Well,

I was trying to watch The History Channel's epic "The Bible", bracing myself for the new testament dramas. Intellectually, I know that there are no pictures of Jesus that he sat for to have made, no likeness carved into stone or fashioned into clay. Yet, it still bothers me how the media and the movie makers depict Mary, Joseph, and Jesus. I think it is because the depictions are not logical, and may actually be deceptive.

Probably one of the reasons I like the movie, "The Nativity", is that there was sincere effort to cast the parts of Mary and Joseph with sensitivity to the Bible's story. They were Jews who could identify as their ancestor King David. Thus, they were of the tribe of Judah. Joseph was a full-grown man, with an income and means to make a living. Mary was still a teen - of marriageable age - any where from 15 or 16 to 18-ish, in keeping with Jewish culture of the first century.

To fulfill Scripture, the one who would become the Messiah, must be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), must be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2-5a), must be of the ancestral line of Jesse, the father of the great King David (Isaiah 11:1-2; Luke 2:1-7) - thus, be a Jew by heritage, would have as an ancestor the Great Abraham (Genesis 22:18; Matthew 1:1-2). His appearance would not resemble a character walking around with a halo over his head, with blond hair and blue eyes. He instead would have darker coarse hair, dark eyes, a dark beard, and his exposed skin may have reflected the ruddiness of one who was out of doors much of the day. Thus, he would not look different from his fellow Jews, would have been identifiable as a Jew (Isaiah 53:1-2); his features were ordinary. He was just a face in the crowd of other Jewish men who eeked out a living under harsh Roman rule. (compare Luke 2:21-52; 3:1) In order to accomplish the great purpose of salvation for which purpose he came, Jesus had to be Jewish. He was not European, Eurasian, Euro-Judean, nor did he claim Roman citizenship.

True, what Jesus actually looked like is a mystery to us. How tall he was, what was the distance between his hairline and eyebrows, how he wore his hair, how thick his lips were, what his ears looked like, how his voice sounded, or how his laugh sounded are not known to us. And, true, his looks, per se, do not weigh in God's purpose for the Messiah or Christ, yet his heritage did. He was born a Jew of the tribe of Judah into a royal line, into the Jewish culture of the first century in Judea, of a Jewish mother. All of these characteristics are vital to understanding God's plan of salvation. (John 4:22) As followers of Christ, it can be helpful to know just a little something personal about the Lord we serve. When we look closely at his life, then measure it against Scripture, we may find more clarity as we read the Gospel accounts - find a clearer understanding of certain things he said. We may also get a better perspective on the epistles written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit by Paul and others in their discussion about Christ, about the law, about Jew vs. Gentile, etc.

I have a feeling that if this blog were actually read that there would be several persons who would disagree with the foregoing - in fact, some would say that of all the 'mullarky' I've penned in this blog, this is the most controversial! Which, well, would be understandable since from the time of the great painters and sculptors of Europe, portraiture of Jesus reflected a European heritage. That's what we grew up with; from my perspective, we lost so much truth as a result. I end with this thought: As an African-American woman, to be painted to resemble a European -- blond hair, blue eyes, pointed nose and thin lips - would be a distortion not just of my looks, but would give a false impression of my heritage and parentage, my culture. My story would look different, I would most certainly stand out in family portraits, as I would look distinctly different from the mother and father who bore me, and from the siblings also born to the same mother and father. The impact I would have and others would have because of me would give cause to pause - am I genuine? Well,