Winston Salem State University

Back to the Basics: Decoding the Original Race of Jesus

Amber Raiford
Christianity and Identity -HON1300-05
Cynthia Villagomez
5/06/2014

Within the wide aspects of religion, we are forced to believe and make assumptions based on the
things we are told. Although, some ideas are concrete, others are completely abstract. A prime
example of this is the controversy surrounding the race of Jesus. The reasoning behind the
controversy, is that people refute the idea, that Jesus belonged to Middle Eastern or Israeli
ancestry. To get a full understanding of this concept, the sources that were chosen incorporate all
aspects of the various beliefs and ideals regarding, the race of Jesus. The race of Jesus cannot be
determined, but assumed and the controversy of this matter shows how easily history can be
altered and in some cases, completely changed.
There are two different arguments regarding the true color of Jesus. On one side, theologist and
scholars are studying biblical text, to see if it reveals Jesuss true identity. However, on the other
side of the spectrum, scholars are looking at the impact that media, art, and language affected our
beliefs that Jesus is white, black or a color at all. In order to get a full understanding, it is
important to analyze the text of Jesus; which is also known as the Holy Bible. The bible itself
does not talk about race, mainly because during this time period, it simply was not significant.
While, it references appearance, there is no separation between ethnicities in the bible. It
emphasizes spirituality equality and the belief that no matter where we come from, we all belong
to the family of god. From a scholarly standpoint, there very few resources from a biblical
standpoint of Jesus racial history.
Color of Christ by Edward Blum, gave great insight of the race of Jesus and how it
evolved. A recurring theme that is used in the book is the Sixteenth Street Church Bombing, in
1963. Some blacks are quoted as losing their faith that day, since the White Jesus on the stained

glass window did not help them that day. They proclaimed that Jesus must be white and on the
sides of whites. Despite all the events that took place, the bombing was the turning point in the
Civil Right Movement. I chose this piece because of its relativity to black religion and the race of
Jesus. Anyone who studies history should realize that Jesus was not from Europe and although he
may not have been 100% African, we can all agree that he would look Middle Eastern. This same
way that Jesuss image changed, is the same way that the bible changed. With versions such as
King James, the Holy Scripture was altered to meet the standards of the King.
Blums thesis is Americans have used white Jesus to justify slavery and racism, in order
to accommodate their agenda. Over time, this transformed into the White Jesus that we see in
movies, books and all over media. The authors main purpose is to share the facts about Jesus
and Christianity from a non-biblical standpoint. Color of Christ is very accurate in showing the
role we as a society play in religion. Blum seemed comfortable and confident in this writing tell
and you can tell he does so by reaching the reader. I especially liked the fact that he talked about
Todays Media misconception of Jesus and how he is portrayed as a white man with blue eyes in
movies such as Passion of the Christ and Noah. Not only did we change this idea of Jesus but
also we are still reinforcing it today. Blum notes that Christ has been on a racial journey ever
Christopher Columbus discovered America. During the early 1900s, anything that was not
depicted at White Jesus was criticized. Inside the race to resurrect Jesus Onscreen, was

another article that was used, not only as a source, but to give more perspective to my
research. This article shares information about Jesuss appearance in 21 st Century movies,
regarding his life and death. Today, Media is the biggest influence on us and Americans and
helps shape our ideals about the things around us.

Jeffrey Siker, is the author of Siker Historicizing a Racialized Jesus: Case Studies in

the "Black Christ," the "Mestizo Christ," and White Critique. Siker brings up another
important question by asking what exactly is race and how was in constructed. In the 21 st
Century, most racial assumptions are based on outward appearance and secondly, the public
actions of the individual. If we found out Jesuss true race, would over faith dwindle or
ultimately be changed forever?
An interesting facet of this article was Sikers take on the race of Jesus as a white
man. He understands the recognizes the idea of white privilege and white critique. He
describes white privilege as invisible air and chokes Black and Latino people. However,
whites remained unbothered by the air and oblivious to the system that has been set in
place.
It is interesting to see is critique from another racial standpoint. Siker recognizes that
the white privilege is not just surface deep. It lies in power that it has. Those who believe
Jesus was white feel closer to him and subsequently feel an influence over the minorities
who cannot relate, simply because they are told Jesus does not look like them.
Siker sites numerous people including James Cone; a father of black theology, that the Jesus
concept of Ideological Move and Theological Interpretation. Cone highly disputes the idea
that Jesus was white and focuses his argument on the state Jesus was in before he died. Jesus
embodies those who are poor and oppressed. He also presents arguments from Virgilio
Elizondo, a pastoral theologian, who identifies with and represents the Mexican-American
community. Elizondo creates a string point in saying that Jesus was a Galilean Jew, which
meant there was a great mix of cultures from the surrounding areas. Although they came

from the surrounding areas, they didnt identify fully with the Jews or Gentile, simply
because they were despised by both. (Siker 2007) They believed they were in the middle of
the two. Both Cone and Elizondo are minorities, but they also represent the idea that black,
white and Hispanic all want to be able to relate to Jesus and be closer to him in their faith.
Even though, Cone and Elizondo are different in argument, they both state facts in describing
the life of Jesus.
Nobody knows exactly what Jesus looks like except for the people that saw him for
themselves. The amount of power Jesus had and still has, outweighs any race that we think he is
or can imagine him to be. We are focused more on his outward appearance, instead of what he
actually did for the world. But most people dont think to make these conclusions, therefore they
are spoon-fed to believe everything that are taught no matter how right or wrong it is.
It not only makes the reader think but believe that what we conceptualized over the past
one thousand years, isnt always the honest truth. It shows the role that Early European and
Americans play in shaping the idea of Jesus into this solid object. Color of Christ merely focuses
on right vs. wrong and digs deep into the process that make us believe a certain thing is so, not
only as it relates to Christ, but in the world in general. When asked in an interview what he
thinks Jesus looks like, Blum declares that he believe Jesus would not be represented by one
color but all colors. He also mentioned that early Christians noted as not being able to get a
distinct view of Jesus but those who saw him, say he was indescribable. In the book, he notes
that, the early puritans who were here when America was first founded did not want to see any
images of Jesus. If there were images of Jesus around this time, they were iconoclasm; or drawn
red to represent the blood of Jesus. Also, he states that they would have used images from the

Roman Catholic Church and not the Westernized Jesus, we all see today. Blum really pushed the
idea that White Jesus only became relevant when it was to validate actions.

This created a struggle between races and especially upon blacks and white. This
division of religion still exist today. Activists like MLK, have made many comments on the
subject matter, and believe the world will be past segregation, when the churches are no
longer separated by color. Sikers article is very similar to Blums Color of Christ. It follows
the same narrative of determining where exactly we created this idea of a white Jesus and if
we can actually prove Jesus had a race. While both sources follow the same theme, both
pieces, show two different arguments as well. While Color of Christ, focuses on the white
perspective in its narrative; Sikers article acknowledges other racial standpoints.
The meat of Blums argument is where he talks about White People using white Jesus as
a way to justify slavery and racial segregation. He says that White Jesus was used to tell
slaves, slavery was good and useful for America. The same way he was used during the time of
the Civil Rights Movement. He even mentioned, a time when the KKK re-created biblical scenes
in order to validate when they had been doing. Another piece to this that I found to be interesting
was the idea of race, and how it was configured to meet the needs of White Supremacy. Race in
general is a complicated topic to dissect, because of its gray area that it entails. Today, America
still struggles with the idea of race, but some act as if, we are defined by our skin color. Not
realizing that all problems and disputes that come about from race, are problem we create,
because we emphasize color so much.

If you look at where Jesus was born, from a geographical standpoint, most would
assume that he was Israeli or Middle Eastern. But because race is fluid and a human concept,

there is no way to actually tell what race Jesus Christ is. We can only assume and make
presumptions because we urn to know what he truly is.
One major problem about the topic, is whether or not it can be supported based on
sufficient evidence. Although many have researched the true religion of Christ, there is no
concrete evidence of the race of Jesus. Yet we still have many images of a White or
Black Jesus in the media today. Siker made the point that other images were being created
as well; such as a Green Jesus who was created for those who believe in Environmental
Theology. The ideal behind the race of Jesus continues to evolve, which ultimately creates a
more imaginative description of Jesus. As Christians, there must be some type of conviction
that comes with the modification of such an important religious figure.
One of the primary causes of belief that Jesus was white, was the artwork that created
during the after the death of Jesus Christ. The most influential would have to be the artwork
that was created by the Europeans King and Queens during the time of their reign. Even the
text of the bible was translated in English, altering the true text of the bible and losing
meanings that were not able to translate. The first strong point that Siker, acknowledged was
prevalence of Western Christian Theology especially in its relation to art. He states that Jesus
has been Re-Colored and Re-Racialized. (Siker, 2007) He also mentions that every racial
group is divine and believes that they are like Jesus as he is like them. We then begin, to see
this changed image of Jesus, from being a mysterious being, to a tangible person. When we
look at paintings and portraits of famous figures in history, we find that most of the painters
were European. I believe the European Kings and Queens, had an influence on the portraits
that were painted. These paintings were also the opinion of the artist, yet we rely on them
today. One of the first sources that caught my attention was the Color of Christ by Edward

Blum. His attention was on the ideals that there was no way to truly determine the race of
Jesus and this idea that he was white was conceptualized largely based on European Art.
For many people it gave them a sense of hope, knowing that they could relate to who they
believed in. Remarkably, other ethnic groups started doing the same.
The crucial point is that humans have changed the image of a person who said to be
one of the most important people in the world (depending on your religion.) We have
accepted this change and continue to believe that Jesus was born in Europe and is of
European Descent. After investigation we can acknowledge that this is indeed false, but at
what point we stop to realize the power that the media and our history shape how we look at
things. Many years later, after the death of Jesus, we find it relevant to argue about his
background. It makes one realize that our history can be so easily altered and remain that
way. Moving forward, there must be a change in ourselves especially in the United States, in
uncovering why we have molded Jesus into being a Caucasian man. Movies, Songs and even
childrens book all have these images of a God that was created.

Bibliography
Edward J Blum is currently a professor at the University of Kentucky and has written
several award-winning books on the topics of Race, Religion, and America. He has been
acclaimed to be one of the top young historians on his time. The biggest aspect that Blum brings
to the book is his non-bias opinion about race. Color of Christ is written flawlessly that you
easily forget his racial background, and it does not matter. This is the first time I have seen
someone write a book about Christ that is not from a biblical standpoint, at it be effective.

Historicizing a Racialized Jesus: Case Studies in the "Black Christ," the "Mestizo
Christ," and White Critique. It was written by Jeffrey Siker. The article was written in 2007,
and can be found in Biblical Interpretation, an academic journal surrounding the topic of
Biblical Studies. Jeffrey S. Siker is a professor at Loyola Marymount University in Los
Angeles, CA. in 1976, He received his Bachelors degree in Religious Studies at Indiana
University, a Masters degree in Divinity from Yale and finally a theological degree from
Princeton University. HE began teaching theology in 1987. Siker has published five religion
books and has written over 20 articles as well.