Depiction of Jesus
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
"Jesus was born at Nazareth, a small town of Galilee, which before his time had no celebrity."--The Life of Jesus (1863) by Ernest Renan "In this place known as Golgotha, many have met the same cruel fate and many others will follow them, but this naked man, nailed by hands and feet to a cross, the son of Joseph and Mary, named Jesus, is the only one whom posterity will remember and honor by inscribing his initials in capitals."--The Gospel According to Jesus Christ (1991) by José Saramago |
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The depiction of Jesus in art took several centuries to reach a conventional standardized form for his physical appearance, which has subsequently remained largely stable since that time. Most images of Jesus have in common a number of traits which are now almost universally associated with Jesus, although variants are seen.
The image of a fully-bearded Jesus with long hair did not become established until the 6th century in Eastern Christianity, and much later in the West. Earlier images were much more varied. Images of Jesus tend to show ethnic characteristics similar to those of the culture in which the image has been created. Beliefs that certain images are historically authentic, or have acquired an authoritative status from church tradition, remain powerful among some of the faithful, in both Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism. The Shroud of Turin is now the best-known example, though the Image of Edessa and the Veil of Veronica were better known in medieval times.
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Art
There has been a long tradition of featuring Jesus in paintings and sculpture, ranging from the Roman catacombs and the conservative icon tradition of the Orthodox world through medieval altarpieces to modern acrylics. Many images depict the Life and Passion of Christ, especially the Crucifixion of Christ, whilst others show the infant Christ with his mother (Madonna and Child) or Christ in Majesty. Many of the most famous paintings in Western art feature Christ. The tradition continues in professional and folk art in many countries, as well as popular commercial imagery. Most images, whatever their origins, (as left) keep fairly close to the conventional appearance (and clothing) of Christ established in Byzantine art by about 400AD, which is now instantly recognisable.
Protestant Christians (following reformers such as John Calvin and Zwingli) frequently reject many depictions of Jesus as a form of idolatry (cf the Ten Commandments).
Books
- According to Mary Magdalene by Marianne Fredriksson (1999)
- Behold the Man by Michael Moorcock (1966)
- Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace (1880)
- The Big Fisherman by Lloyd C. Douglas (1959)
- The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare (1961)
- The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (1880)
- Casca: The Eternal Mercenary by Barry Sadler (1979)
- Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt by Anne Rice (2005)
- Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana by Anne Rice (2008)
- The Day Christ Died by Jim Bishop (1957)
- The Day Christ Was Born by Jim Bishop (1960)
- Godbody by Theodore Sturgeon (1986)
- The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by José Saramago (1991)
- The Gospel According to the Son by Norman Mailer (1999)
- The Gospel of Aphranius by Kiril Yeskov (1996)
- The Gospel of Corax by Paul Park (1996)
- The Holy Bible by Various writers
- I, Judas by Taylor Caldwell with Jess Stearn (1977)
- Judas Iscariot by Leonid Andreev
- Judas, My Brother by Frank Yerby (1964)
- King Jesus by Robert Graves (1947)
- Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore (2001)
- The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis (1951)
- The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (1967)
- Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice (1995)
- My Name Was Judas by C. K. Stead (2006)
- The Nazarene by Sholem Asch (1939)
- Only Begotten Daughter (1990) and The Godhead Trilogy (1994-1999) by James Morrow
- Quarantine by Jim Crace (1997)
- Riverworld by Philip José Farmer
- The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas (1942)
- The Secret Magdalene by Ki Longfellow (2005)
- Testament by Nino Ricci (2002)
- The Urantia Book Authorship assisted by William S. Sadler (1955)
- The Wild Girl aka The Secret Gospel of Mary Magdalene by Michèle Roberts (1984)
- Yahushuwa`: A Midrash by Edmund Camacho (2007)
Music
Gospel music has remained a strong pop element in the music of religious America, of which Jesus is a frequent topic.
There have been significant (and successful) attempts to incorporate Jesus in current popular music trends, from rock to hip-hop. This incorporation happens on three different levels:
- Bands or artists who focus almost entirely on Jesus/Christianity. Most of these bands are in support of it, and their music will almost always deal with spiritual themes. A few detractors may critique, attack, or ridicule Christianity and Jesus.
- Songs that deal with Jesus/Christianity. Bands or artists may not be religious at all, but they will still produce a song (or songs) in reference to Jesus. The songs may deal with Jesus/Christianity in a positive light (e.g., "Have A Talk With God" by Stevie Wonder), a negative light (e.g., "Heresy" by Nine Inch Nails or the logan used by the Anarcho-punk band Crass who used the slogan "Jesus died for his own sins, not mine"), or just as a tool to help provide commentary on modern society (e.g., "Jesusland" by Ben Folds).
- A simple reference to Jesus in a song. Many artists/bands will use a line in a song to show that they are Christian, but the song will have nothing to do with religion. Hip-hop artists will often give a "shout-out" to "the LORD", "Jesus", and other aspects of Christianity as well.
During the 1970s, the "Jesus Movement" produced many songs on the theme, and there have been many bands since then, both Christian and secular, which have done likewise.
Not to mention thousands upon thousands of classical works written by composers of all time periods.
Film
The religious or biblical epic was a popular genre in the 1950s usually accompanied by towering budgets and names such as Charlton Heston, Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr, or Yul Brynner.
The ensuing decade brought an attempt by a major studio to produce a religious epic in which the Christ Event was its singular focus. MGM released King of Kings in 1961, inspired by Cecil B. DeMille`s 1927 film The King of Kings. Critics suggested the film should have been titled I Was a Teenage Jesus, due to Jeffrey Hunter's youthful appearance in the film.
Four years later, The Greatest Story Ever Told, directed by George Stevens, was completed for $25 million. Though Max von Sydow's performance as Christ was praised, the film fared poorly at the box office. Franco Zeffirelli's 1979 film Jesus of Nazareth was a highly praised television miniseries, but stood as the last major Hollywood production of Christ's life for nearly a decade.
It wasn’t until 1988 that another major studio took a gamble on a movie involving the life of Jesus, but this one involved a new wrinkle. Universal released The Last Temptation of Christ amidst protests. The pre-release publicity centered around demonstrations taking place outside of Universal after celebrated figures in the evangelical media began speaking about heretical content in the film. Theater managers across the USA were reluctant to screen the movie and no major video chain would carry it.
Screenwriter Paul Schrader adapted The Last Temptation from the Nikos Kazantzakis novel which engages in a fictional exploration between the two natures of Christ - divine and human. The film was not intended to be a Gospel portrait. The fictional aspect, which apparently provoked opponents of its release, centered around a vision presented by the devil to the Jesus of the film while on the cross. In this vision, Jesus is shown what it would have been like to marry, have a family, live until an old age, and die a natural death. The struggle for the Jesus of the film is the torment between his human wishes for a normal Jewish life and his longing to accomplish the divine mission set before him. In the film is that Jesus conquers these temptations and carries out his sacrificial death by crucifixion.
In 2004, Academy Award winning director Mel Gibson made the blockbuster film The Passion of the Christ which became one of the highest grossing movies of 2004 and of all time. Jim Caviezel was cast as Jesus.
Date | Title | Country | Notes | IMDB |
---|---|---|---|---|
1898 | The Passion Play of Oberammergau | USA | early black and white silent film, directed by Henry C. Vincent, starring Frank Russell as Jesus | [1] |
1911 | Jésus de Nazareth | France | early black and white silent film, directed by André Calmettes and Henri Desfontaines | [2] |
1912 | From the Manger to the Cross | USA | black and white silent film, filmed in Palestine, directed by Sidney Olcott, and starring Robert Henderson-Bland as Jesus | [3] |
1914 | The Last Supper | USA | black and white silent film, directed by Lorimer Johnston, and starring Sydney Ayres as Jesus | [4] |
1915 | The Birth of a Nation | USA | directed by D.W. Griffith, Jesus appears toward the end of the film | [5] |
1916 | Intolerance | USA | directed by D.W. Griffith, Jesus is portrayed by Howard Gaye | [6] |
1927 | The King of Kings | USA | silent film starring H. B. Warner as Jesus | [7] |
1928 | Jesus of Nazareth | USA | black and white silent film, Jesus is portrayed by Philip Van Loan | [8] |
1942 | Jesús de Nazareth | Mexico | black and white film, directed by José Díaz Morales, and starring José Cibrián as Jesus | [9] |
1946 | María Magdalena | Mexico | black and white film directed by Miguel Contreras Torres, Jesus is portrayed by Luis Alcoriza | [10] |
1953 | The Robe | USA | Jesus appears off-screen | [11] |
1959 | Ben-Hur | USA | Jesus does not speak in the movie, he is seen only from behind or in partial view | [12] |
1959 | El Redentor (The Redeemer) | Spain | Jesus, played by Luis Álvarez, is always shown from behind. Macdonald Carey provides the voice in the English version. | [13] |
1961 | King of Kings | USA | directed by Nicholas Ray, starring Jeffrey Hunter as Jesus | [14] |
1964 | Il vangelo secondo Matteo | Italy / France | directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, starring Enrique Irazoqui as Jesus | [15] |
1965 | The Greatest Story Ever Told | USA | directed by George Stevens, David Lean, and Jean Negulesco, starring Max von Sydow as Jesus | [16] |
1967 | The Gospel Road: A Story of Jesus | USA | Robert Elfstrom was both the director and the actor portraying Jesus, Johnny Cash provided the music for the film | [17] |
1971 | Johnny Got His Gun | USA | Donald Sutherland portrays Jesus in a dream sequence | [18] |
1973 | Godspell | USA | directed by David Greene, Jesus is portrayed by Victor Garber | [19] |
1973 | Jesus Christ Superstar | USA | film based on Andrew Lloyd Webber's opera, with Ted Neeley as Jesus | [20] |
1979 | Monty Python's Life of Brian | UK | The story of Jesus is parodied by parallel in this movie. Jesus only appears briefly. | [21] |
1979 | Mary and Joseph: A Story of Faith | Canada | directed by Eric Till, starring Jeff East as Joseph | [22] |
1979 | Jesus | USA | directed by John Krish and Peter Sykes, starring Brian Deacon as Jesus | [23] |
1980 | White 'Pop' Jesus | Italy | directed by Luigi Petrini, Jesus is portrayed by Awana Gana | [24] |
1981 | History of the World, Part I | USA | directed by Mel Brooks, Jesus is portrayed by John Hurt | [25] |
1985 | Hail Mary | France / Switzerland / UK | a modern-day retelling of the Virgin Birth | [26] |
1986 | Jesus - The Film | Germany | Epic film in 35 episodes, shot on Super8. The individual episodes were made by a total of 22 filmmakers from East and West Germany, directed by Michael Brynntrup | [27] |
1988 | The Last Temptation of Christ | USA | directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Willem Dafoe as Jesus | [28] |
1988 | The Seventh Sign | USA | directed by Carl Schultz Jürgen Prochnow as Jesus | [29] |
1989 | Jesus of Montreal | Canada / France | directed by Denys Arcand | [30] |
1992 | Bad Lieutenant | USA | directed by Abel Ferrara, starring Paul Hipp | [31] |
1996 | Kristo | Philippines | directed by Ben Yalung starring Mat Ranillo III as Jesus. The costumes, music, design and overall feel are all adapted to a local setting in Malay-influenced, pre- Hispanic Philippines. | [32] |
1997 | Matthew | USA/South Africa | directed by Reghardt van den Bergh starring Bruce Marchiano as Jesus. All narration and dialogue is taken word-for-word from the New International Version of the New Testament Gospel of Matthew. | [33] |
1997 | Orgazmo | USA | Jesus is seen cheering the lead character on at the end of the film | [34] |
1998 | The Book of Life | France / USA | directed by Hal Hartley, starring Martin Donovan as Jesus | [35] |
1999 | Superstar | USA | directed by Bruce McCulloch, Jesus is portrayed by Will Ferrell | [36] |
1999 | South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut | USA | Jesus can be seen as part of the American army marching in front of Kyle's house | [37] |
1999 | Dogma | USA | Buddy Christ is created as an icon to help revitalize the Catholic Church. | [38] |
2000 | The Miracle Maker | UK | stop-motion animated film with Ralph Fiennes as the voice of Jesus | [39] |
2001 | Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter | Canada | directed by Lee Demarbre, Jesus is called upon to aid humanity against a vampire scourge | [40] |
2003 | The Gospel of John | Canada / UK | directed by Philip Saville, starring Henry Ian Cusick as Jesus | [41] |
2004 | The Passion of the Christ | USA | directed by Mel Gibson, starring Jim Caviezel, portrays the final days in the life of Jesus. | [42] |
2006 | World Trade Center | USA | Jesus is seen in the vision of a New York City firefighter in the film | [43] |
2006 | The Nativity Story | USA | Retells the Biblical account of the nativity of Jesus, following the story of Mary and Joseph until the birth of Jesus occurs. | [44] |
2006 | Color of the Cross | USA | Jean-Claude La Marre both directs the film and stars as Jesus | [45] |
2006 | Son of Man | South Africa | directed by Mark Dornford-May | [46] |
2006 | The Nativity Story | USA | directed by Catherine Hardwicke | [47] |
2008 | The Messiah | Iran | Retells the Islamic view of Jesus. A film directed by Nader Talebzadeh, and starring Rennie Schembri as Ahmad Soleimani Nia | [48] |
2008 | Anno Domini XXXIII | Malta | Retells the Biblical account of the passion of Jesus Christ. A film directed by Melvin Schembri and starring Rennie Schembri as Jesus | Template:Fact |
Television
Date | Title | Country | Notes | IMDB |
---|---|---|---|---|
2006 | The Book of Daniel | USA | cancelled due to low ratings | [49] |
Television movies
Date | Title | Country | Notes | IMDB |
---|---|---|---|---|
1980 | The Day Christ Died | USA | directed by James Cellan Jones, starring Chris Sarandon as Jesus | [50] |
2003 | Ben Hur | USA | animated TV movie | [51] |
2004 | Judas | USA | TV Movie | [52] |
1999 | Mary, Mother of Jesus | USA | TV movie | [53] |
2007 | The Lost Tomb of Jesus | USA | Simcha Jacobovici stars in this documentary about the supposed findings of the Jesus family tomb. The film dramatizes certain scenes in the Bible to depict Jesus both as a husband and a father. |
Miniseries
Date | Title | Country | Notes | IMDB |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Jesus | Czech Republic / Italy / Germany / USA | TV miniseries, starring Jeremy Sisto as Jesus | [54] |
1977 | Jesus of Nazareth | Italy / UK | TV miniseries | [55] |
Theatre
- Son Of Man by Dennis Potter
- Godspell
- Jesus Christ Superstar
- Cotton Patch Gospel
- !Hero the Rock Opera
Audio dramas
- The Man Born to be King (1941)
- Adventures in Odyssey, in episodes #66, #67, #137, #141, #176, #177, #183, #226, #227, #232, #302, #304, #305, #345, #346, #383, #389, #404, #413, #425, #439, #461, & #499
Miscellaneous
- The popular clothing line Urban Outfitters has launched numerous Jesus-themed apparel, their most popular being 2004's "Jesus is my Homeboy" T-shirts, which were publicized by the Hip-Hop artist Kanye West.
- The Jesus action figure has become somewhat of a meme of American culture. The action figure made an appearance in Sum 41's music video for The Hell Song. Template:Fact It also made an appearance in Smosh's video of the Pokemon theme song.
- John Lennon in 1966 compared his group, The Beatles to Jesus in a remark that sparked outrage and controversy particularly in the US South: "We're more popular than Jesus now." He later retracted the remark and apologized to anyone who had been offended by it.
- Many adult-oriented cartoons, such as South Park and Family Guy, use Jesus Christ as a character, in unusual situations such as a talk show host. Common associations made (e.g. The Simpsons) are of Christ as a hippie or rock n' roller, due to his popular image as a peaceful man with long hair and a beard.
- The Channel 102 series Jesus Christ Supercop featured Christ as a renegade police officer who bears a grudge against the man who killed his father, 19th century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
- In the Spawn comic book series, The Man of Miracles appeared to humans in the form of Jesus Christ to spread a message of peace and tolerance so that armageddon could be prevented. Unfortunately, this message became corrupted by humanity, thus making armageddon inevitable.
- A Christian Mexican campaign called "Vive lo Rojo" (Live the Red) puts big signals of Jesus in a very modern and friendly way. Together with Christian messages, Jesus is portrayed with modern things such as a skater, a car or himself hearing music from an iPod.
See also
- Sacred Heart
- Crucifixion
- God the Father in Western art
- Fancy portrait
- Holy card
- Illustrated bible
- Perceptions of religious imagery in natural phenomena
- Race of Jesus
- Resurrection of Jesus in Christian art
- Salvator Mundi
- Veil of Veronica
See also
Examples
- Anonymous Woodcut of Jesus' feet
- Il Sacro Cuore by Pompeo Batoni, 1740
See also
- Jesus Christ Superstar
- Jesus of Montreal
- Jesus of Nazareth (film)
- List of movies based on the Bible
- Jesus in the Christian Bible
- Liturgical drama