Does God have a beard?

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Simon62

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I know this is an odd question and perhaps one to start contemplating the Trinity, but I’ll explain. I am an artist in metals and am making what can only be described as an icon depicting the central part of the Mass, from the consecration to the "Per ipsum, et cum ipso et in ipso… in forged stainless steel. The question arises in how one portrays the Trinity. I have shown each of the three Persons as more or less the same, without beards, to emphasize the equality in the Holy Trinity, but in reality Christ had a beard. Christ ascended bodily so therefore does he still have a beard in heaven? It has got me thinking whether there is a similarity between the Three Persons visually. I know they are Spirit in nature, but do God the Father and God the Holy Spirit have beards too? As an aside, I think Michelangelo once painted Christ without a beard.

Simon
 
Taking St. Clement of Alexandria, 2-276

“This, then, is the mark of the man, the beard. By this, he is seen to be a man. It is older than Eve. It is the token of the superior nature.”

I would say, as he is infinitely superior, he must have an infinitely larger and more handsome beard than the hairiest of men 😛
 
Simon62 said:
I know this is an odd question and perhaps one to start contemplating the Trinity, but I’ll explain. I am an artist in metals and am making what can only be described as an icon depicting the central part of the Mass, from the consecration to the "Per ipsum, et cum ipso et in ipso… in forged stainless steel. The question arises in how one portrays the Trinity. I have shown each of the three Persons as more or less the same, without beards, to emphasize the equality in the Holy Trinity, but in reality Christ had a beard. Christ ascended bodily so therefore does he still have a beard in heaven? It has got me thinking whether there is a similarity between the Three Persons visually. I know they are Spirit in nature, but do God the Father and God the Holy Spirit have beards too? As an aside, I think Michelangelo once painted Christ without a beard.

Simon
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Hi.

It’s easy to visualize God as a wise old man with a white beard. The Apostles themselves actually were able to set their eyes on God in the form of Christ, the Word given flesh, likely a bearded man per Jewish custom. The Holy Spirit is described in Scripture as “descending like a dove” over Christ at His baptism.

But despite all these visualizations, we must remember that God is God. While God the Son now also a human nature in addition to his divine nature, God the Father is not human. Neither is God the Holy Spirit.

Therefore, whatever images we have seen from artists over the millennia, we must never confuse our adoration of God in imagery with the true, unknowable nature of God in his glory.

With that in mind, I would speculate you can draw your imagery of the Lord in any way you reverently see fit. Since the Son proceeds from the Father, it is logical to think of Jesus to appear similar to the Father in a humanistic visage. As far as the Holy Spirit, that may take more artistic license.
 
God is God - I would imagine He could appear in any form.

We are taught, God first came to the Jews…I would think their tradition of beards would be reflective in their portrayals and would carry forward to Gentiles. 🙂
 
Icons are so beautiful. They are my favorite form of religious art and, done correctly, they are to be considered a prayer. Anyway…

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Andrej_Rubl%C3%ABv_001.jpg

This shows a representation of the “Old Testament” Trinity but is more likely the meeting with Abraham. This link en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Trinity_Icon shows a different depiction of the Trinity.

There are schools for the proper creation of icons. My best advice is to really do your research on acceptable symbols and images for icons. I would love to see your finished work!
 
I don’t understand depicting an unknowable form. I can understand depictions of the holy family, even angels because they supposedly were seen by humans, but God the Father? Strange.
 
StrawberryJam said:
I don’t understand depicting an unknowable form. I can understand depictions of the holy family, even angels because they supposedly were seen by humans, but God the Father? Strange.
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I would say that depicting the Holy Family is easy because, well, they’re human. Angels are spirit only (per Catholic teaching) but can choose the appearance of a human.

But God is more than form, more than spirit, more than anything we can imagine. He is the Undefined. Aside from the incarnation of God the Son and the appearances of God the Holy Spirit, God the Father keeps a very low profile.

I think we want to anthropomorphize God the Father to make Him more approachable or understandable. That’s easy with Christ, of course. God the Father may be generally, well, intimidating. God the Son showed He could be irritable, too, but nothing like the harsh manner that the Father had to do in bringing up the early peoples as depicted in the Old Testament.
 
Well, thanks for sharing your views everyone. As I said, I know the Father and Holy Spirit are of a Spirit nature, but man since the beginning, if he has a belief in God, has through art tried to depict the Trinity. I’m depicting God visually as I see Him according to this piece I am making. A different piece of art work may bring forth a different view. Even though the Holy Trinity is a mystery to mortal man, he will always try to picture Him. Personally, to try to imagine what God looks like can ultimately lead to deep prayer and adoration.
Anyway, I was just voicing a thought there, about the beards, and maybe next time I’ll portray God with beard. Oh, and when I’ve finished this piece, I guess I put a link in for your perusal.

Simon
 
Jesus almost certainly had a beard, but there are many early depictions of Him in the catacombs of Rome as a beardless young man, so go figure.

Yes, the Father is frequently depicted as an old man with a beard - the most famous example being Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling.

In Eastern Orthodox portrayals, the Trinity is often (if memory serves) shown as three young, beardless men who all look exactly alike.
 
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