Whatever it is, it can\u2019t be far off from what our Pacific Island \u201ccontextual theologians\u201d have been teaching and promoting in writing for years. A former principal of an island seminary said in an interview that Jesus should have a tattoo (tatau<\/em>) to show His role as servant\u2014taule\u2019ale\u2019a<\/em>.<\/p>\n Another (a man I regard with respect) entertained the idea of utilizing the tattoo as \u201cinitiation\u201d into the church. But the Christian church already has an ordinance that serves the purpose\u2014baptism. It is through baptism a person is admitted into church fellowship.<\/p>\n The Crucified Jesus isn\u2019t a new subject for artists. For centuries, artists have etched and painted the crucifixion on catacombs, scrolls, metal and church ceilings. Most early painters portrayed Jesus reverently. The crucified Savior as depicted by master painters like Francisco Goya still move viewers with their sheer intensity.<\/p>\n Sadly, as of late, many have chosen the contrary road\u2014caricaturing, mocking, ridiculing, or misrepresenting Jesus in works of art. So we now have a Black Jesus, a Native American one, a Gay Jesus, and (in the media) a pathetically weak and less-than-perfect one.<\/p>\n As nations (the US is a case in point) lean more and more into radical leftist ideology, Christians can expect to see a Woke or transgender Jesus soon.<\/p>\n For followers of Christ, such blasphemous misrepresentations can cut deeply. In his book \u201cHenry Martyn: Confessor of the Faith\u201d, author Constance E. Padwick\u00a0quotes an exchange between the missionary Martyn and a Muslim friend (Mirza Ali) who once invited the former to dinner. Over dinner, Ali described for Martyn a painting showing Jesus bowing down to Mohammed. Martyn tells what happened next: \u201cI was cut to the soul at this blasphemy. Mirza Seid Ali perceived that I was considerably disordered and asked what it was that was so offensive? I told him \u2018I could not endure existence if Jesus was not glorified; it would be hell to me if He were to be always thus dishonored.\u2019 He was astonished and again asked \u2018Why?\u2019 \u2018If anyone pluck out your eyes,\u2019 I replied, \u2018there is no saying why you feel pain; it is feeling. It is because I am one with Christ that I am thus dreadfully wounded.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Perhaps for those who were offended by the young Samoan\u2019s painting, depicting Jesus as anything other than what the Bible has revealed about Him is to dishonor Him. They may well side with Martyn: \u201cIt is because I am one with Christ that I am thus dreadfully wounded.\u201d<\/p>\n For whatever it\u2019s worth, the young man\u2019s painting did reveal a truth\u2014Jesus WAS crucified. He died a common criminal\u2019s death\u2014nailed to a cross by sinful man. But by casting the Lord as a Samoan with a tattoo, the young artist (perhaps out of a sense of nationalism) perverted Jesus\u2019 claim He is Jewish. He made this perfectly clear in His brief encounter with a Samaritan woman: \u201cYou Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.\u201d<\/p>\n This, I suppose, is what bothered some about the young man\u2019s painting. It presents Jesus as a Samoan who, before shedding his blood for the remission of sin, bled under a tattooist\u2019s needles. Strangely, in a world where people are obsessed with race, ethnicity, and Identity Politics, it is troubling so many have no problem imposing on or assigning to Jesus (and ONLY Jesus) an identity that isn\u2019t His.<\/p>\n![\"Tattooed](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/talamua.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Tattooed-Jesus1.jpeg?resize=740%2C938&ssl=1\")
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