Australian man Daniel Christos hailed as Jesus while travelling in Africa

AN AUSSIE man has become a superstar in Africa, featuring on television and trending online due to his resemblance to a certain icon.

Daniel Christos

A YOUNG Australian has been hailed as Jesus while travelling in Africa, appearing on national television and having his feet washed by locals.

Daniel Christos was working as a software engineer in Perth seven years ago before he embarked on his latest mission. The bearded traveller said he quickly found the cubicle life “wasn’t for me��� and started roaming the globe, letting his hair grow long and beard become wild. “It was awful. I was getting grey hairs. I was only 22, stressed, tired and hardly sleeping and drinking like 20 coffees a day,” he told Kenyan Television. “I went travelling and basically never stopped. It was a much nicer way for me to live my life ... I just kept going.” His thin frame and overgrown locks prompted comparisons to Jesus Christ which have reached fever pitch during his trip to Nairobi. He has become a trending topic for local media with many taking to Twitter under the hashtag #JesusinNairobi to share pictures of him in the city. His Facebook page shows pictures of him hugging locals and even having his feet washed. He claims not to have styled himself to be like the son of God but thinks the “natural” look and beard have prompted comparisons. “I’m just natural, I’ve got a beard and I’m walking around barefoot and I’m happy and people see that and just instantly relate it to the picture they see in the church,” he said, adding it’s a more intense version of the response he got in Ethiopia. “I thought coming here would be a break from that but it’s actually more intense. Everywhere we go people shouting ‘Jesus’, ‘Welcome back, Jesus’, but it’s fun. I can see the fun in it, I don’t mind so much.” Mr Christos describes himself as “self-employed” on Facebook where his introduction says: “I am me, I am you. We are all that we see.” He is followed by more than 6000 people and has had to make his page public after being unable to accept any more friend requests on the platform. Despite his popularity, it isn’t easy being so conspicuous. One picture of him has been circulated by users who said he should be beaten and left to die. Others expressed outrage Jesus should be likened to a mere mortal. “I feel a little concerned by this person’s comments. I don’t know who wrote it and I don’t know if it was just a joke or if they were serious, but it has made me a little uncomfortable to walk in the streets of Nairobi,” Mr Christos wrote on Facebook. Follow Daniel Christos on Facebook here.