One could say that blasphemy became the state of the art with those hugely profane musicals, Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar. The script of Godspell is partially paraphrased from the text of St. Matthew’s Gospel and was hailed by many Christians as some exciting breakthrough in communicating the gospel to the masses - a marvellously innovative way to ensure that the name of Jesus is heard by millions of people who would otherwise not darken the doors of a church. However, the musical’s author, Steven Schwartz, said: “I wrote it because Christianity is the biggest myth there is around and I’m going to show what a myth it is by making a joke out of it”.
First of all, I’d like to see a source for this Schwartz quote.
And for the record, the actual author of
Godspell is John Michael Tebelak (Schwartz only wrote the music). He produced it at age 22 as his masters thesis, under the tutelage of Lawrence Carra, at Carnegie Mellon University in December 1970. He had been studying Greek and Roman mythology, with the deadline for his thesis two weeks away, but became fascinated by the joy he found in the Gospels. He attended an Easter Vigil in 1970 at Pittsburgh’s St. Paul Cathedral, wearing his usual overalls and T-shirt. There he was stopped by a policeman who tried to frisk him for drugs (it didn’t help that he had long hair at the time).
He wrote of this experience, “
I left with the feeling that, rather than rolling the rock away from the Tomb, they were piling more on. I went home, took out my manuscript, and worked it to completion in a non-stop frenzy.” Tebelak was originally required to direct a production of a classic or period piece for his thesis, but he was allowed
One of the ways in which Schwartz did this was by dressing the characters as clowns (is this the inspiration for irreverent ‘clown masses’?) and then having them parody Sacred Scripture, such as when St. John the Baptist baptized Jesus with a sponge, making certain to clean behind the ears. Even talking about such blasphemy makes one wince in utter disgust and I only reference it by way of example.
Tebelak got the idea of the characters as being clowns (often misidentified as ‘hippies’ or ‘flower children’) in a little book book authored by Harvey Cox, head of the Harvard Divinity School, entitled
Feast of Fools, where there is a chapter entitled “
Christ the Harlequin.” But even then, there are variances between productions - it kind of seems to me that Godspell is more versatile than JCS, because the script allows for more flexibility - so what you see in one may not always hold true for the other.
And besides, did not the apostle Paul write:
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
In another place:
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you! For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.
“Fools for Christ.” That is basically the key word here, I think.
Also, I think they handle things differently depending on the production. The movie has John baptize Jesus with well, his hands, as you often see it portrayed (albeit the baptism takes place in the Angel of the Waters in Central Park).
