A Tattooed Jesus Provides Evangelical Message, but Offends Some

 © 2013 The Wired Word

www.thewiredword.com

Several billboards around Lubbock, Texas, are currently displaying a shirtless Christ with arms outstretched, wearing a crown of thorns and covered with tattooed words including "outcast," "fear," "addicted," "useless," "faithless," "stressed out" and other negative terms. The accompanying caption reads, "Marked by our past. Transformed by love," and directs viewers to the website jesustattoo.org.
Glancing at the signs, a passing motorist might think the ads are promoting a tattoo parlor that specializes in inking Jesus-themed art, but in fact, the billboards are part of an effort to spread an evangelical message about salvation through Christ.
Those who go online to the site find a 6-minute video that shows a modern-day Jesus, starting a day tattoo-less. He dons a long-sleeve shirt and goes to his basement tattoo studio where all day long, people come in tattooed with one or another of the negative terms. In each case, "Jesus" re-inks them with a positive term; for example, a young man tattooed with "outcast" leaves marked "accepted," and a woman who arrives marked "self-righteous" leaves inked "humble."
At the end of the day, Jesus is obviously exhausted, and when he removes his shirt, he is emblazoned with all of the negative terms he removed from those who came to him that day. A voice-over then explains that "life leaves its etchings" on us but that we don't have to be defined by the marks of our past, and says, "One man proclaimed a revolutionary message of love and forgiveness ... for those labeled as outcasts and unlovable." The narrator goes on to tell of Jesus' suffering for the sins of others so that they might be saved and gives an invitation to accept Christ.
The "About Us" link on the website says that the campaign is the effort of "people amazed by the love of Jesus," but claims no affiliation with any religious group. The page further reads, "It really is as simple as it appears. We are a small group of people humbled by the love of Jesus. We are not a church. We are not selling anything. We encourage you to tell as many people as possible. That's it."
One older man interviewed by a local radio station labeled the signs as "derogatory" and another described them as "blasphemous," though it's not clear from such a small sampling that these two are representative of their generations. People from younger generations who responded were more positive, however. That variance in responses may reflect the difference in attitude toward tattoos in general along generational divides. A 2009 Pew Research Poll of Americans found that more than half of Americans 50 and older view the current popularity of tattooing in general as "a change for the worse." In contrast, a 2007 Pew study found that more than one-third of people ages 18-25 have a tattoo.
More on this story can be found at these links:
Jesus Tattoo Billboard: Blasphemous or a Blessing? Christian Science Monitor
Ad Campaign With Tattooed Jesus Gets Lots of Ink, Not All of It Positive. AdWeek
JesusTattoo.org
The Big Questions
1. How do you picture Jesus? How does how you picture Jesus impact your faith? How important is his physical appearance? Does it matter if your image of Jesus is not how other believers view him? Why? Does your Jesus share your presuppositions and cultural baggage? How is your Jesus different from you? Would your Jesus appeal to other people?
2.Had Jesus been born in today's world, what are some reasons he might or might not have a tattoo or tattoos? If he had a tattoo, what might it say? Is there anything about using a tattooed image that is sacrilegious? What other artistic depictions of Jesus have challenged you, offended you, delighted you and/or caused you to think?
3. The video demonstrates the metaphoric meaning behind the tattooed Jesus on the billboard (and one TWW team member declares the idea "ingenious"). What are some other ways Christians can portray Christ that make him more relatable to non-believers? Is that part of our responsibility, or are we to let the Gospel speak for itself in a traditional way? What are some "traditional ways"? Were they always traditional?
4. To what degree can our outward appearance -- including how we dress -- project our faith? Might someone wear a tattoo as a Christian testimony? Are tattoos and body piercings right or wrong in and of themselves, or does our motive for having or not having them determine their value?
5. In what ways, if any, might the message conveyed by the video be redemptive for people? In what ways, if any, might it harm the gospel message?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Leviticus 19:28
You shall not make any gashes in your flesh for the dead or tattoo any marks upon you: I am the LORD. (For context, read 19:26-31.)
The prohibition against gashing the flesh for the dead was based on the practices of other nations in which gashing the skin was a conduit for contacting the dead and a means of appeasing demons with the shed human blood of the living to keep them from tormenting the corpse. In the context verses, practicing witchcraft and turning to mediums and wizards -- all supposed means of contacting the dead -- were also forbidden.
The Hebrew word translated "tattoo," however, is not as clear as the translation indicates. The word is found nowhere else in the Bible -- nor in other Hebrew literature from that era -- and a literal partial-translation would be "make no written qa'aqa' on yourselves." The qa'aqa' may be either a brand (people, as well as cattle, were branded in those days) or a tattoo, and there is some evidence that it specifically refers to either a mark placed on a slave to indicate status (as a slave) or ownership. (The King James Version translates qa'aqa' as "marks.") Even so, the possibility remains that qa'aqa' may be a general word for what we call a "tattoo."
Questions: How would you advise a young person today who was considering getting a tattoo? Why? What purpose(s) do tattoos serve in our culture today? Are they sinful? Do you or others in your group have tattoos? Do you or other people you know regret having had a tattoo? What would this tattooed Jesus have to say to the folks you know who have tattoos?
Isaiah 53:4-5
Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. (For context, read 52:13--53:12.)
2 Corinthians 5:21
For our sake [God] made [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (No context necessary.)
Isaiah 52:13--53:12 is one of four passages in Isaiah that Bible scholars refer to as "songs of the suffering" and which tell of a "suffering servant" forced to endure shame and suffering on behalf of others. Many people believe that at the time of the writing, the "servant" referred to the nation of Israel itself, suffering so that God could redeem all nations. From the first century on, however, the church has seen this passage as referring to Jesus, especially in light of the vicarious suffering he endured. John, for example, quotes Isaiah 53:1 in connection with signs Jesus performed (see John 12:38). Peter quotes Isaiah 53:9 in relationship to Jesus' suffering (see 1 Peter 2:22). And the deacon Philip explains Isaiah 53:7-8 to the Ethiopian official as applying to Jesus (see Acts 8:29-35).
Questions: In what ways does the tattooed-Jesus video visualize the theme of this Isaiah passage? How does 2 Corinthians 5:21  (above) connect with the Isaiah passage?
Matthew 16:13-15
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" (For context, read 16:13-20.)
"But who do you say that I am?" That was the question Jesus put to his disciples. It's also a question that the tattooed-Jesus video indirectly asks.
Questions: How do you answer Jesus' question? In what ways do you share your answer with others? Is it possible to answer Jesus' question in one sentence? Does that exhaust who Jesus is? Do you think your answer is helpful to people who may not know Jesus yet? What answer would speak to those who are searching?
Matthew 23:25-26
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean. (For context, read 23:23-28.)
Jesus here redefines what it means to be "clean" or "unclean." One TWW team member commented, "Jesus did not hesitate to be seen with sinners and to go where sinners could be found. And since he was not ashamed to be touched by women who anointed him, or speak with a Samaritan woman at the well, or touch sick people or dead people -- all of which were no-no's -- I could see Jesus redefining clean and unclean by wearing a tattoo and being seen with the people who wear tattoos. That might mean he would not be hanging around in the haunts I frequent, but he doesn't need to reach out to us church people. Hopefully, he's already got us (although, as we see in the gospels, some of us who ought to get it, don't get it). So actually, though I don't have a tattoo, and definitely don't want a tattoo, I have no problem visualizing a contemporary Jesus sporting a tattoo."
Questions: Why would Jesus be more concerned about what's etched on our heart (inside the cup) than what's inked on our skin (outside the cup)? How does the term "skin deep" apply to this Scripture text?
1 Corinthians 9:20-22
To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some. (For context, read 9:19-23.)
These comments from Paul are part of a larger section in which he refers to his "rights" as an apostle, one who had actually "seen" the Lord (in his Damascus road vision). But his point is that rather than assert his rights, he has chosen to make himself "a slave to all, so that I might win more of them" (v. 19). In other words, as the verses above suggest, he did what was necessary to enable people from various cultures and walks of life to hear and relate to his gospel message.
Questions: Do you think the tattooed-Jesus video is a [ITALIC] God-pleasing way to enable people who might not otherwise hear and relate to the gospel? Why or why not? In what way do you alter your outlook or cultural assumptions in order to be able to serve others in the name of Jesus?
For Further Discussion
1. Comment on this: Marianne Sawicki, the author of Seeing the Lord (Fortress Press, 1994), is convinced that human beings can copy a biblical text in one of two ways. First, we can copy a text onto paper or onto audiotape or even onto our skin. Or, we can copy a text into our own bodies, gestures and words. In this case, the writing is internal, and our bodies are modified to carry the pattern of the text.
2. Read to your class the lyrics of the Christmas song "Some Children See Him," and invite comments in light of how we "see" Jesus.
3. Respond to this, from a TWW team member: "One of my nephews is a tattoo artist who has started to emphasize biblical scenes more in his work as he has returned to the church of his grandparents. After my father died, my daughter had a tattoo added to her collection in his memory. I have no tattoos, but I observe the younger generation and have concluded that this particular form of advertising can be dangerous (gang symbols) or represent life-affirming associations. In my jail ministry, I often see prisoners whose lives are revealed in their tattoos; old girlfriends, drug addictions, poor choices and Christian symbols share space on the same arm or face."
4. One TWW team member put this spin on 1 Peter 1:18-19: "You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things [like skin paintings] ..., but with the [tattoo-like indelible] blood of Christ ...." What do you think?
Responding to the News
Whether or not you like the tattooed-Jesus video, this is a good time to consider in what ways your church can present the gospel to those beyond its walls that would be likely to hook people's interest and enable them to see their need for Christ.
Closing Prayer

O Lord, help us to see Jesus as clearly as we can, that we may receive him as Savior, follow him as example, learn from him as teacher and serve him as Master. In his name. Amen.