The definition of the word art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. Religious art was created in order to inspire and uplift.
Over the years the primary look of religious symbols and art have reflected the Anglo-Saxon, blond, blue eyed variety. It was very rare that art strayed from the typical expected paintings and sculptures. This was something that we believed. The truth is that as early as the 14th Century art showed diversity. It wasn’t that the art had not been created. It was just not shown. There have been findings that as early as the 14th century artwork displayed African Americans in icons. In the last few years, there has been a great deal of debate on what Jesus Christ looked like. Many people refer to Revelation 1:13–16 as specific information on what Jesus Christ physically looked like. A few years ago there was even a television documentary that aptly described the many face of Christ and took into consideration the influences of where certain art was created.
Debate on the color of Jesus’ skin has often resulted from interpretations of various darkly-colored, aged depictions of Jesus’ mother Mary, referred to as the Black Madonna. Another catalyst for such debate can be found in the Philippines, where, in the nation’s capital, Manila, an image of the Black Nazarene carrying the cross is revered by thousands of devotees. Read more…
