A Good Question

"Superstar"

Every time I look at you I don't understand
Why you let the things you did get so out of hand
You'd have managed better if you'd had it planned
Now why'd you choose such a backward time and such a strange land?
If you'd come today you could have reached the whole nation
Israel in 4 BC had no mass communication

Don't you get me wrong
Only want to know

Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ
Who are you? What have you sacrificed?
Jesus Christ,Superstar
Do you think you're what they say you are?

Tell me what you think about your friends at the top.
Now who d'you think besides yourself was the pick of the crop?
Buddha was he where it's at? Is he where you are?
Could Mohamed move a mountain, or was that just PR?
Did you mean to die like that? Was that a mistake, or
did you know your messy death would be a record breaker?

Don't you get me wrong
Only want to know

Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ
Who are you? What have you sacrificed?

Jesus Christ, Superstar
Do you think you're what they say you are?

Lyrics by Tim Rice
from Jesus Christ Superstar
Music by Andrew Lloyd Weber


I know there are some fundamental problems with the way Rice poses this question (Jesus, Mohamed and Buddha are not religious analogues) but the spirit of the question has always resonated with me.

Be well.