's still OK to think of the guy however you want. Historical accuracy is not the important thing here, I don't think*. * Unless you are bigoted against Middle Eastern people. Then we get that irony alert again. I think this is true to a point. It's only recently that we have a global enough perspective to think about what he looked like as compared to his ethnicity. Before that, people tended to picture him looking a lot like they looked. Which makes a lot of sense if 99% of the people you have ever seen look like that and you have no photos or tv. In your mind, that is what people look like. On the other hand, Christianity teaches, and history seems to agree, that he was an actual, individual person. So - he looked like himself. There is a theological distinction here because there can be a tendency to see him as a kind of idea, as if his body wasn't a "real" part of him. This idea can easily, and often is, related to some of the classic Christological heresies. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I'll be honest, it annoys me when He is depicted as a white guy. Especially here in my area where people try to use the Bible as an excuse to be racist. Half the people I know that claim to be Christian wouldn't let someone that shared an ethnicity with Jesus into their home. I wish they realized the hypocrisy in that. Then there is the whole stupid thing in a lot of traditional Baptist circles in which men shouldn't have long hair and should be clean shaven. And yet there is a big ol' bearded, long haired white Jesus picture hanging in the church ??? 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I'm a non-Christian, but I still have a mental picture of Jesus. I imagine he looked like the picture that's been floating around, but with long hair. I can't seem to get rid of the idea that he had hippie hair. I saw someone online yesterday make the argument that since his friends had names like Luke and John, obviously Jesus was white. :banghead: There was so much incorrect about that statement, I didn't even know how to reply. Oh gosh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawthorne44 Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I can't remember her name, but there is that little girl who came back from the dead and then started to draw Jesus. I saw one of those drawings and I instantly felt, "Yes!, that is Jesus" They were pencil drawings so no color. I don't think I have much color in my brain. Not just skin color, but color in general. So I can't say what shade of skin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kristie in Florida Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I picture Christian Bale, definitely. Seriously though, I picture a long haired Middle Eastern man. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 (edited) The first image that comes to mind is this one: https://www.lds.org/media-library/images/jesus-christ-39623?lang=eng because I love this painting and the expression in His eyes. But I recognize that He likely looks more Semitic than that. I've always loved this painting of the boy Jesus: http://www.christcenteredmall.com/stores/art/swindle/zoom_the_lamb_of_god.htm both because the artist tried to depict him more as he might have been, perhaps at the age he was to become a son of the law(ETA bar mitzvah), and also for the symbolism of him carrying the sacrificial lamb to the temple, he who was the Lamb of God. It really doesn't matter what He looks like, but it is interesting to consider. I once heard that Christ is often depicted as fairer skinned than normal for a Semitic man because his ancestor David is described as "ruddy" in the Bible, so there was some tradition that that family line was lighter-skinned and redder-cheeked than average. Edited December 15, 2015 by La Condessa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Don't laugh, but as a kid I always pictured him kind of looking like Omar Sharif with long hair and a full beard. I knew Jesus was from Palestine and my vision of what Middle Easterners looked like was heavily shaped by Sharif. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 (edited) Don't laugh, but as a kid I always pictured him kind of looking like Omar Sharif with long hair and a full beard. I knew Jesus was from Palestine and my vision of what Middle Easterners looked like was heavily shaped by Sharif. Although I try not to have set pictures of the prophets in my head, Moses (peace be upon him) is always Charlton Heston to me! Edited December 15, 2015 by idnib 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I picture him like the pictures and statues I saw in church and school when I was a little kid. But it doesn't matter to me how he looks- if I see a different look it's totally cool. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nan in Mass Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 A homeless man in winter, which to the child me was a bundle of mismatched clothes with no face showing. Something about the he was despised bit in the Messiah. : ) Nan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TianXiaXueXiao Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 It does not matter what he looks like but I imagine him the way he's depicted in Orthodox iconography. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_Pantocrator#/media/File%3ACatholicon%2C_Church_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre%2C_Jerusalem1.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 (edited) Don't laugh, but as a kid I always pictured him kind of looking like Omar Sharif with long hair and a full beard. I knew Jesus was from Palestine and my vision of what Middle Easterners looked like was heavily shaped by Sharif. LOL :D One good thing about Omar Sharif Jesus is that Omar Sharif had a great smile and eyes. I remember seeing a picture of a laughing Jesus awhile back, and although he look liked stereotypical Jesus Christ Superstar type Jesus, he had a great smile/laugh. I'd like to think Jesus would be like that. OK...on a kind of side topic, anybody ever read the Joshua books? I remember really liking them...I don't know....20-25 years ago? They were by Joseph Girzone, who I want to say was a Priest, but I may be imagining that. ETA: OK, just super shocked to find out that the author died two weeks ago. :( Edited December 15, 2015 by umsami 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 (edited) Although on an intellectual level, I know that Jesus probably looked more like this: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a234/1282186/ There's been a rendition of Jesus going around FB lately.... I saw the drawing in Umsami's link 12+ years ago when we were living in Colorado and it's the same one that I'm now seeing on FB that BigMamaBird refers to -- I didn't read the recent stuff on FB closely. Are they saying that drawing was created recently? I saw it and read the article in Popular Mechanics when we were living in Colorado Springs in the early 2000s. That said, if anything, I imagine Jesus to look like the icon called "Not Made by Hands." Story behind this icon: The Holy Napkin, or the icon “Not Made By Handsâ€, is the very first icon ever made, and it was made in a miraculous way by Christ. King Abgar of Edessa, from his kingdom neighboring Israel, had sent his court artist to invite Christ to come to Edessa when he heard that the Lord was being persecuted in Israel. The artist was also asked to bring back a portrait of Christ, because the king, who had leprosy, felt that if he could only see the likeness of this Man that he had heard so much about, he would be made well. The artist tried many times to capture His Face, but was unable, so the Lord Who loves man, knowing all things, took a cloth and brought it to His Face, and a true likeness was impressed on the cloth, which was sent to King Abgar and healed him. Thus this first icon was not made by human hands. Later the Apostle Jude Thaddeus was sent to preach to this kingdom, and they converted to become one of the first Christian states. The original Holy Napkin cloth was kept in Edessa until AD 944 when it was brought to Constantinople, and it is the pattern from which all subsequent icons of Christ are made. [My note: Obviously there's some Byzantine stylization in icons, they're purposely not meant to be exact representations of people.] Edited December 16, 2015 by milovany 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I picture him as a Renaissance picture, but I know that isn't accurate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 (edited) I imagine him as a middle eastern guy because, well, he was a middle eastern guy. Edited December 16, 2015 by joyofsix 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slojo Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I'll be honest, it annoys me when He is depicted as a white guy. Especially here in my area where people try to use the Bible as an excuse to be racist. Half the people I know that claim to be Christian wouldn't let someone that shared an ethnicity with Jesus into their home. I wish they realized the hypocrisy in that. Then there is the whole stupid thing in a lot of traditional Baptist circles in which men shouldn't have long hair and should be clean shaven. And yet there is a big ol' bearded, long haired white Jesus picture hanging in the church ??? Yes, this! I don't know that I imagine Jesus a particular way anymore, but definitely defend the importance of "correcting" the centuries old depiction of Jesus as basically European looking. The connection between whiteness (as commonly understood in the US) and Jesus, and the goodness and righteousness of white people over brown people is just way too deep, way too hurtful. We go through great pains to not have our children associate Jesus with white skin, and European features -- it's probably not accurate anyway. I'm not an accuracy purist - in any drama pieces that our church does, Jesus is black, our nativity scene is an African interpretation of the nativity scene, our children's Bibles are carefully selected -- but that is all for cultural reasons, and to counter prevailing and unconscious biases toward whiteness=goodness. So, I go with either depict Jesus in a symbolic way - and be clear that it's a symbol or go for what's likely to way more accurate than 95% of the European depictions of Jesus. And, yes, he would look a lot like the people so many are trying to keep out of the country. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8circles Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 We have this Warner Sallman picture at church, him being in the denomination. Not realistic and it is something we talk about fairly often. I don't really picture Jesus in human form. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I never really give it much thought wrt skin tone, hair length and so on. I don't picture angels as commonly depicted either. I always laugh bc someone many many years ago noted that angels probably don't look like sweet nice people with wings what with all the exhortations of "don't be afraid" that they have to to give when someone sees them. When the movie nativity first came out, I came across some folks that were just thoroughly disgruntled bc the Angel Gabriel looked to have darker skin and a fro. Apparently that was just wrong in her view and showed liberal influence. Whatever. 🙄 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 muscular (he was a carpenter. he would have been hauling wood and swinging tools), darker hair. other than that, not noteworthy in his appearance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Although I try not to have set pictures of the prophets in my head, Moses (peace be upon him) is always Charlton Heston to me! Moses 100% looked like Charlton Heston. Absolutely. No doubt. :) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenniferB Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acheiropoieta Like this ^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenniferB Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Because he came in the flesh, I think it's important to imagine him in the flesh. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS Mom in NC Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 It doesn't particularly matter to me, but when I do imagine him, He looks very Middle Eastern.I don't hold back any eye rolling when I see a nativity set with European looking figurines or where baby Jesus looks radioactive.You know the ones with the weird colored glowing ring around his head.Since the Bible only refers to angels as male it makes we wonder if they're offended by our images of extremely feminine looking angels or fat baby angels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junie Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 We are often asked to bring a baby doll for the church's Christmas program. (Because 5 daughters.) This happened again this year. The girls chose the dark-skinned Bitty Baby because he was the right size and the right color. I thought that this was interesting. I'm not sure which one of them said it first. Usually they send a smaller white baby doll with a smooshed head, because they don't know who is going to be taking care of their baby and who might throw it off stage, etc. This year they sent the proper baby, because dd13 was Mary and was the only person who would touch the doll. They knew that she would take care of it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I'm a non-Christian, but I still have a mental picture of Jesus. I imagine he looked like the picture that's been floating around, but with long hair. I can't seem to get rid of the idea that he had hippie hair. I saw someone online yesterday make the argument that since his friends had names like Luke and John, obviously Jesus was white. :banghead: There was so much incorrect about that statement, I didn't even know how to reply. 😮😯 wow!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 When I was growing up, our faith tradition emphasized the not knowing about Jesus's appearance, even to the extent of condemning attempted artistic renderings. We were often read this quote from Isaiah and told it meant that Jesus was very ordinary looking, maybe even a little ugly, because that was the opposite of what would be expected. After all,"God does not look on the outward appearance but the heart." Isaiah 53 …2For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. 3He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. i have no personal opinion on this subject. My experience was similar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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