Have you seen Jesus?

I am not asking if you’ve had an encounter with Jesus. My question is more simpler, more basic. Have you seen a photograph of Jesus Christ?

For many, the answer is yes. They’ve seen a picture somewhere and everywhere. In a church nearby. On the internet. In stories and videos. In many renditions made during Easter and Christmas.

None of the images you’ve seen of Jesus is right. When compared to one another, none of them is wrong.

What has travelled over the centuries are vivid imaginations of what various people in each generation believed Jesus looked like.

None of them could truly tell how tall he was, or how fair. None of them is certain about the colour of his eyes, the thickness of his eyelids or the size and depth of his philtrum.

None of them truly knew if he had a mustache, and what his cheekbone look like. None of them can truly tell us about the size of his teeth, what his smile looked like or what the tone of his voice sounded like.

Those who have a spiritual relationship can infer from the voice they’ve heard. None of the voices in all videos reenacted and none of the portraits in all the billions of pictures ever created is truly of the Jesus who walked on earth.