Should Religious Figures In History Ever Be Worn As A Costume?

When Highland Park senior Marshon Sanders, an African American, was pulled out of classes and sent to the dean's office October 31st, Halloween, for coming to school in a Jesus costume, this set off a wave of controversy. Were officials offended because he was dressed like a revered religious figure, Jesus, for Halloween? Or were officials offended that Marshon, a black youth, dared to portray Jesus, who has been portrayed as white? Marshon says inasmuch as he had been recently baptised, he wore the costume in honor of Jesus. Author and historian Walter McCray discusses his books on the racial identity of Jesus and the Black Presence in the Bible. How does the racial images of religious figures affect our beliefs about God and about ourselves?