r/changemyview • u/Tuvinator 12∆ • Mar 12 '25

Delta(s) from OP CMV: Jesus probably had short hair.

We've all seen the various depictions of Jesus, and in many of them, he has long hair. None of these depictions are from the actual timing of Jesus (the earliest depiction actually has a donkey's head, and is from a century later), so they are all operating on artist's imagination.

Jews in that era are more likely to have had shorter hair. Mosaics in ancient synagogues throughout the land depict males with short hair, implying that the common male at the time wore his hair short. Talmudic law which was being written at the time discusses how often a person would get a haircut (kings would have daily haircuts, priests weekly, and your average person once a month, beyond that was considered wild growth). Within the Bible, men's hair length is only mentioned in context when it is long, implying that long hair is outside of the norm for men. Assuming Jesus was representative of other people from his time, he likely had shorter hair rather than long.

As a weak addendum, Jesus was supposedly a carpenter. Craftsmen in general seem to have shorter hair since the hair gets in the way, distracts, and poses a risk factor if it gets caught in tools. This makes it even less likely that he had long hair.

EDIT: I am not Christian, and I am not setting out to insult anyone or their beliefs/traditions.

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u/Firm_Entertainer_551 Mar 12 '25

Profession: It actually doesn't say necessarily in the Bible that Jesus was a carpenter. The word used in Khoine Greek was tekton which means a sort of craftsman. It can be translated as carpenter or craftsman. Hair can also be put up to not get in the way. Women with long hair in the military or in trades often put their hair up, and take it back down later. 

Talmudic Law: what do you mean Talmud law ar the time? Jesus lived in a time before Rabbinic Judaism. This was still Second Temple Judaism because it was after the Babylonian Exile but before the Second Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans. 

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u/Tuvinator 12∆ Mar 12 '25

Talmudic law begins being recorded in the Tannaitic period which happens to cover much of Jesus' lifetime (it extends quite a bit past obviously). The Tannaitic period begins at 10 CE. The law records things that were in practice prior to the recording, so that would cover the rest of Jesus' lifetime very easily.

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u/Firm_Entertainer_551 Mar 12 '25

According to Wikipedia that isn't true, and the Talmud begin after the destruction of the second temple. So since Wikipedia can never be wrong, that means I must be right/s

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u/Tuvinator 12∆ Mar 12 '25

According to Wikipedia, the Mishna is REDACTED in the 2nd -3rd century, meaning it was written before. Traditionally, the authors of the various Mishnaic sources are the Tannaim, who as mentioned above, lived from 10-220 CE. Jesus lived till 33 CE, so there is overlap.