The Reason Why They Gave Jesus a Beard

Signup for your FREE trial to The Great Courses Plus here: This video includes a paid sponsorship from The Great Courses Plus. Join my 15-person online seminars here: Join our Patreon community!: One-time donations here!: Check out my favorite religious studies books: Why do depictions of Jesus always seem to portray him with long hair and a full beard? The reason stretches back to the earliest centuries of Christianity. The first images of Jesus actually depict him as beardless, but by the 4th century, bearded Christ was much more common. Bibliography: Thomas Mathews, “The Clash of Gods: A Reinterpretation of Early Christian Art,“ Princeton University Press, 1999. Joan Taylor, “What Did Jesus Look Like?“ Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2