A New Study From Unc Reveals Most American Christians Believe God Looks Like A White Man

UniquelyDivine

Well-Known Member



A new study from psychologists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reveals most American Christians believe God looks like an average white guy in his 20s.

But Twitter isn't too sure about that. The team of psychologists used a sample of 511 Americans composed of 330 men and 181 women. Black participants comprised 26 percent, and 74 percent were Caucasian. Researchers gave them a stack of faces to pick from, and many chose a young white male as the face of God, according to NBC News.

“From Michelangelo to Monty Python, popular illustrations have consistently shown God as an old and august white-bearded Caucasian man,” the researchers wrote in their study.

But times are changing. People want a kinder and gentler version of the Almighty according to the researchers -- and apparently, this means their higher power is still white and male, just younger.

“People tend to believe in a God that looks like them,” Professor Kurt Gray, the study’s senior author, told NBC News. “And most of the people who took part were male and white."

Biblical descriptions of Jesus paint a different picture in which makes the son of God a brown-skinned, curly-haired man.

“I think it’s because for millennia Christians have been led to think of God as male and white,” Gray added. “It’s changing a little now, but the church hierarchies are still mostly male and mostly white. In the Catholic Church, for example, the Pope is male, and the priests are still only male.”

A lot of people could not see God looking like Chris Pratt, primarily when the Word of God doesn't describe the son of God as a white man.






 

CurlyNiquee

Well-Known Member
Are we surprised? These are the same people who depict the ancient Egyptians as White people in every big blockbuster movie that comes out, when you can walk into the pyramids TODAY and see this...

3C8FC609-57C5-462B-8997-4E08EFE4D908.jpeg

The historians know from the descriptions in the Bible that the man known as Gods son wasn’t a White man. That won’t stop White washing though. And Black people who believe it are just as gullible as ever.
 

Petal26

Well-Known Member
I've never thought of God that way. I figured if he wanted to look like a person he'd present himself as an older person, either male or female, definitely not a bro. Same with Jesus, I never really thought of his appearance other than he probably looked at least somewhat East African and weighed around 100 lbs.
 

Farida

Well-Known Member
The study is very limited if they only ask one group of people in one country.

Personally, I’m surprised so many see God as a human being. I always thought of God as a spirit with no body.
Someone wanted to fight me when I told him God is neither male nor female. God is not human so God is not binary. I told him the English bible says “he” because that was the standard for English writing to default to “he” but that the Hebrew text in the old testament sometimes uses feminine terms and illustrations to describe God.

That fool told me, “No, God is a man.” I asked him if God has a penis and he said yes. I asked him if God has sex and who he has sex with and he said it was a non-functioning penis. Well before that point I knew I was wasting my breath...at that point I quit...I knew the level of ignorance and lack of logic I was trying to fight...
 

tiffers

Whisper "bleep boop" to yourself when you're sad.
That fool told me, “No, God is a man.” I asked him if God has a penis and he said yes. I asked him if God has sex and who he has sex with and he said it was a non-functioning penis. Well before that point I knew I was wasting my breath...at that point I quit...I knew the level of ignorance and lack of logic I was trying to fight...
So God has erectile dysfunction now? :lachen: I done heard it all. :lachen:
 

kupenda

Well-Known Member
Someone wanted to fight me when I told him God is neither male nor female. God is not human so God is not binary. I told him the English bible says “he” because that was the standard for English writing to default to “he” but that the Hebrew text in the old testament sometimes uses feminine terms and illustrations to describe God.

That fool told me, “No, God is a man.” I asked him if God has a penis and he said yes. I asked him if God has sex and who he has sex with and he said it was a non-functioning penis. Well before that point I knew I was wasting my breath...at that point I quit...I knew the level of ignorance and lack of logic I was trying to fight...
Those kinds of conversations give you a headache. Sir, just how do you know God has a non functioning penis? HOW?! Show me the passage
 

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
That sampling is troubling, as blacks account for only 14% of population.. they didnt explain age range either and didn't include "other" only black and white. And so, with white accounting fot the majority, no surprise there.
 

nerdography

Well-Known Member
I never envisioned God as anything but consciousness (masculine and feminine) with no physical body.

But, I’m not surprised white men think God is a white male. For them that’s ultimate power and they want to believe that they possess that same power. That’s why they try to play God all the time.
 

YvetteWithJoy

On break
I've never thought of God that way. I figured if he wanted to look like a person he'd present himself as an older person, either male or female, definitely not a bro. Same with Jesus, I never really thought of his appearance other than he probably looked at least somewhat East African and weighed around 100 lbs.

:yep:

I'm liking your post 1,000 times.

I have a friend who thinks Christianity asks people to believe in a "white baby Jesus" and she throws that at me whenever she can. I wish she wouldn't assume I think Jesus is white. I see white people making Jesus white, and I thinks think it's nutso. Lol.

I didn't realize that people feel God the Spirit has or needs a race.
 
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Petal26

Well-Known Member
:yep:

I'm liking your post 1,000 times.

I have a friend who thinks Christianity asks people to believe in a "white baby Jesus" and she throws that at me whenever she can. I wish she wouldn't assume I think Jesus is white. I see white people making Jesus white, and I thinks it's nutso. Lol.

I didn't realize that people feel God the Spirit has or needs a race.

Oh yeah, some wp get mad as hell if you insinuate Jesus or God weren't white. God isn't even human :lachen:But they like to see him as Gandalf the White in their heads :lol: I've read some crazies say the people of Judea weren't originally from Israel, but European, and that's where the nazis, kkk and white nationalist freaks get the idea that he was white despite the description in the bible. The reaching...
If Jesus had been born in Scandinavia I would assume he was white, but he was born where he was born, so :handslap:

Edit: This is what Saint Nicholas looked like in the 19th century:



Now:

 
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YvetteWithJoy

On break
Oh yeah, some wp get mad as hell if you insinuate Jesus or God weren't white. God isn't even human :lachen:But they like to see him as Gandalf the White in their heads :lol: I've read some crazies say the people of Judea weren't originally from Israel, but European, and that's where the nazis, kkk and white nationalist freaks get the idea that he was white despite the description in the bible. The reaching...
If Jesus had been born in Scandinavia I would assume he was white, but he was born where he was born, so :handslap:

Edit: This is what Saint Nicholas looked like in the 19th century:



Now:


Exactly!!!

That news reporter clip! When I first saw it I guffawed and shook my head. :lachen::nono: :drunk:

And then some of my anti-christianity black friends chime in along with the white folks in agreement about the whiteness of Jesus, and they all got me like :spinning:.
 
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nyeredzi

Well-Known Member
I'm confused.....are we talking about God or his son, Jesus? Because some of the comments threw me off. Those were descriptions of Jesus, right?
They asked about God, but suspect some people were thinking of Jesus.

I betcha you shan’t!
You bet right. At least for this small sample, they do have pictures for what the white group thinks God looks like, vs the black group:
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/ar...id=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0198745.s003

i think they do say the AA's vision of God is "more" AA than the white vision. it's all in gray scale so kind of hard to see.
 
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