The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews reminds Christians that they are surrounded by a great "cloud of witnesses" (NRSV). That "cloud" has continued to grow in size since then. In this monthly column we will be thinking about some of the people and events, over the past 2000 years, that have helped make up this "cloud." People and events that have helped build the community of the Christian church as it exists today.

Most people today have a visual image of Christ. Long haired and bearded, simply dressed in homespun cloth, portrayed with varying degrees of Middle Eastern appearance (sometimes not), often with an intense gaze. These images have a back-story and historic portrayals have settled on this iconic image.

The Christian portrayal of Jesus stands in contrast to Jewish and Islamic prohibitions of images. However, the Christian position is not unique since similar, easily recognisable iconography, can be found in Hinduism and Buddhism where there is, similarly, no reticence about portraying central characters and divine beings.

For Christians the faith in the Incarnation (God becoming man) and the belief that in Christ humanity and divinity existed in one man means that historically there has been a theological impetus to portray Christ. For, after all, Christians believe that it is in his humanity that "all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell" (Colossians 1:19). Therefore, to portray him in recognisable human form reinforces this faith, challenges the viewer to accept the reality of the God-man, and reflects on the implications of this reality for his followers as they live out their human lives in the everyday world.

Portraying a person who is never described

There is no description of the historic Christ in the gospels or the letters. We know nothing of his colouring, complexion, length of hair or whether he was bearded or clean shaven. We may make assumptions based on comparative cultural references and other evidence for the appearance of Jewish men in the first half of the first century AD, but these are simply assumptions. Regarding what Christ looked like during his ministry on earth, we simply do not know.

The Old Testament prohibition on making images means that we have few Jewish first-century depictions of anyone. In fact, we have no figural representations from Jewish communities in Judea from the first century AD whatsoever. By the third century this had changed among some Jews of the wider Jewish diaspora. For example, the excavated synagogue at Dura Europos (in modern Syria) contains numerous colourful wall paintings of scenes from the Old Testament. These include portrayals of Old Testament figures such as Abraham and Isaac, Moses, the visions of Ezekiel and the story of Esther. In line with traditional Jewish teaching, God is never portrayed but the 'hand of God' is shown to illustrate divine intervention. Why did the Jewish community at Dura Europos overthrow generations of traditional opposition to the use of figural art? Well, the answer is not certain. It may have been that Jewish figurative art was more widespread than the surviving evidence would suggest and so the absence of evidence may not constitute evidence of absence. A more intriguing possibility is that the Jewish community at Dura Europos was reacting to a new and competing religious community in their town: Christians.

The excavated Christian church in the town appears to have been constructed (c.230–40) a little before the phase of Jewish wall painting occurred. Since the church at Dura Europos contains many figurative paintings, it is possible that its visually striking interior may have contrasted with the (at the time) originally much plainer synagogue. What is beyond dispute is the range of pictures found in the church building. The baptistry contains a number of frescoes, which constitute probably the most ancient Christian paintings in the world. These include 'the Good Shepherd' (borrowing from Classical iconography to illustrate this self-description by Jesus), the 'Healing of the paralysed man' referred to in the gospels, and a scene showing Christ and Peter miraculously walking on the water (again from the gospel account). Many experts in Christian art history consider these illustrations to constitute the earliest surviving depictions of Christ.

What is striking is how un-iconic these representations of Christ are. That of 'the Good Shepherd' is simply a man with no distinguishing features, his hair is short as is his tunic. The same is true of the figure of Christ healing the paralysed man, although the tunic is longer. In the scene depicting the walking on the water, though, Christ appears to be bearded.

What is clear is that there was no third century Christian tradition of what Christ should look like. This is further illustrated by the example of another painting of 'the Good Shepherd,' this time from the Catacomb of Callixtus, in Rome. Again dating from the third century, this portrait shows a clean-shaven man, with short hair and wearing a thigh-length tunic. As with the figures of Christ from Dura Europos, the image simply represents contemporary fashions in terms of clothing and hairstyle. The man could be any man.

These third-century depictions of Christ were beginning to break free from the Jewish prohibition on images that had earlier affected Christian attitudes towards portraying him. Church leaders had originally been reluctant to have such images in Christian places of worship. Irenaeus (died c.202), Clement of Alexandria (died 215), Lactantius (lived c.240–c.320) and Eusebius of Caesarea (died c.339) all disapproved of images of Jesus. This disapproval was revealed in other forms too. The Synod of Elvira in Spain (306) maintained that: "It has been decreed that no pictures be had in the churches, and that which is worshipped or adored be not painted on the walls." Given the use of art and sculpture in pagan representations of gods and goddesses, this reluctance (combined with the Jewish heritage) is understandable. On the other hand, the fact that by the third century most Christians were non-Jewish in their origins, were used to a visual culture of religious iconography, and were conscious of their separation from Judaism, also explains why this reluctance was weakening.

Although the third-century wall paintings at Dura Europos contain some images of Christ, most early portrayals are from the fourth century. The earliest of these are from paintings in catacombs and from sarcophagus reliefs. In the Catacombs of Domitilla, Christ is seen amongst his disciples. He is depicted curly-haired and dressed in Classical costume (the toga) and holds a scroll in his left hand. His right hand is outstretched in the so-called 'ad locutio' gesture. This means 'the gesture of the orator.' These features – dress, scroll, gesture – all emphasise the authority of Christ. The picture presents him like a philosopher surrounded by his students. The style of the painting suggests a fourth-century origin.

From the Catacombs of Commodilla comes the first known representation of a bearded Christ (dating from the fourth century). Finally, in this example, we have a figure of Christ that would be familiar to a twenty-first century viewer. His hair and beard are long. This shift is quite dramatic as it greatly altered the appearance of Christ and has influenced Christian visualisation ever since. Why did this occur?

Visual messages

It is likely that the long hair and the beard were finally chosen because they were culturally associated with philosophers, along with the centre parting of the hair. There may even have been echoes of how the healing god Asclepius (a pagan Greek deity borrowed by Roman culture) was portrayed: long-haired and bearded. This was also how Jupiter, the chief god of pagan Rome was depicted.

This in no way compromises the images emerging of Christ; it is simply that things such as hair have cultural resonance and associations. In this sense the long hair and beard were culturally associated with wisdom, learning, divinity and healing. When transferred to Christ they had lost their pagan connotations, but they still had meaning.

Interestingly, other bearded Christian figures – such as Paul – are always shown (if bearded) with a neatly trimmed beard and hair. It is clear that the association of long hair and beard with Christ was not accidental; instead, it communicated a message.

A reaction against picturing Christ

In the Eastern half of the Roman Empire, from the fourth century onwards, an exalted view of the role of these religious icons developed. It was claimed that Luke had painted an icon of the Virgin Mary and that a miraculous depiction of Jesus (formed from a towel pressed against his face) had been sent to the king of Edessa (in modern Turkey) in the first century.

This use of icons was seriously challenged by Eastern Roman (Byzantine) imperial authorities in the eighth century. There had been disquiet expressed, in some quarters, for some time and a fear that veneration of an icon of Christ could become worship of that icon. Islamic opposition to images may also have heightened government anxieties as imperial authorities prepared both military and spiritual defences against the threat to imperial territory from advancing Islam. In the eighth century the imperial government decided it was time for radical action.

The so-called 'Iconoclastic Period' began when images were banned by Emperor Leo III, the Isaurian (ruled: 716–41). In 726 he published an edict declaring images to be idols. He claimed they came under the category of "idols" forbidden by Exodus 20:4–5. Leo commanded that all such images in churches be destroyed throughout the empire. When the picture of Christ called 'Christ Antiphonetes' ('the Guarantor'), which hung over the gate of the palace at Constantinople, was removed, a serious riot occurred in the city. The patriarch of Constantinople protested, and he was deposed. When conservative monks led the opposition to Leo, he began a systematic campaign against monasteries. Pope Gregory II (pope: 713–31) responded to an appeal by the deposed patriarch with a long defence of images and argued that they were not the same as idols. In 731, a new pope, Gregory III, held a synod at St. Peter's, Rome. It declared that all persons who broke and defiled images of Christ, his mother, the apostles, or other saints, should be excommunicated. In retaliation, Leo then sent a fleet to Italy to punish the pope, but it was wrecked in a storm.

When Leo died in 741 the cause was continued by his son, Constantine V, Copronymus, (ruled: 741–75). In 754 a council he convened declared that images of Christ could not represent Christ's divinity. Consequently, the council asserted, such icons either denied or split Christ's two natures.

The return of pictures

Constantine V died in 775 and was succeeded by his son Leo IV (ruled: 775–80). He was more moderate and allowed exiled monks to return and tried to reconcile the conflicting groups. When Leo IV died in 780 he was succeeded by the Empress Irene. She was regent for her son Constantine VI (ruled: 780–97), who was aged nine in 780. She was in favour of icons and immediately set about undoing the work of the Iconoclasts. Pictures were restored to the churches and the monasteries were reopened.

The matter, though, was not over. The ban was re-enforced again by Emperor Leo V in 815. Finally, though, the veneration (but not worship) of icons was permanently restored by Empress Regent Theodora in 842. Icons would remain a major feature of Eastern Orthodox worship. In the West they would also be venerated until the sixteenth-century Reformation but would not have so central a place in the life of the Christian community as in the East.

The familiar images of Christ were once more back on display. Even though Protestants rejected Catholic veneration of religious pictures, the use of pictures to portray Christ continued in mainstream Protestant churches. All in all, the history of portraying Christ had come a long way, by a rough road, since the first wall paintings at Dura Europos.

When Michelangelo painted a clean-shaven Christ in his Last Judgment fresco in the Sistine Chapel (1534–41) he found himself in trouble! Christ, as depicted there, was (to some critics) rather Apollo-like, and not as expected. That the portrayal was reverting to a pre-fifth-century manner of depicting Christ was clearly lost on the sixteenth-century detractors of the artist. They knew what Christ looked like. And they wanted no messing with how he should appear!

Martyn Whittock is a historian and a Licensed Lay Minister in the Church of England. The author, or co-author, of fifty-six books, his work covers a wide range of historical and theological themes. In addition, as a commentator and columnist, he has written for several print and online news platforms and been interviewed on TV and radio news and discussion programmes exploring the interaction of faith and politics. These have included being interviewed on news platforms concerning the religious dimension to current US politics, Christianity and the Crown in the UK, and the war in Ukraine. His most recent books include: Trump and the Puritans (2020), The Secret History of Soviet Russia's Police State (2020), Daughters of Eve (2021), Jesus the Unauthorized Biography (2021), The End Times, Again? (2021), The Story of the Cross (2021), Apocalyptic Politics (2022), and American Vikings (2023). He explored the history of portraying Christ in the co-written Christ: The First 2000 Years (2016).