The race of Jesus has been a hot button topic for years. We encourage readers to express their opinion at the end of this story (by clicking the comment link).
The race of Jesus has been a subject of debate since at least the 19th century. The physical appearance of Jesus of Nazareth was debated by theologians from early on in the history of Christianity, though with no explicit emphasis on race.
Different societies have depicted Jesus and most other biblical figures as their own ethnicity in their art; for example he is primarily white in the West. The current dominant opinion among historians and scientists is that he most likely a Galilean Jew and thus would have features which resemble modern-day persons of Middle Eastern or Semitic descent.
Others, however, have suggested other possible racial backgrounds. For some Christians the question is complicated by the belief that his birth was a unique miracle, an "incarnation in flesh of divine substance."
Your opinion?
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
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The exact race of Christ should not be important in light of the sacrifice He made for mankind. However when reading scripture accuracy is extremely important, the Bible reports that Jesus was born into a certain group of people at a certain time. It would have been a great distraction to Christ's ministry for Him not to look like the Jewish people which He was born into. Therefore I have to believe that bsed on the biblical account of Christ that his image was that of the Jewish lineage.
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