Summary

One night, my high school art teacher wanted me to enter an art competition, but I wasn't happy enough with any of my pieces to submit them. I happened to have "Like a Prayer" by Madonna stuck in my head and I remembered something my dad had told me. He told me that Madonna had received a lot of backlash for the music video, which depicted Jesus as a black man and ends with him being arrested for a crime he didn't commit. I found the reaction quite interesting and rewatched the video. I ended up painting for hours that night, inspired by the depiction of Jesus in the music video and classic paintings of Jesus and other biblical figures. Specifically, paintings of the "Sacred Heart" of Jesus and Mary. In 2020 I submitted the painting to an art competition for students and the painting was published in a collection of student art.

When I brought the painting to school the next day, my teacher took the painting and showed it to the entire classroom, pointing out that I, the only white and non-black student in the class, painted "Black Jesus" before he helped me finish it.