{"id":28553,"date":"2025-08-11T17:08:37","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T21:08:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/?p=28553"},"modified":"2025-08-11T17:08:37","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T21:08:37","slug":"marco-rubio-states-cynthia-erivos-mocking-of-christ-is-nothing-new","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2025\/08\/marco-rubio-states-cynthia-erivos-mocking-of-christ-is-nothing-new","title":{"rendered":"Marco Rubio States Cynthia Erivo\u2019s Mocking of Christ is Nothing New"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Left: The White House | Right: Sky News Australia Youtube<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Secretary of State Marco Rubio had some strong words against Cynthia Erivo\u2019s controversial portrayal of Jesus in \u201cJesus Christ Superstar.\u201d Rubio was appearing on \u201cThe World Over\u201d when he was asked if the Kennedy Center, where Rubio is serving as a trustee, would consider hosting a performance of the show. \u201cI don’t follow any of that stuff, but just how you’ve described it to me, no, I mean, obviously, look, that stuff’s done to be provocative and to insinuate, but I think for people of faith, none of this should be new,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s been true from the beginning in Christianity, it’s been \u2013 Christianity has been mocked,\u00a0Christianity has been attacked from its very inception. In fact, the Church has traditionally been at its strongest when it’s the persecuted church, it’s been at its weakest when it sort of gets consumed by the culture,\u201d he added. Rubio described Christianity as \u201ccountercultural\u201d and to expect persecution because of it. \u201cBut I think we should understand that, that Christ’s own command and Christ’s own words, he tells us they’re going to hate you because of me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Erivo\u2019s role as Jesus has certainly sparked online outrage. \u201cLGBTQ+ Cynthia Erivo is playing Jesus in \u2018Jesus Christ Superstar,\u2019\u201d wrote<\/a> Students for Life President Kristan Hawkins along with a video of Erivo\u2019s performance. \u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s no surprise she looks exactly like how demons have always been portrayed. And let\u2019s be real\u2026 if you dress like a demon, act like a demon, and mock God like a demon\u2026 don\u2019t be shocked when people call it what it is. This is intentional blasphemy from Hollywood.\u201d \u201cThis is Cynthia Erivo as Jesus in Hollywood Bowl\u2019s Jesus Christ Superstar and Adam Lambert as Judas,\u201d wrote another user<\/a>. \u201cThey are both an abomination to God.\u201d The production has faced multiple accusations of blasphemy, with many of its critics calling Erivo\u2019s appearance in the production \u201cdemonic\u201d or comparing her to Nosferatu.<\/p>\n

Erivo\u2019s role in the 3-day production which included Adam Lambert as Judas was announced early 2025. Erivo noted there would be controversy over a black queer woman playing Jesus, but she remained nonplussed. \u201cWhy not?\u201d she told Billboard<\/em><\/a>. \u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t please everyone. It is legitimately a three-day performance at the Hollywood Bowl where I get to sing my face off. So hopefully they will come and realize, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s a musical, the gayest place on Earth.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Secretary of State Marco Rubio had some strong words against Cynthia Erivo\u2019s controversial portrayal of Jesus in \u201cJesus Christ Superstar.\u201d Rubio was appearing on \u201cThe World Over\u201d when he was asked if the Kennedy Center, where Rubio is serving as a trustee, would consider hosting a performance of the show. \u201cI don’t follow any of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":516,"featured_media":28556,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nMarco Rubio States Cynthia Erivo\u2019s Mocking of Christ is Nothing New<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Marco Rubio condemns Cynthia Erivo\u2019s \u201cprovocative\u201d portrayal of Jesus, urging Christians to expect persecution and stand 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