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TOPIC FOR DEBATE :: THE Renaissance Painters who painted Jesus White AND WHY >> (4874 hits)

Depictions of a Jesus with predominantly African features have existed for several centuries, such as those maintained by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church. Yet the widespread portrayal of a Black Jesus is relatively recent in Christian imagery. The late-20th and early-21st Centuries saw several examples of artists casting Jesus as black, including Vincent Barzoni's image of Jesus in the tradition of the "Man of Sorrows", and Janet Mackenzie's Jesus of the People.

Within the American pop culture milieu, the idea of a black Jesus has also been explored in both cinema and television. In 1992, Blair Underwood starred as Jesus in The Second Coming, in which Christ returns to earth in the form of a black man. The Kevin Smith film Dogma also satirically treats the idea of Jesus as black. The 1996 TV movie America's Dream includes a segment entitled "The Boy Who Painted Christ Black", based on a short story by John Henrik Clarke, about a school principal (Wesley Snipes) in 1940s Georgia torn between supporting the student who painted a black Jesus for entry into an art contest or appeasing the white state school supervisor (Timothy Carhart) who is offended by such a portrayal.[16][17] The cartoon series The Boondocks also regularly refers to competing concepts of a "black Jesus" and "white Jesus".

Posted By: DAVID JOHNSON
Friday, January 7th 2011 at 10:10PM
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BEFORE WE GET STARTED THIS IS A TOPIC FOR A BETTER UNDERSTANDING ABOUT JESUS AND HOW AND WHAT WAS HIS ROLL HERE ON EARTH THIS IS NOT TO BASH JESUS IF YOU POST ANY THING DISRESPECTFUL IT WILL BE DELETED QUICK FAST AND IN A HURRY !
Friday, January 7th 2011 at 10:14PM
DAVID JOHNSON

Artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Fra Angelico and Michelangelo all depicted Jesus as white. Nonetheless, it must be noted that most figures of the Bible, including the Israelites and Egyptians described in the Hebrew Scriptures (or Old Testament), were also portrayed as identical in appearance to European whites.[citation needed] In this sense the portrayal may be largely unselfconscious, as might also be the case even in periods with more prominent awareness of race, such as the 20th and 21st centuries.
Painting by Adolf Hyla depicting Saint Faustina's vision of Jesus. Images of a blue eyed and fair haired Jesus became increasingly common in Europe and America during late nineteenth century.

Because of the commonness of this depiction, it is often confused with historical fact. It has dispersed so widely that many cultures have at least to some extent assimilated the image of a white Jesus. Western Christians spread images of a European Jesus through their encounters with peoples of Africa, the Americas, Australia and parts of Asia (often through colonization), from the 16th to the 20th century. Many nonwhite regions and ethnicities have depicted Jesus in this way, sometimes routinely, though sometimes with partial adaptations to the local setting, including dress. Moreover, in addition to images, the fact that Christianity was predominantly introduced to them by white individuals makes the racial connection even more complex. Nonetheless, portrayal of Jesus with local features is also common, especially in areas where Christianity has been prominent for a longer period of history.

Additionally, in some cultures nonwhite depictions of Jesus are actually criticized or dismissed outright, with a few considering it blasphemous to portray of Jesus as being of another ethnicity. Ever since the Nazi claim that Jesus was Nordic, Christian white supremacists have commonly equated Christian identity with white racial separatism, sometimes using exegesis of Biblical passages to argue their position.
Friday, January 7th 2011 at 10:17PM
DAVID JOHNSON

It is almost impossible to understand the significance of many Old Testament events and themes apart from the geographical, cultural, and historical situation that existed during the Old Testament times. First of all, the name �Africa� was given to the Continent by Romans. Africa was also called Kemet, Libya, Ortegia, Corphye, Egypt, Ethiopia and/or Sedan, Olympia, Hesperia, Oceania, and Ta-Merry. The ancient name for Africa was �Akebu-Lan� (mother of mankind) or �Garden of Eden.� This name was used by the Moors, Nubians, Numidians, Khart-Hadddans (Carthaginians), and Ethiopians. Genesis 10:6-20 describes the descendants of Ham as being located in North Africa, Central Africa and in parts of southern Asia. Psalm 105:23 mentions the "Land of Ham" in Egypt, and Psalm 78:51 connect the "tents of Ham" with Egypt. In Genesis 10, Nimrod, son of Cush (whose name means "black"), founded a civilization in Mesopotamia. In Genesis 11, Abraham was from Ur of the Chaldees, a land whose earliest inhabitants included blacks.
Friday, January 7th 2011 at 10:19PM
DAVID JOHNSON

When James had the bible commissioned, it was done for several reasons. So, the statements mentioned about slaves in the bible had nothing to do with color. They were a conquored people too and they were not called slaves. Organized religion placed the interreputtion of the bible on to modern civilization and twisted it o support their agends. They changed the face of jesus and mary because they could not enslave the people who looked like their "God". No Christianity does not support slavery IF it is truly based on the techings of J.C. Those people who wrote the bible did not know there was an America, in fact, there wasn't one then!
Friday, January 7th 2011 at 10:25PM
DAVID JOHNSON

jesus is a latin name of european Origin

they painted a made up 'god' of their paganUnderstanding-----roman, greek, german, french, dutch or english----European---they added asia and african geographical areas that would DIVIDE the Family of Adaam(as) and latinized the Original person IsaIbnMaryam of Virgin-Pure birth.

jesus belongs to europeanPagan godFantasy.

they did not paint IsaIbnMaryam 'white' ---- they have No idea what this great Prophet of Monotheisism Actually Represents---

IsaIbnMaryam, the prophet of the Creator, belongs to Monotheistic Belief of The Family of Adaam throughout the Entire World.

Saturday, January 8th 2011 at 12:39PM
powell robert