The Hues of Christmas
The Misrepresentation in Art
For centuries, Western art and Christmas imagery have recast Jesus, Mary, and Joseph with pale skin, light eyes, and European features. These portrayals were never about truth — they were about control, about reshaping the divine to look like those in power. The result? Generations of people grew up seeing the Holy Family stripped of their African identity, disconnected from the land and lineage they were born into.
The Historical Truth
The Holy Family were African. Their skin carried deep brown hues, their features reflected the richness of their people, and their presence was royal in its simplicity.
Mary, known in her time as Miryam, would not have been the porcelain figure we see in European nativity art. She would have been wrapped in flowing cloth with her hair covered, much like women of her culture and time. Her beauty was adorned with gold — a hoop nose ring, rings on her fingers and toes, and bangles on her wrists. These were not merely decorations, but reflections of identity, tradition, and wealth in her community.
Joseph, or Yosef, would have worn a full beard and locked hair, standing as a man grounded in strength and dignity. His features spoke of lineage, of ancestry rooted in African soil.
And Jesus himself — Yeshua — born of this family, carried the same traits: dark brown skin, textured hair, and features unmistakably tied to his people. Not a pale child in a gilded European manger, but a Black infant swaddled in cloth, surrounded by the love and protection of his Black mother and father.
Why Their True Names Matter
The names we use matter just as much as the images we carry. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph” are anglicized names that came much later. In their world, they were Yeshua, Miryam, and Yosef — names spoken in their tongue, rooted in their culture, tied to their identity. Reclaiming their names is part of reclaiming their truth.
Why It Matters Today
Representation isn’t just about skin tone — it’s about truth. When we see Miryam, Yosef, and Yeshua as they truly were, we restore the link between African identity and divine purpose. We remind ourselves that holiness has always lived in Blackness, that divinity has always been tied to the richness of our people.
A Season of Truth and Beauty
This Christmas, as ornaments are hung and nativity scenes are set, let us honor the Holy Family for who they truly were: an African family, adorned in beauty, crowned in dignity, chosen for the most sacred of stories. Their truth is not just history — it is a light for today, reminding us that Blackness has always been divine.