Why do Christians think Jesus was white? He was Jewish and looked Jewish!?

Question

And Jews are not white. They are middle-eastern, closer to Palestinian than anything.

Ok Sederian, he was a spirit? Actually he was a Jewish Carpenter who did exist. Weather you believe he "walked on water" or not, thats up to the relig. nuts.

Answer 1

I thought he was black

Answer 2

Most Christians believe Jesus was white because by the time the Catholic Church began to make its dominance most Jews that were seen were european descent and were light in skin color. The Catholic church therefore fashioned icons, pictures and statues in european skin tone since the church had most of the religious power of the time coming out of Europe instead of the Middle East. This perception has kept going until this day in most christian faiths except some african american and middle eastern majority churchs that print pictures of Jesus in darker skin color. Most Jewish people of the time were olive skin as is most middle east Jews are today.

Answer 3

Nobody knows what Jesus looked like. Artists have pretty much depicted him as they imagined hiim to be. Also remember that being dark skinned, dark haired, dark eyed was looking too much like a moor (arab or muslim) and for an artist that was not a popular image to paint of Christ for the western world.

If you check out images of Byzantine Christs you will find dark haired Christs, in the Middle Ages it changed more and more, but as time went by, and Christianity influenced the west, artists looking for commissions to paint for the wealthy or the church (they always needed patrons to survive) had to conform to accepted styles for depicting Jesus, or they would not work at all.

For a looooong time, the blond-blue eyed caucasian image of Jesus was preferred because they have always been appealing and because they could be made to look more angelic, and that was what Christ was all about, being the good guy caught in a world full of evil, he had to be a shining beacon, thus an acceptable image was needed.
Remember also, that distances were enormous and people were pretty much ignorant about what happened in other places of the world, so they imagined that it was pretty much like their own. When I was a kid I remember it was entirely normal to see Xmas cards with the manger scene and snow all around. To my knowledge, in Bethlehem it does not snow.

Talk about stereotypes.

Today scientists have given us a picture of the type of person Jesus might have looked like. I think it is closer to the truth. Unfortunately many people still find that unacceptable. By the way, Jews can be blond, redheads, or dark haired, light skinned or dark skinned, light eyed or dark eyed, that´s stereotyping again, let's not fall for that.

Hope it helps.

Answer 4

He was Hebrew.

The true Hebrew bloodline is in Israel, the tribe of Judah, the fig tree Jesus spoke of, and it was planted in 1948. Some of the Jews in Israel aren't from the bloodline of Judah but were proselytized into the Jewish religion. Judah and Judaism are not the same. One is a bloodline another is a religion. Jesus made this very clear.

There are 10 other Hebrew tribes, who became "many nations" just as Abraham was promised they would. They are not 'lost' except to themselves. God knows exactly who they are.

Exactly who they are and what color they are is easy to recognize when you have eyes to see and ears to hear.

Answer 5

He probably was middle eastern looking if anything. The guy walked around in the desert preaching for most of his life, you can't tell me he wouldn't have gotten a nice golden tan, and last I checked they didn't have razors back then. So maybe picture Osama without the turban. And why don't we picture him like that? Because it's hard to build a religion on a guy that looks nothing like the natives of the area where the religion got most of it's original followers (Europe).

Answer 6

Jews are certainly NOT all white. Jesus was most like darker skinned with dark brown hair and eyes. But sadly that didn't suit the Catholic and later the Protestant Churches who insisted he be more white, blue eyed. Its sad and I don't believe he should have pictures up at all, after all it detracts from what he did, which is what he would want us to study and remember.

Answer 7

Well I'm black I am don't beleive that Jesus is white or black. That's one lie that I never beleived. Some people seem to feel that they are of a superior race and so they just decided to make God white. It dosen't matter what color he is but there will be a lot of mad white people if and when they reach the pearly gates if he/ she isn't white.

Answer 8

Last time I checked...most of the Jewish people over in Israel were pretty white. But maybe it was different 2000 years ago?

Answer 9

Most jewish people look white. However, the blonde, blueeyed pictures you see everywhere, ard just regional representations of what the artist thought he might look like.Mostwere painted by people who had never been to the holy land.

Answer 10

Jesus is the image of all people silly. Some (I said SOME) Christians have narrow minds and only read in the Old & New Testament of what they want too read. As for his image, I've seen him of all ethnic groups. He's like a cameleon.

Answer 11

Most of the Jews I know are white. My supervisor's Jewish and she has blonde hair and blue eyes.