What colour was Jesus???

oh....also.....this just hit me, where did he bath? if he washed off in salt water then that would deffinetly affect his skin colour and his hair colour/texture

 

I wonder if Jesus had dreads?

 

Christ-afarian!!

Yeah, he probably started to get dready after spending 40 days and nights in the desert and such.

 

lol. who knows! lol
probably not. i really think that jesus would have looked just like your typical jewish person back then. there is a scripture and i have no idea where it is but it talks about "when in rome..." meaning that if jesus was to come walk around here today, he would not be dressed in white robes, he would look like us cuz it's better for ministry, another example to make what i'm trying to say alittle clearer....

if mozart was alive today he would be writting music on electric keyboards and electric guitars and making some rockin tunes

 

Ok first off.. picking two descriptions of a supernatural 1000 ft Jesus representation in a Vision like 'Feet of Bronze' or 'Hair like White Wool' is being silly. He also had burning eyes in that Vision.. So what.. is he Irish?

C'mon!

Second point here... Jews could be anywhere from Green-eyed and light .. to dark black. So saying he was a Jew doesnt really help much.

Third thing here.. Watch out for 'Race Baiters' who try and imply something 'wrong' with Jesus being depicted as Anglo-Saxon in European culture.. That is perfectly acceptable.
Artists always naturally depict within their cultural norms.

Mary Statues in Japan have her as 'Asian'
Jesus painting in African cultures have him as 'Black'.

So what? - its natural artistic licence.

OK now then..........................

Here is probably the most extensive article on the net
http://www.thenazareneway.com/likeness_of_our_saviour.htm
(that i could find)

In particular these:

The Description of Publius Lentullus
​

"...A man of stature somewhat tall, and comely, with very reverent countenance, such as the beholders may both love and fear, his hair of (the colour of) the chestnut, full ripe, plain to His ears, whence downwards it is more orient and curling and wavering about His shoulders. In the midst of His head is a seam or partition in His hair, after the manner of the Nazarenes. His forehead plain and very delicate; His face without spot or wrinkle, beautified with a lovely red; His nose and mouth so formed as nothing can be reprehended; His beard thickish, in colour like His hair, not very long, but forked; His look innocent and mature; His eyes grey, clear, and quick- In reproving hypocrisy He is terrible; in admonishing, courteous and fair spoken; pleasant in conversation, mixed with gravity. It cannot be remembered that any have seen Him Laugh, but many have seen Him Weep. In proportion of body, most excellent; His hands and arms delicate to behold. In speaking, very temperate, modest, and wise. A man, for His singular beauty, surpassing the children of men"

And we get this from allegedly Pontis Pilate

"One day I observed in the midst of a group of people a young man who was leaning against a tree, calmly addressing the multitude. I was told it was Jesus. This I could easily have suspected so great was the difference between Him and those who were listening to Him. His golden colored hair and beard gave to his appearance a celestial aspect. He appeared to be about 30 years of age. Never have I seen a sweeter or more serene countenance. What a contrast between Him and His bearers with their black beards and tawny complexions! "

(Its certainly possible Jesus was from a 'Lighter Family' and to this day there are Jews of a 'Golden Haired' lineage, even though you associate Jews with Dark or Black Hair)

This is an early Coin with an artistic depiction of Jesus (it seems to compare quite well with other early depictions)





From some old Court documents:

......He is the picture of his mother, only he has not her smooth, round face. His hair is a little more golden than hers, though it is as much from sunburn as anything else. He is tall, and his shoulders are a little drooped; his visage is thin and of a swarthy complexion, though this is from exposure. His eyes are large and a soft blue, and rather dull and heavy....


So we really dont know but we are allowed to take all the possible descriptions and our best 'Guesstimates' and feel free to use artistic licence.

 

not white.

 

Jesus was a homeboy, he wore baggy robes and a vato goatie. He was the orignal gangsta. He had a short donkey that rode low to the ground and everything homes.

 

My last partner was black, and when she cut her hair short, you run your fingers through it. I am telling you, you close your eyes and you would not be able to tell if it was her hair, or little lambchops from the farm.
Woolly is a very exact description of her hair. If yours is like that, and you have felt a short cut afro for comparison, or a lamb for comparison, then sure.
I have never felt hair like that on any white woman, not even on her, well....nevermind.

Ewe's not fat, ewe's just fluffy.

 

So we really dont know but we are allowed to take all the possible descriptions and our best 'Guesstimates' and feel free to use artistic licence.

1. His ethnicity is 100% irrelevent to what his message was.
2. If we can find out his heritage, it gives us more tangible attachment to his life and times.
3. I do take issue with making him Scandinavian, when so many illiterate folk use that to promote racism.
4. The Germans under the Nazis taught that Germans went down to Africa and built the pyramids. Total fantasy, but schoolchildren learned it as fact.
5. That is damn dangerous.
6. Africans built the pyramids, not Germans, or aliens, or mermaids, Africans.

 

That is definately not true. His Jewish ethnicity was essential in communicating he was the Messiah and King of the Jews now grafting on Gentiles.

His appearance has zero relativity and is probably why its never really mentioned in Holy Scriture.

Wow.. ummmm.... His heritage is probably the most carefully researched and documented heritage in ancient history. If it makes you feel more tangible - His heritage is detailed through both his Mother and Father and all the way back to Adam.
Pretty much no mystery on that one.

What a ridiculous world to live in.. to suggest Scandinavian artists should not use other Scandinavians as 'Models' for their artistic expressions of Jesus because somewhere in the world 'illiterate' (did you mean naive?) people might become confused, think Jesus was Scandinavian, then believe in 'Races', then 'conclude' that Scandinavians are 'better' than Non-Scandinavians?

Wow. Imagine the world if we dumbed down everything so stupid people wouldnt get confused!?

I have never heard of such a teaching but since some Germans (under Nazi's) once taught School Children some dodgy history - you are suggesting what?... that we are not allowed to make artistic impressions anymore?

What is damn-dangerous? What are you on about?!

Well i have no idea where this is coming from but ok.
Egypt is on the continent of Africa so technically they most certainly were Africans.
Unlikely they were Sub-Saharin Africans, although would be no surprise to find many of them in Eqypt too.
Its certainly possible there were Germanic peoples involved in the process of building Pyramids (consultants?) but I have personally never seen any reason to believe that.

What this has to do with people depicting Jesus according to their cultural features I cant imagine?

Jesus did live in Egypt for a while - maybe he visited the Pyramids?
I suspect Jesus knows for sure if any Germans were there too.

 

[size=+3]Dreaming of a Non-White Christmas[/size] [size=+2]Santa, Jesus and the Symbolism[/size][size=+2]of Racial Supremacy[/size]

[size=-2][/size] By Tim Wise December 23, 2000 [size=+2]W[/size]ell it's that time of year again. Time for all good Americans to focus on what really matters. Not family, community, or world peace, but that national sacrament of late-stage capitalism known as holiday shopping. Whether you do it online, or drag yourself to the mall amidst the sea of humanity scraping and fighting for the latest must have gizmo, rest assured that your actions are vital to the national interest. In fact, the annual consumer bonanza unleashed in the last fiscal quarter is so central to defining life in the U.S., that the economy's strength in the beginning of the following year is literally tied to how much stuff we buy. So get out there and do your duty. Buy American. Be American. Shop 'till you drop, and remember, this is what it means to be a patriot! Now, being one who doesn't like to give advice that I myself am unwilling to follow, I must say that I too have been making the pilgrimage to the shopping centers lately, both to purchase desired items, and also to observe others in the process of this sociologically fascinating ritual. As someone who regularly writes about racism, you can probably imagine that I have long been especially intrigued by the way in which holiday symbolism replicates notions of whiteness as rightness, and acts to reinforce, however subtly, racial supremacy. Yet, the full force of this process never really hit me until last week. It was then that I found myself at the mall, passing a line of parents and their children, waiting to have a few seconds alone with Santa. You know Santa, right? The big white guy who only works one day a year and yet no one calls him lazy; the big white guy who exploits elfin labor in a sweatshop for no pay while his wife does all the housework, and yet no one calls him a slave master; the big white guy who invades millions of homes on Christmas Eve, and yet no one arrests him for breaking and entering. Yeah, that one. Though one can see a few Santas of color in malls around the country lately, I think we can all agree this is pretty absurd, if Santa were black, there's little question he'd have been shot dead years ago in the vestibule of some New York City apartment by the NYPD's Street Crimes Unit. After all, how could the cop be sure that toy gun he was bringing to the kid inside wasn't real? Better safe than sorry, and anyway, that bright red suit would make him a logical target, seeing as how red is the color favored by members of the Bloods street gang. But it wasn't this kind of irony about a black Santa that animated the comment I heard while strolling through the mall that day. No, it was pure racial resentment and nothing else leading the white woman, child in tow, to say to her friend, "don't you think it's silly to have these Black Santas? Everybody's trying to be so P.C. I mean, come on, a Black Santa? Everyone knows Santa is white." Her friend agreed. Everyone knows Santa (a make believe entity for those who haven't figured it out yet) is white. The insistence on the racial purity of this entirely fictional being struck me as hilarious, right up there with the folks who send get well cards to their favorite soap opera characters when they fall ill on the shows. Ronald and Nancy Reagan are reported to have done this once. Fantasy, reality, ah screw it, who cares? I'm starting to realize the awful truth, white people are certifiably insane. It all made sense though once I passed the woman and noticed the holiday stationary and cards in her bag. The ones with the calming, soothing face of Jesus staring back at me. You know the Jesus I'm talking about right? The one with the pale skin, blue eyes, and rock star good looks? Yeah, that one. The same Jesus that has occupied the minds of Western Christians for the last five centuries, ever since Michelangelo was commissioned to paint his image, and used his cousin as the model. My wife and I have received many a Christmas card this year, and as always, the representations of Jesus that adorn so many of them cast the Christian Messiah as nothing if not European. Now I know my gentile friends have that song, "A Child is Born in Bethlehem," but I never realized until now that they had meant Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, circa 1930.

[size=-2]Africa[/size] Silly me, but I always thought he was born in that part of the world we call the "Middle East," which, if we were being honest, we would easily recognize as basically a part of Africa, separated from the continent by the man made Suez Canal. And since first century Semites were quite a bit darker than the mostly European-derived Jewish communities of today, the odds of him looking the way he does in churches across America are slim and none. But don't tell that to most of his followers, especially the white ones.

[size=-2]Ancient Hebrews[/size] The suggestion that Jesus would have had dark enough skin to qualify as a person of color is about as blasphemous to most Christians as anything one could say. Of course, no one wants to admit their indignation at the notion, so they typically couch it in ecumenical platitudes like, "it doesn't matter what Jesus looked like, it only matters what he did."
OK, I'm down with that. Although not a Christian, I've always thought Jesus said and did some pretty exemplary stuff. So if it doesn't matter what he looked like, then why not make him black? I've asked this question when giving speeches on racism at religiously affiliated colleges, and let's just say, there's nothing like it if you're looking to see how fast you can get folks to start clearing their throats. Again they insist, "no you don't understand, it doesn't matter what he looked like, it's what he did." And again I repeat, O.K., fine, if it really doesn't matter then let's make him black, just for a year. Then you can change him back again if you really want to. No dice, and no takers. We go round and round, as white folks check their watches and try to figure out how they can leave the room without seeming to be rude. But let's be clear, the white iconography of Jesus that predominates in this culture makes absolutely no sense, except as an artifact of a white supremacist worldview. First off, the earliest representations of Jesus, Mary, and Christ's disciples appear in the catacombs of Rome, where offshoots of the Jewish sect known as the Essenes buried their dead. All of these portrayals picture a dark-skinned Jesus. In addition, many years after his death, the Roman Empire under Justinian II, minted a gold coin that pictured Jesus. This coin, which is displayed in the British Museum, shows a man with clearly non-white facial features and tightly curled hair, consistent with the description of Jesus offered in the Book of Revelations, wherein it is noted he had hair like wool, feet the color of burnt brass, and resembled jasper and sardine stones, both of which were brown in color.


[size=-2]Roman coin of Jesus[/size] Now I don't much care about the scriptural references myself, and far be it from me to insist on the infallibility of the Bible. But if the folks who swear that every word of it has to be accepted as literal don't also accept these descriptions, which clearly contradict the imagery on the Christmas cards and in the nativity scenes one sees everywhere at this time of year, then they are nothing if not hypocrites.
And don't forget, according to Biblical lore, when Jesus was born, Herod sent search parties out to find him and slay him as an infant. To hide the supposed Christ child, his family absconded with him to Egypt, and if there is one thing we can be pretty sure of, it's that one would not have been likely to try hiding an Aryan baby and family in pre-Arab Egypt, of all places.
This was, after all, a society comprised mostly of medium-to-dark-skinned Africans, as evidenced in their own hieroglyphs, visible in the tombs of Senwosret (Sesostris) I, and Ramses III, among others, and as made clear by the stone likeness of Narmer the Pharaoh of the first dynasty that has survived to this day. Indeed, the Egyptians had referred to their country as Kemet (the Black land) for thousands of years, and themselves as "Kemetcu" (the black humans). [size=-2]King Narmer[/size] The "father" of modern history, Herodotus [size=-2](1)[/size], himself acknowledged as much when he said that the Egyptians, like the Ethiopians had "thick lips, broad nose, wooly hair and are of burnt skin." Elsewhere, he actually referred to them as "black." Although there had been various incursions by lighter skinned folks into Egypt before the birth of Christ, namely the Persians, Assyrians and Greeks, it would only be with the Arab conquest in 639 that any real lightening of the nation's color scheme would take place. If Jesus had been white, Mary and Joseph would have put him on a slow boat to Iceland, not trekked to Egypt where finding them would have been like shooting fish in the proverbial barrel.
Of course, for some this will all seem absurd, maybe even sacrilegious. But if you really want to see absurd, go pick up Volume I of the Robert Maxwell Bible Stories Series for children, which I assure you, is sitting on a table in your pediatrician or gynecologist's waiting room right now. There you will find Adam and Eve depicted as if the Garden of Eden had been in Norway, despite the fact that Biblical scholars all agree the Garden, whether viewed as a literal place or as a fictional metaphor, was bordered by two rivers, the Biblical description of which only fits that of the Tigris and Euphrates, or perhaps the Blue and White Niles, none of which, last time I checked were in Scandinavia.
In fact, to the extent "black" skin cannot come from "white" skin (as the absence of melanin is a recessive trait), and to the extent geographic dispersal would not have been likely to darken previously fair-skinned persons to the extent we see the "blackest" on the planet, since by the time they could get that dark, third stage carcinoma would have long since killed them, there is only one possible conclusion to be reached, namely, anyone who accepts the Biblical account of creation must believe that "Adam and Eve" were absolutely coal black. Only from those original persons, of the darkest human shade imaginable, could lighter-skinned folks possibly come. Science virtually precludes it from working the other way around.
Some may ask what the point of all this is though frankly, it ought to be obvious. So long as our culture pictures Adam, Eve, Moses, Jesus, Mary, the Apostles, and even God "himself" as fair-skinned, despite the obvious preposterousness of such representations, we will continue to plant the seeds of racial supremacy in the hearts and minds of millions.
After all, to believe that divinity is white like you leads one to easily assume that others are somehow less complete, less than human. If God supposedly made man in his image, and God is always portrayed as a bearded white guy (kinda like Santa without the suit), how hard a leap is it, especially for children whose introduction to religion is always nine-tenths forced propaganda anyway, to assume that persons of color are somehow not full and equal "children of God?" Not to mention the sexist aspect of the male sky, God imagery, of course, which is a whole different can of worms.
So now that I have managed to piss everyone off, here's wishing you all a very merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Kwanzaa, Resplendent Ramadan, Super Solstice, and Terrific Tet. Now get out there and shop! And take that damned Swedish-looking angel off the top of your tree for God's sake. [size=-2]Notes:[/size] [size=-2]1. The History of Herodotus [[/size][size=-2]Multicultural Education Links][/size] Tim Wise is the Director of the newly formed Association for White Anti-Racist Education (AWARE) in Nashville, Tennessee. Mr. Wise is also a commentator with ZNet.org, a community of people committed to social change. He lectures across the country about the need to combat institutional racism, gender bias, and the growing gap between rich and poor in the United States. Mr. Wise has been called a "leftist extremist" by David Duke, "deceptively Aryan-looking" by a member of the Ku Klux Klan, and "the Uncle Tom of the white race," by right-wing author, Dinesh D' Souza. Whatever else can be said about him, his ability to make the right kind of enemies seems unquestioned. [size=-1]Give us your thoughts and opinions![/size] [size=-1]This article was published courtesy of Tim Wise.[/size][size=-1]Copyright © 2000 Tim Wise. All rights reserved by the author.[/size] [size=-1]This article was revised by Tim Wise in November, 2002[/size][size=-1]Graphics were added in February 2003[/size]

 

1. Judaism is not an ethnicity. There are Jews in Ethopia that are just as Jewish as ones from England.
2. I don't think that it is 'dumbing down'. It is being historically accurate. Lying, by misrepresenting historical events is a very dangerous road to go down. People do use it. I had a long talk with a Christian once who refused to believe that 'Jesus Christ' was not possibly his name. Do not over estimate our brainpower.
3. You seem to feel that there was no harm in teaching the blatant lie to little German school children, that they were the master race, and built the pyramids. I find that a 'tad' dangerous.
4. Yes, buffoonus, Egypt is 'technically' in Africa. What the hell is that. You begrudgingly accept geological fact? Where the hell should it be?
5. And re: Germans consulting. ha ha ha. The archeological record speaks for itself. They lived in mud huts at the time, maybe they consulted on the slaves quarters.
6. You are a racist, sir.

 

to my knowledge Jesus didn't have a color, but was a jew

 

jews are classed as a racial group and a religious group..

 

what? he was transparent?

My point is this, race is an arbitrary drawing of lines where it is truly impossible to draw any...we are one effin race, so, depicting this historical figure as being vermillion with peuce hair is fine by me. When I was 7, in sunday school, Jesus was European, Northern, blue eyes blond hair. That was no innocent aritistic licence, it was blatant racist indoctrination. It took me years before I even realized how prejudiced I had been. I still am in fact, according to a test I took in psychology. I am mildly biased in favor of whites. In my university class, that was rare, only a couple of us were mildly biased. I was actually surprised since for five years before that all my white friends and family had been calling me a traitor, and could not fathom my interracial relationship. It was not even a consideration for me, her skin color. Other than the rich beautiful dark tone, and smooth softness of it. Her religion worried me, and that was far more of a problem between us. Yet outside of our relationship, my world was filled with questions like, " Why didnt you pick a white girl."
"do you wish you were black." "you know, your kids will be teased in school."
and on and on. It is insane.

Here is a perfect example of blatant racism, and the racist likely doesnt even realize it.


'Unlikely they were Sub-Saharin Africans, although would be no surprise to find many of them in Eqypt too.
Its certainly possible there were Germanic peoples involved in the process of building Pyramids (consultants?) but I have personally never seen any reason to believe that.'

Okay, why the hell does 'sub saharan' need to be mentioned. I will tell you why, cuz they are blacker. Damn it, my ex partners heritage is 'Sub Saharan' you jerk.
So they are considered 'unlikely', even though they are right next door on the same effin continent, yet stone age mud hut dwellers from across the sea are considered "certainly possible', unfuckingbelievable. This is the kind of thinking that Rush Limbaugh does, and then spouts out as 'fact' to millions of listeners.
It is Goddamned dangerous, I cannot believe you don't see that.

I will grant you this one compliment, Brocktoon, your racist comments are very subtle. You would make a good Canadian, that is an art up here, as I have learned.

 

Really, describe the typical Jew then? What color is his skin, etc?
they are all colors, so if they are a racial group, we are all Jews.

 

It would be far too painful to even approach the baffling pseudo-rhetoric BlackGuard is on about but lets take this as an example:

"Okay, why the hell does 'sub saharan' need to be mentioned. I will tell you why, cuz they are blacker. Damn it, my ex partners heritage is 'Sub Saharan' you jerk.
So they are considered 'unlikely', even though they are right next door on the same effin continent, yet stone age mud hut dwellers from across the sea are considered "certainly possible', unfuckingbelievable. This is the kind of thinking that Rush Limbaugh does, and then spouts out as 'fact' to millions of listeners.
It is Goddamned dangerous, I cannot believe you don't see that."


Your reply is beyond 'Weird' and nearly Bizzaro

Here is what we DO know - Egypt was a massive metropolitan Super Centre.
There would most certainly be every 'Shade' of peoples walking the streets, doing business and touring Egypt at any given time.
Granted that.

Egypt is in North Africa.
North Africans are generally very 'Light'.
Yes, Arabs have mixed into the populations since 'Pyramid Days' but using by simply examining Mummies,
Reviewing statues,
examining the artwork..

Egyptians typically looked pretty similar then as they do today.

There is no doubt many Sub-Saharan Africans were in Eqypt and may very well had some part in the Pyramids.

Thats fine, but there is no real reason to believe people from below the Sahara travelled North to build the Pyramids.

Because they were black?

Errr.. no that wouldnt really have anything to do with it would it?

Probably because people dont necessarily travel across the Sahara to build Pyramids in someone elses country - then go back home when they are done.

Getting back to the original topic - Judaism is an ethnicity and Jesus was ethnically a Jew.
Jews may have had a 'typical' physical appearance but whether you like it or not - they could vary anywhere from dark black to light pink.

I will mention to African artists that 'BlackGuard' would like them to put a 'disclaimer' on any depictions of Jesus saying "dear children.. we portrayed Jesus as a black man but we are sorry for lying to you... he may not be black so dont think you are superior as Jesus because you look like him"

 

What i don't understand is who was Jesus' dad, I know Mary was his Mom, but where was the father....was he one of those deadbeat dads i keep hearing about?
Poor Joseph, got played for a fool.

 

All right, the Bible says he had woolly hair, and the feel of an afro is undeniably woolly, unlike any other hair.
You conveniently left out your 'certainly possible' claim about Germans coming down there to do consulting work, which I call at best Euro-centric, especially when you say it is unlikely that the same could be said for Sub Saharan Africans. Is Egypt in central Europe or Africa, and what was right on the southern border of egypt. Nubia!! Right there man, next door, or by Sub Saharan you meant something other than darker, as you try to weakly and vaguely say above. Your defense is priceless......er no. I am convinced now.
And about the Nubians going back home, next door. Some stayed, some even ruled Egypt, as you clearly have no clue. I didnt see any viking pharoahs though, and remember the other point I made about your extremely unconscious bias. The people in Germany at that time lived in mud huts.
Man, I give up.

 

Theres nothing to 'Give up' on.
You didn't mention Nubia and its Pyramids but great.
The Eqyptian 'Kingdom' was very impressive indeed.
Hey.. many archaeologists will point out the contributions Asians (Orientals) had in trade and travel with Eqypt.
Vikings seemed to have a good relationship with the region because they kept their pillaging to Europe.
They showed up in the Mediteranean in summertime and were mainly interested in taking home wives.

Personally.. i think its fair to say you, BlackGuard, are the real 'Racist' on this board.