He Was One of Us

Poortvliet tells the story of Jesus by letting faces and hands do the talking, speaking their own language and expressing more clearly the fact that the people who lived when Jesus was on earth were completely normal folk. There was nothing of the saint about them. They weren't any different from us and we can immediately recognize their outward behavior. Each of us is Peter and Thomas and Judes, and the innkeeper who, sorry though he was, had not room. If while looking at the pictures you are not able to discover what is going on, reach for your Bible. They story of Jesus is found in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Paintings by Poortvliet, text for the pictures by Hans Bouma.