The most popular image of Jesus Christ in the world—a white man with blue eyes, wavy brown hair, and a soft, peaceful gaze—comes from Head of Christ, a 1940 painting by Chicago artist Warner Sallman. It’s been reproduced over a billion times, shaping how millions imagine Jesus.
But its dominance also cemented a white Jesus in the cultural imagination. Scholars point out that the historical Jesus, a Middle Eastern Jew, likely had darker skin. Yet Head of Christ reinforced whiteness as central to Christian identity in America. As historian David Morgan puts it, “It gave white Americans a Jesus that was theirs.”
White Jesus predates the '40s by quite a long way. European Christians have been depicting him that way for centuries. I’m pretty sure Americans had a white Jesus before then as well.
Sadly, it’s hard to find accurate depictions of Jesus in the western world.
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White Jesus predates the '40s by quite a long way. European Christians have been depicting him that way for centuries. I’m pretty sure Americans had a white Jesus before then as well.
Sadly, it’s hard to find accurate depictions of Jesus in the western world.
“Racists prefer to think of themselves as special.”