Physical appearance of Jesus.

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Christina

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HISTORICAL DOCUMENT THE PHYSICAL APPEARANCE OF JESUSThis a reprint of a letter from Pontius Pilate to Tiberius Caesar describing the Physical appearance of Jesus. Copies are in the Congressional Library in Washington. TO TIBERIUS CAESAR: A young man appeared in Galilee preaching with humble unction, a new law in the Name of the God that had sent Him. At first I was apprehensive that His design was to stir up the people against the Romans, but my fears were soon dispelled. Jesus of Nazareth spoke rather as a friend of the Romans than of the Jews. One day I observed in the midst of a group of people a young man who was leaning against a tree, calmly addressing the multitude. I was told it was Jesus. This I could easily have suspected so great was the difference between Him and those who were listening to Him. His golden colored hair and beard gave to his appearance a celestial aspect. He appeared to be about 30 years of age. Never have I seen a sweeter or more serene countenance. What a contrast between Him and His bearers with their black beards and tawny complexions! Unwilling to interrupt Him by my presence, I continued my walk but signified to my secretary to join the group and listen. Later, my secretary reported that never had he seen in the works of all the philosophers anything that compared to the teachings of Jesus. He told me that Jesus was neither seditious nor rebellious, so we extended to Him our protection. He was at liberty to act, to speak, to assemble and to address the people. This unlimited freedom provoked the Jews-not the poor but the rich and powerful. Later, I wrote to Jesus requesting an interview with Him at the Praetorium. He came. When the Nazarene made His appearance I was having my morning walk and as I faced Him my feet seemed fastened with an iron hand to the marble pavement and I trembled in every limb as a guilty culprit, though He was calm. For some time I stood admiring this extraordinary man. There was nothing in Him that was repelling, nor in His character, yet I felt awed in His presence. I told Him that there was a magnetic simplicity about Him and His personality that elevated Him far above the philosophers and teachers of His day. All in all, He made a deep impression upon me and everyone because of His kindness, simplicity, humility and love. Now, Noble Sovereign, there are the facts concerning Jesus of Nazareth and I have taken the time to write you in detail concerning these matters. I say that such a man who could convert water to wine, change death into life, disease into health; calm the stormy seas, is not guilty of any criminal offense and as others have said, we must agree - truly this is the Son of God! Your Most obedient servant, PONTIUS PILATE --------------------------------------------------------------------------------A DESCRIPTION OF JESUS CHRIST The following description of Jesus Christ was written by Publius Lentrelus, (spelling may not be correct as writing was indistinct) a resident of Judea in the reign of Tiberius Caesar, to the monarch in Rome. It first appeared in the writings of Saint Anselm of Canterbury in the eleventh century: "There lives at this time in Judea a man of singular virtue whose name is Jesus Christ, whom the barbarians esteem as a prophet, but his followers love and adore him as the offspring of the immortal God He calls back the dead from the graves and heals all sorts of diseases with a word, or touch. He is a tall man, well-shaped, and of an amiable and reverend aspect; his hair of a color that can hardly be matched, falling into graceful curls, waving about and very agreeable crouching upon his shoulder, parted on the crown of the head, running as a stream to the front after the fashion of the nazarites. His forehead high, large and imposing; his cheeks without spot or wrinkle, beautiful with a lovely red; his nose and mouth formed with exquisite symmetry; his beard, and of a color suitable to his hair, reaching below his chin and parted in the middle like a fork; his eyes bright blue, clear and serene. Look innocent, dignified, manly and mature. In proportion of body and most perfect, and captivating; his arms and hands delectable to behold. He rebukes with majesty, councils with mildness, His whole address whether in word or deed, being eloquent and grave. No man has seen him laugh, yet his manners are exceedingly pleasant, but he has wept frequently in the presence of men. He is temperate, modest and wise. A man for his extraordinary beauty and perfection, surpassing the children of men in every sense.
 

Red_Letters88

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Very very interesting read and find Kriss. One question though- how valid are these outside of the Christian community?
 

Christina

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Very very interesting read and find Kriss. One question though- how valid are these outside of the Christian community?
I have know idea just found it and thought it intersting so thought I'd share Ive wonder where the Congressional Library got them ?
 

tim_from_pa

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Kriss--- you are coming up with a goldmine of interesting topics today!!
smile.gif
I heard stories about Joseph of Arimathea taking an auburn hair lad with him to Britain while he was in the tin trade. Of course the Da Vinci code people believe that was Jesus' son, but I think it was Jesus himself considering the missing years between age 12 and 30 (I think the Da Vinci folks just stole the legend and twisted it to their ideas). This makes sense to me since His Father David was described as "fair and Ruddy" (like any good Irish kid)!
 

Christina

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Kriss--- you are coming up with a goldmine of interesting topics today!!
smile.gif
I heard stories about Joseph of Arimathea taking an auburn hair lad with him to Britain while he was in the tin trade. Of course the Da Vinci code people believe that was Jesus' son, but I think it was Jesus himself considering the missing years between age 12 and 30 (I think the Da Vinci folks just stole the legend and twisted it to their ideas). This makes sense to me since His Father David was described as "fair and Ruddy" (like any good Irish kid)!
Yes I have heard the same stories about Jesus and his uncle JosephLOL....Thats because Im home at my computer chair instead off babysitting where Ive been for the last two weeks. And you know keeping you all informed is my life:)
 

tomwebster

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Yes I have heard the same stories about Jesus and his uncle JosephLOL....Thats because Im home at my computer chair instead off babysitting where Ive been for the last two weeks. And you know keeping you all informed is my life:)
Check out, "St. Joseph of Arimathea at Glastonbury", by Lionel Smithett Lewis p. 155-159
 

tim_from_pa

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Another book that you probably have or at least know about is the "The Traditions of Glastonbury" by E. Raymond Capt. I have that book and that's where I first heard of it years ago, and then one can find sources of these traditions here on the Internet as well.I trust Capt's work and assessment of the evidence because he was in the archaeological field for more than 40 years.
 

Jake99

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Jesus did not have a last name of Christ and his actions overturning the tables of the moneychangers and salesman in the temple of God speaks of him being legally rebellious. Only an idiot does things that can get him convicted of crimes but a wise man like Jesus would step on the line between demonstration and crime as often as possible.
 

tim_from_pa

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Jesus did not have a last name of Christ and his actions overturning the tables of the moneychangers and salesman in the temple of God speaks of him being legally rebellious. Only an idiot does things that can get him convicted of crimes but a wise man like Jesus would step on the line between demonstration and crime as often as possible.
Nice thought, but I'm not sure what this has to do with the subject at hand being his physical appearance.
 

Letsgofishing

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"His whole address whether in word or deed, being eloquent and grave. No man has seen him laugh, yet his manners are exceedingly pleasant, but he has wept frequently in the presence of men."This sentence really struck me, i think its because its so similar to what I sense about Jesus when i am in his presence.Sense?? is that the right word, or maybe envision, or know or....I can't put that feeling into word....He was truly an incredible man...and is an incredible God.
 

AJG

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The way Jesus is described in the bible I believe he was a man of color. "Hair of wool and skin of bronze."
 

cedarhart

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These are some notes that I found from a while back. The sites listed are for reference only and not necessarilly any recommendation for them. Just very interesting. Did Jesus Have Long Hair? http://www.gnmagazine.org/booklets/JC/huma...ng_longhair.htm Most people assume that Jesus had long hair. After all, that's the way they've always seen Him portrayed in every painting, drawing or movie. That's the only Jesus they've ever seen. But are those depictions accurate? The fact is, we don't know what Jesus looked like, because the first depictions of Him weren't done until hundreds of years later. Thus every image we've ever seen of Him is based solely on artists' imaginations. While we don't know what Jesus looked like, we do know that He didn't look like the common depictions of Him with long hair. After all, this same Jesus inspired the apostle Paul to write in 1 Corinthians 11:14: "Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him?"A Feb. 24, 2004, Associated Press article reports: "'Jesus didn't have long hair,' said physical anthropologist Joe Zias, who has studied hundreds of skeletons found in archaeological digs in Jerusalem. 'Jewish men back in antiquity did not have long hair.' 'The Jewish texts ridiculed long hair as something Roman or Greek,' said New York University's Lawrence Schiffman" ("Jesus Scholars Find Fault in Gibson's 'Passion'"). However, it wasn't at all typical among even the Greeks and Romans, as plenty of statues and coins from the time attest. http://www.thercg.org/articles/djhlh.htmlMany have been taught that Jesus had long hair. Does the Bible say this? Some men try to justify having long hair by saying, “It’s okay for my hair to be long because Christ’s was.” Others contend that Christ had long hair because he was a “Nazarite.”Song of Solomon 5 (Represents a love story of Christ and His Church)10 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. 11 His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. (Many have thought that this is describing His hair as bushy like layers of the Ravan's wing and may have been "and as a black ravan".) 12 His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. 13 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. 14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. 15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. 16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. 119'adamaw-dam' to show blood (in the face), i.e. flush or turn rosy:--be (dyed, made) red (ruddy).132'admoniyad-mo-nee' or (fully) admowniy {ad-mo-nee'}; from ''adam' (119); reddish (of the hair or the complexion):--red, ruddy.Esau had red hair. Christ is from the line of David from the line of Adam. The Bible is a biography of one man's family to the Birth of Christ. But Christ's hair length is still debatable and I feel that one needs to consider the history of the Romans.The Nazarites had long hair but Christ was a Nazarine. This is sometimes used as stating that Christ had long hair.Just ran across this:King David: Meaning: beloved - As to his personal appearance, we only know that he was red-haired, with beautiful eyes and a fair face (1 Sam. 16:12; 17:42).16:12 And he sent,4 and brought him in.55 Now he [was] ruddy, [and] withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the LORD said,4 Arise,3 anoint3 him: for this [is] he.17:42 And when the Philistine looked about,55 and saw4 David, he disdained4 him: for he was [but] a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. 132'admoniyad-mo-nee' or (fully) admowniy {ad-mo-nee'}; from ''adam' (119); reddish (of the hair or the complexion):--red, ruddy.op: Others contend that Christ had long hair because he was a “Nazarite.” CD: Which is a mistake. Nazarites are a sect of Judaeism; Nazarenes are from Nazareth. Joe replies: In Hebrew the word for Nazarite is נזיר nazir but the word for Nazarene is נצרי Notsri. They are different words. And also a Nazarite such as Samson or John the Baptist did not drink wine but Jesus did - He even turned water into wine.
 

excepttruth

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We do know that the scriptures tells us a lot of His inter being, but I could not find much other than this on His Phisical appearance "Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him., nothing in His appearance that we should desire Him." (Isa. 53: 2) I think we can agree that God was more conncern with us knowing the inter being of Jesus than the Physical earthly body. However, Concerning Jesus in His glory. Well we all have read the many discriptions.
 

cedarhart

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That must be during His "lanky" puberty and adolescence as we all are somewhat hideous. But "not drawn to Him" is not the Christ that I know. He was made perfect in all ways. When He was seen, people flocked to Him and were in awe of His sheer presence.
 

excepttruth

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That must be during His "lanky" puberty and adolescence as we all are somewhat hideous. But "not drawn to Him" is not the Christ that I know. He was made perfect in all ways. When He was seen, people flocked to Him and were in awe of His sheer presence.
LOL. You may be right about His teenage years. Lol. However, if you believe He was made perfect in all ways and implying that it also included good phisical looks. Then had also had to be a good looking teenager. LOL. However, the scripture I quoted is implying that people were not drawn to him by His phisical appearance as the gosples have given acount to. They were drawn by His words of truth. Some were drawn to hate Him and others were drawn to follow Him, because of the things He was stating of the kindom of God and who He claimed to be. Some believed Him to be the Son of God (the Messiah) in whom Moses and the prophets wrote about and followed and other rejected Him even to were some hated him to want Him killed. Not because of His looks, or even by the miracles He performed, but by what he had spoken. The truth of His kingdom and of Himself and His relationship with His Father.
 

cedarhart

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You are ignoring the Scriptures and historical documents that have been given. Especially pertinent is Song of Solomon which describes perfection in beauty and love. He was not dark skinned or hair as it states that Adam, David, and others in the line, were fair with red hair and or ruddy complexion, meaning able to flush red in the face. This alone indicate that he was fair. This family that was singled out for a lineage to Christ had distinguished physical features and a pure bloodline to Christ. Heritage and Scripture indicates His general appearance. He was perfect in all ways and was quite the social butterfly. God was "not more concerned about us knowing His physical body". That's why there is hardly anything written about it. But much is written regarding Him, Himself as pure love and compassion who represented God and His Kingdom.