Mary and Jesus - most beautiful people?

[Christus_Rex]

I have a friend who said that Mary and Jesus were surely the most beautiful people ever, because of their sinlessness. I can see how good people are beautiful, but in terms of their actual physical faces, would they have been the most perfect, beautiful faces ever?

 

[StCsDavid]

Nothing I know of in scripture indicates this, though in the OT there are a number of fellows described as handsome

Saul
David
Joseph
Adoni’jah
Some unnamed Egyptian that Benai’ah slew in 2 Samual 23

Interestingly, I find no reference to any handsome men in the New Testament.

There was something about Christ that drew people to Him, though I don’t know that you could say it was because of His physical beauty. Some people have the ability to light up a room when they walk in, and He appeared to be one of those people. As to Mary, many of those who have experienced private revelations or visions of her describe her as the most beautiful woman they have ever seen. Now understand she is in a glorified state so, IMHO, that has to look better than anything we have in our un-glorified existence

Again, just my opinion, but I would doubt that they were the most physically beautiful people ever (which is a very subjective thing anyway) as that beauty would have been a distraction in itself. Christ’s message is one of humility not drawing attention to oneself.

 

[Agricola]

I know that I find the faces of those I believe to have virtue more pleasant. Whether Jesus and Mary were “objectively” more beautiful or not, they may have been perceived as being more physically beautiful than others due to their exhibition of extraordinary virtue, their perfection.

It’s interesting to consider, isn’t it?

In representation of Jesus and Mary in art I think it is good to show them as being as beautiful as possible, if only to draw attention to their virtue.

God bless,

Agricola

 

[carol_marie]

I don’t know that sinlessness = beauty. Look at people in Hollywood… many are very beautiful… but not sinless.

 

[RyanL]

I think this face is more beautiful than Marilyn Monroe’s, though many others would disagree…
http://see.oneworld.net/ezimagecatalogue/catalogue/variations/6942-200x200.jpg

Perhaps it’s not a 1 to 1 comparison. Perhaps physical beauty does not indicate the spiritual beauty…
http://pub.tv2.no/multimedia/na/archive/00190/Mr__and_Mrs__Smith_190854g.jpg

And perhaps spiritual beauty does not necessitate a physical beauty…
http://www.ronroth.com/u_files/Padre Pio websize.jpg

Just a thought.

God Bless,
RyanL

 

[kevb]

Considering that the spouse of Mary was God Himself… It makes sense that Jesus would have also physically resembled His Father as well as his mother. If He was God and man, how could he not have been beautiful?
If this was not the case, I agree with what was already said above…that regardless of Jesus and Mary’s appearance on earth, they are now glorified above every living thing and more beautiful than anything we can imagine. I hope I get to see them someday with my own eyes…

 

[batteddy]

The Catholic Encyclopedia article on the Incarnation says this:

“They misinterpreted the words of Isaias: “There is no beauty in him, nor comeliness; and we have seen him, and there was no sightlinesss” etc. (liii, 2). The words refer only to the suffering Christ. Theologians now are unanimous in the view that Christ was noble in bearing and beautiful in form, such as a perfect man should be; for Christ was, by virtue of His incarnation, a perfect man”

newadvent.org/cathen/07706b.htm

 

[Libero]

I have a friend who said that Mary and Jesus were surely the most beautiful people ever, because of their sinlessness. I can see how good people are beautiful, but in terms of their actual physical faces, would they have been the most perfect, beautiful faces ever?

I always find it interesting when in a church to look at the pictures of Christ and see how they depict him, often with pale skin, but very thin etc. I suppose beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.

P.S. Ryan is that Padre Pio?