Elvis Presley was once heard in concert saying, "I am not the King. Jesus Christ is the King. I'm just an entertainer...", but the similarities are truly astonishing!!
• "In the beginning all was dark and void." - Genesis
• "Before Elvis, there was nothing." - John Lennon
• Jesus is spelled with five letters, ending in S.
• Elvis is spelled with five letters, ending in S.
• Both are widely known on a first name basis.
• A star appeared when Jesus was born. (Matthew 2:2)
• Elvis almost appeared in A Star Is Born.
• Three wise men waited for the messiah to appear.
• “I’ve waited my whole life for this boy.” – Col. Tom Parker
• Jesus' mother was a virgin.
• Elvis' mother was a virgin before she was married.
• Virgin Mary.
• Gladys Love.
• Jesus was Jewish.
• Elvis was part Jewish (from his maternal great-grandmother, Martha Tackett Mansell), and he used to play racquetball at the Jewish Community Center in Memphis.
• Jesus was both a Christian and a Jew.
• Elvis was both a Christian and a Jew.
• Jesus is a Capricorn (December 25).
• Elvis is a Capricorn (January 8).
• Jesus was born in humble surroundings.
• Elvis was born in Mississippi in a shotgun shack.
• Jesus was wrapped in swaddling clothes and lain in a manger.
• Elvis was wrapped in a blanket and placed in a shoebox in the oven to keep warm.
• Jesus was known as The Branch of Jesse.
• Elvis survived a still born twin, Jesse Garon.
• Joseph wasn't Jesus' real father.
• Elvis didn't think Vernon was his real dad.
• Both grew up poor in rural surroundings.
• Jesus' parents took him to Memphis, Egypt (to escape Herod).
• Elvis' parents took him to Memphis, Tennessee (to find work).
• There are pyramids in both Memphis, Egypt, and Memphis, Tennessee.
• Jesus' father, Joseph, was a carpenter.
• Elvis' father, Vernon, was a carpenter.
• Jesus was a carpenter.
• Elvis majored in wood shop and was named John Carpenter in the movie Change of Habit.
• Jesus was part of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Ghost).
• Elvis' was part of a trio (Elvis, Scotty and Bill).
• Peter was the rock upon which Jesus built his church.
• "Scotty Moore was the rock---sort of like Peter was the Rock of the Church." - Jerry Schilling
• Sun of God.
• Sun Studio.
• Jesus was first and foremost the Son of God.
• Elvis first recorded in Sun Studio, which today are still considered to be his foremost recordings.
• Ten Commandments.
• Ten Elvis songs on Sun Records.
• Jesus said: "Love thy neighbor." (Matthew 22:39).
• Elvis said: "Don't be cruel." (RCA, 1956).
• "Christmas" has the same number of letters as "Graceland". And the three letters shared in common, spell both "arc" and "car".
• Jesus was a healer. (Luke 13:13)
• Elvis could heal by the laying on of hands and passed out prescription drugs to friends and family.
• Jesus said, "Don't store away gold or silver, travel without money."
• Elvis never carried any money on his person.
• Jesus is the Lord's shepherd.
• Elvis dated Cybill Shepherd.
• Jesus walked on water. (Matthew 14:25)
• Elvis surfed. (Blue Hawaii, 1961)
• Jesus' entourage, the Apostles, had 12 members.
• Elvis' entourage, the Memphis Mafia, had 12 members.
• Jesus was resurrected.
• Elvis had the famous 1968 "Comeback" TV special.
• Jesus said, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink." (John 7:37)
• Elvis said, "Drinks on me!" (Jailhouse Rock, MGM, 1957)
• Jesus fasted for 40 days and nights.
• Elvis had irregular eating habits (e.g. 5 banana splits for breakfast) or sometimes would go for days without eating (when he was depressed).
• Matthew was one of Jesus' many biographers (The Gospel According to Matthew).
• Neil Matthews was one of Elvis' many biographers (Elvis: A Golden Tribute).
• [Jesus] countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow. (Matthew 28:3)
• Elvis wore snow-white jumpsuits with lightning bolts.
• They took up stones to cast at [Jesus]. (John 8:59)
• Elvis was often stoned.
• Jesus lived in state of grace in a Near Eastern land.
• Elvis lived in Graceland in a nearly eastern state.
• Jesus was the lamb of God.
• Elvis had mutton chop sideburns.
• Jesus' Father is everywhere.
• Elvis' father was a drifter, and moved around quite a bit.
• Jesus wore the crown of thorns.
• Elvis wore Royal Crown hairstyler.
• Jesus was anointed with oil.
• Elvis had greasy hair.
• H. Christ has 12 letters.
• Elvis Presley has 12 letters.
• No one knows what the "H" in "Jesus H. Christ" stands for.
• No one was really sure if Elvis' middle name was "Aron" or "Aaron".
• Jesus is often depicted in pictures with a halo that looks like a gold plate.
• Elvis' face is often depicted on a plate with gold trim and sold through TV.
• Jesus made reference to a Canaanite woman, saying, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." (Matthew 15:26)
• Elvis made reference to a woman, saying, "You ain't nothin' but a hound dog."
• Jesus was regarded by some to have been an extraordinary prophet.
• Elvis was regarded by some to have made an extraordinary profit.
• Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone." (Matthew 4:4)
• Elvis ate his bread with peanut butter and bananas.
• Jesus' mother Mary had an immaculate conception.
• Elvis' wife Priscilla went to Immaculate Conception High School.
• Jesus said, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."
• Elvis said, "Let he who is without sin cast the first rhinestone."
• People called Jesus a "glutton and a drunk." (Luke 7:34)
• People called Elvis "an overweight druggie..."
• Jesus died for us.
• Young girls would 'die for' Elvis.
• Jesus said, "Upon this rock I will build my church."
• Elvis created rock music and sang gospel.
• Jesus spent time in India and Tibet studying various other religions.
• Elvis was a Christian but studied and read about various other religions.
• Jesus stayed up all night in the Garden of Gethsemane.
• Elvis was nocturnal.
• Jesus breathed in the Jordan air.
• Elvis recorded with the Jordanaires.
• Jesus was called "King of Kings" and "King of Israel". (John 12:13)
• Elvis was called "King of Rock n' Roll".
• Jesus as wine (sacramental wine).
• Elvis as wine (Always Elvis wine by Frantenac).
"I am the Alpha and Omega. The Beginning and the Ending." - Jesus
• "I am and I was." - Elvis
• Jesus brought about a new era.
• Elvis brought about a new era.
• Jesus was the New Song.
• Elvis sang in a new style.
"Let there be sacred silence: I, the muse's priest, sing for girls and boys songs not heard before." - Horace
• Jesus' "soul was very sorrowful, even unto death."
• Elvis was so lonely he could die.
• Elvis, like Jesus, proved that the efforts of a single man can change the world.
• Jesus and Elvis both helped the poor.
• Jesus and Elvis were both rigid about sex.
• Neither Jesus nor Elvis took credit upon themselves, claiming it all came from God.
• Jesus' Purple Robe.
• Elvis' Pink Cadillac.
• Doubting Thomas.
• Suspicious Minds.
• Jesus cured the leprous, the deaf and the blind.
• Elvis gave away Cadillacs to ease the burden of poverty.
• Jesus' father gives us our daily bread.
• Elvis' father had a job delivering groceries.
• Jesus loved children--he said, "Suffer the little children to come unto me." (Mark 10:14)
• Elvis loved children--he began dating Priscilla when she was 14.
• Jesus loved the lepers, beggars, and other society outcasts.
• Elvis loved The Untouchables. He had seen almost every episode.
• Jesus departed and went into a desert place, and the people sought Him and came unto Him. (Luke 5:42)
• Elvis drew sellout crowds in Vegas.
• Jesus preached the gospel to Peter, Paul and Mary.
• Elvis sang tunes by Peter, Paul and Mary.
• A woman touched the hem of Jesus' garment. (Matthew 9:20)
• Elvis had his clothes ripped off by screaming teenage girls.
• Jesus loved Mary Magdalene.
• Elvis and Magdalene Morgan were 'sweethearts' from the end of the fifth grade until Elvis moved to Memphis in the beginning of the seventh grade.
• Jesus took Mary Magdalene under his wing.
• Elvis knew many prostitutes.
• Jesus' fame spread throughout the land. (Matthew 9:26)
• Elvis is internationally famous.
• Jesus said, "You will know them by their fruits." (Matthew 7:16)
• Elvis sang "Tutti Frutti". (RCA, 1956)
• Jesus had Mass. (Matthew 26:26)
• Elvis had mass--260 pounds of it.
• Jesus fed seafood to a hungry crowd. (Mark 6:41)
• Elvis fed seafood to a hungry crowd. (Clambake, 1967)
• Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount.
• Elvis sang "You Gave Me A Mountain To Climb".
• Jesus drove the money changers out of the temple. (Matthew 21:12)
• Elvis drove The Banker out of the Feast Day Festivities (Change of Habit, 1969).
• Jesus was arrested--he defied the Romans and started a worldwide religion.
• Elvis was arrested--he beat up a gas station attendant.
• Jesus was whipped by order of Pontius Pilate.
• Elvis was whipped by order of the prison warden (Jailhouse Rock, 1957).
• Jesus said, "Many shall come in my name, saying I am Christ." (Matthew 24:5)
• There are thousands of Elvis impersonators in the world today.
• Jesus said "Today, shalt thou be with me in paradise." (Luke 23:43)
• Elvis said "Welcome to Paradise--Hawaiian style." (Paradise Hawaiian Style, 1966)
• Jesus "rolled away the rock" (of the tomb).
• Elvis "rock and rolled".
• There is an ongoing Jesus Seminar to discuss the historical Jesus and the sayings of Jesus.
• The University of Mississippi at Oxford held an Elvis Conference.
• Jesus testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. [John 4:44].
• Elvis left Mississippi.
• Jesus lived for 33 years.
• Elvis made 33 movies.
• "I am the Alpha and the Omega." - Revelations 1:8
• Elvis served in the Alpha company in the Army.
• Shroud of Turin cloth.
• Shroud of Touring jumpsuit.
• Jesus gives light to those who sit in darkness. (Luke 1:79)
• Elvis studied to be an electrician.
• Jesus began his ministry at the age of 30.
• In 1965, at the age of 30, Elvis talked about entering a monastery.
• Jesus' ministry lasted three years.
• Elvis was at the height of his popularity, a national sensation, for a mere three years before he went into the Army.
• Jesus said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Matthew 5:17)
• Elvis had an obsession with police badges and once met with President Nixon where he requested to be a "Federal Agent at Large" for the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.
• Jesus calmed the waters.
• Elvis stopped the rain storm (according to cousin Billy Smith).
• Jesus is the Bread of Life. (John 6:48)
• Elvis was the Toast of the Town. (The Ed Sullivan Show, 1957)
• Jesus said, "Render...unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's." (Matthew 22:21)
• Elvis paid The Colonel's gambling debts to Caesar's Palace.
• Jesus is remembered on Palm Sunday in the Spring.
• Elvis went to Palm Springs for the sun.
• Jesus delivered us.
• Elvis helps us get delivered (Elvis stamp, 1993).
• After the last supper, Jesus sang a hymn. (Matthew 26:30)
• Elvis loved to sing, especially after supper.
• Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot.
• Elvis was betrayed by Red, Sonny and Dave. (Elvis, What Happened?, 1977)
• Jesus came down from the Mount of Olives and entered Jerusalem by the Water Gate.
• Elvis came to Washington D.C. and met President Nixon shortly before Watergate.
• Jesus dies in the book of John.
• Elvis died on the john.
• Jesus said, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit" (Luke 23:46).
• Elvis sang "Return To Sender".
• Jesus had the Holy Grail.
• Elvis had the Styrofoam Cup.
• Jesus ate our sins.
• Elvis swallowed our pills.
• The Torah says, "You shall not round off the peyos of your head" (Leviticus 19:27). The word peyos refers to sideburns.
• Elvis wore sideburns.
• Jesus taught that His followers should love Him.
• Elvis said "Love Me Tender".
• Both were loved by the Father, with a love that no crowd could ever surpass.
• Both were called "Kings", but they themselves never claimed to be.
• Both could hear angels speaking to them.
• Both seemed to know death was approaching soon.
• Both rose from the dead.
• Both are the subject of the most popular Black Velvet paintings.
• Like Jesus, Elvis is 100 percent God and 100 percent man.
• They pierced Jesus with nails.
• They pierced Elvis with needles.
• Jesus' crucifixion took three days.
• Elvis' crucifixion took three decades.
• People attempted to steal the body of Jesus.
• People attempted to steal the body of Elvis.
• (Jesus) was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. (Book of Luke)
• Elvis left the building.
• Each has been seen walking around after his death; Jesus on the road to Emmaus, and Elvis in K-Mart.
• Jesus sighting: "Afterward he appeard to unto [them] as they sat at meat." (Mark 16:14)
• Elvis sighting: He once appeared at a Kalamazoo, Michigan Burger King. (The Elvis Reader, pg. 83)
• Jesus and Elvis were never both seen in the same place at the same time.
• When something goes wrong, some people "take Jesus's name in vain."
• When something goes wrong in the life of character Perry White on TV's "Lois and Clark: the New Adventures of Superman," Perry says "Great Shades of Elvis."
• Both attracted millions of adherents after their death.
• Even today Jesus has a cult following.
• Even today Elvis has a cult following.
• Christians suffered persecutions and ridicule.
• Elvis Impersonators suffer persecutions and ridicule.
• The media tries to make Jesus Christ into a joke.
• The media tries to make Elvis Presley into a joke.
• Jesus saves! But Esposito scores on the rebound." [Canadian hockey joke]
"If only one person can be led to God because of me, it will be worth it." - Elvis Presley