A tale of a tragic hero. A glimpse into his inner turmoil. Unrequited love from an adoring woman. Betrayal from a trusted companion. A fateful chain of events leading inexorably towards death.

The story is told in song, at times through screaming vocals, driven by electric guitar numbers worthy of a rock concert.

This is Jesus Christ Superstar.

The controversial musical will come to Singapore in August 2026. Created by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice in 1970, Jesus Christ Superstar retells the story of the final days of Jesus’ life largely through the eyes of Judas Iscariot.

Initially released as a concept album before becoming a Broadway musical in 1971 and a Hollywood film in 1973, the work has since been reimagined in numerous productions around the globe. The version arriving in Singapore is the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre revival first staged in London in 2017.

Popular culture’s fascination with Jesus is hardly new. Over the years, the figure of Christ has yielded countless cultural reinterpretations, often in ways that have courted contention and captured the public imagination.

In the early 2000s, there was The Da Vinci Code. Today we are confronted again with Jesus Christ Superstar. Tomorrow will bring something else. In fact, the newer 2025 Hollywood Bowl production of the musical has stoked renewed controversy with the casting of Cynthia Erivo as a female Jesus.

To be clear, this is not the version to be staged in Singapore this year. But could it find its way to our shores one day?

When popular culture portrays Christ and Christianity in ways that are irreverent, incomplete or theologically skewed, how should Christians respond?

Thoughtful cultural engagement

An understandable response is outright rejection. Certainly, Christians must stand firmly on biblical truth. Yet if all we say is “no” and nothing else, we may miss opportunities for more intentional engagement with culture. 

Like it or not, popular culture surrounds us, and we interact with it every day. The question is whether we are doing so in a thoughtful and winsome Christian manner.

Scripture proclaims that our world is afflicted by sin and, at the same time, infused with the common grace of God. God causes the sun to rise and the rain to fall on both the evil and the good (Matthew 5:45).

Furthermore, these fragments of grace serve a revelatory function, pointing towards our Creator and Redeemer. The Lord provides for us and fills our hearts with joy as a testimony, to turn our hearts from these gifts to the Giver (Acts 14:15–17).

Our task is therefore to untangle the divine from the profane in the messy mixture of sin and grace that inhabits a cultural work.

Cultural works with Christianity as their subject call for added care and discernment. We should not condone portrayals that denigrate Jesus, and ought to extend equal respect to all faith communities.

Cultural representations of Christ or Christianity must also be carefully evaluated in light of Scripture and historic Christian orthodoxy. Yet even if we strongly disagree with a particular work, there is still room for constructive conversation.

Conversation with culture does not necessarily lead to compromise. What it does entail is moving beyond uncritical acceptance or rejection of cultural phenomena.

In fact, critical thinking usually clarifies the nature of our objections and allows us to engage at the deeper level of worldview. We are better poised for Christian witness as well.

Billy Graham, commenting on Jesus Christ Superstar in a sermon in 1971, criticised the production as “bordering on blasphemy and sacrilege”. But he also recognised that the rock musical had the whole country asking: “Who is Jesus Christ?”

As much as he found the musical objectionable, Graham seized the opportunity in this cultural moment to testify to Christ.

Five diagnostic questions

In the book Popologetics, Ted Turnau sets out a five-question diagnostic framework for Christian engagement with popular culture. 

This rubric takes us deeper than typical critiques of the more obvious features of a work, such as sex and violence and inappropriate language (which remain important markers and are covered under this framework), to probe underlying worldview perspectives, thereby paving the way for a more robust Christian response.

Question 1: What is the story?

Before evaluating a cultural work, we must first understand it on its terms. What is happening? Who are the key characters? What themes and conflicts shape the narrative?

Question 2: Where in the world am I?

We then dig deeper by exploring the worldview that undergirds the story, including its assumptions on basic questions about God, human nature, meaning and morality, and the solution it presents to life’s problems.

Question 3: What is good and true and beautiful in this world?

Next, we identify common-grace elements in the work, things we recognise as good and noble – true love, justice, peace, mercy, etc – and how they connect to God’s story according to Scripture.

Question 4: What is false and ugly and perverse in this world?

Crucially, we also note how the imaginative world departs from Scripture and is distorted by sin, such as by turning God’s good gifts into idols, or promoting misleading visions of life. We can ask hard questions to expose the emptiness of these narratives.

Question 5: How does the Gospel apply here?

Finally, we turn to the Gospel of the Creator and Redeemer of the world to provide real answers to the deep desires raised in the work, correct its misunderstandings, and offer a fuller and truer vision of reality.

A full analysis of Jesus Christ Superstar using Turnau’s rubric exceeds the scope of this article.

Suffice it to say, the musical deviates markedly from Scripture by foregrounding Judas’ perspective, implying a romantic relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and omitting the resurrection entirely. Its worldview rests on an impoverished Christology that downplays Jesus’ divine nature and redemptive mission while sensationalising his humanity.

The rock music of the production also lends itself to cultural and moral associations incompatible with reverence towards Christ. As Christians, we should register our serious concerns over these misrepresentations of our faith.

There are echoes of truth and beauty in the musical’s vivid portrayal of human love, longing, struggle and sacrifice. Still, what hope can such a “self-actualised” Jesus ultimately offer if the story ends in uncertainty and tragedy?

Only the true Gospel reveals Jesus not merely as a misunderstood and suffering hero, but as the Son of God who has conquered sin and death, and offers true salvation and the hope of authentic humanity to the world.

Towards a Christian-critical imagination

With so many competing cultural narratives dominating the public square today, the Church urgently needs to be a meaningful voice in the conversation.

This requires us to cultivate a Christian-critical imagination that is at home with the complexities of sin and grace inherent in every cultural work, and ready to engage with ever-evolving interpretations of the Christian faith in popular culture.

Let us also recognise that every cultural moment presents an opportunity for Christians to bear witness to the true Gospel.

The world continues to ask: “Who is Jesus Christ?” May we answer with thoughtful conviction and winsome witness to our crucified and risen Saviour.

This article was first published in Methodist Message and is republished with permission.

RELATED STORIES:

“Denials of the divinity of Christ”: Churches express caution on Jesus Christ Superstar