My birthday
is at the very end of September. But September 1st you better
believe I’m shaking my children by the shoulders yelling in their face, “IT’S
MY BIRTHDAY MONTH!!” Raise your hand if you can relate. I see you.
None of us are
more deserving of a month-long celebration than Jesus Christ. So, today I bring
you… Jesus paintings (please read dramatically with a theatrical sweeping arm
motion as you bow and walk backwards. Thank you.)
Next is Head
of Christ by Rembrandt. Look, nobody really knows what Jesus looked like, but
we can speculate. And we should assume he didn’t look like this. But I think we
should throw Rembrandt a bone. In the olden days people were just painting
based on what they saw when they were out and about at Starbucks or Costco. Rembrandt
based this portrait off a Jewish model, so that’s something, right? And it’s a
lovely painting. Not everyone could pull off brown on brown, with brown hair
and brown eyes, but Rembrandt does. And I bet Jesus did too.
Finally, if
we’re going to talk about Jesus at Christmas, we need a nativity. We need baby Jesus.
How sweet and precious is this picture of Mary (practically a baby herself!)
worshipping her newborn. Putting aside the fact that nobody told her how bad
breastfeeding would hurt, and just praising her Savior. I love how Jesus’
pillow acts as a halo, and it might just be my imagination, but it looks like
the cracks in the wall are making a halo around Mary. Great nativity creativity,
Barrocci! The animals are looking on, Joseph is presumably confirming what the
shepherds already know, and Jesus’ fat little baby cheeks are rosy and kissable.
Could we ask for a dreamier representation of the first Christmas?
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