One Of Us by Joan Osborne Lyrics Meaning – Exploring the Divine in the Mundane
Lyrics
And would you call it to his face?
If you were faced with Him in all His glory
What would you ask if you had just one question?
And yeah, yeah, God is great
Yeah, yeah, God is good
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah
What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Tryin’ to make his way home?
If God had a face what would it look like?
And would you want to see
If seeing meant that you would have to believe
In things like heaven and in Jesus and the Saints
And all the prophets?
And yeah, yeah, God is great
Yeah, yeah, God is good
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah
What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Tryin’ to make his way home?
Just tryin’ to make his way home
Back up to heaven all alone
Nobody callin’ on the phone
‘Cept for the Pope, maybe in Rome
And yeah, yeah, God is great
Yeah, yeah, God is good
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah
What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Tryin’ to make his way home?
Just tryin’ to make his way home
Like a holy rolling stone?
Back up to heaven all alone
Just tryin’ to make his way home
Nobody callin’ on the phone
‘Cept for the Pope maybe in Rome
In 1995, Joan Osborne asked a question that resonated with millions: ‘What if God was one of us?’ A melodic contemplation on the nature of divinity, ‘One of Us’ redefined spiritual discourse, pulling it down from the heavens and into the realm of the everyman. With its soulful blend of rock and folk, Osborne’s song is a poignant exploration of divinity intertwined with human existence.
Beyond its catchy hook and Osborne’s raw vocal expression, the song dives deep into profound theological and existential waters. It asks listeners to reimagine the concept of God not as a distant, omnipotent being but as someone familiar and tangible, navigating the same banal struggles of daily life as the rest of us.
Divinity Disguised as a Fellow Traveller
At the core of ‘One of Us’ lies the radical notion of a God who is imminently approachable. Oscillating between the celestial and the colloquial, Osborne’s lyrics strip away the layers of sanctity to present a God who could be sitting next to us on a bus, devoid of any grandeur. This idea disrupts traditional religious imagery, which often places God on a lofty plane, separate from the lives of ordinary people.
By suggesting that God could be ‘just a slob like one of us,’ Osborne democratizes the divine, giving it a human face and challenging listeners to find sacredness in the less-than-sacred. The imagery she paints—of a deity using public transportation, unnoticed and uncelebrated—suggests a universal presence that quietly participates in our shared human experience.
The Singular Enquiry That Shook the World
‘What would you ask if you had just one question?’ Osborne’s pivotal line doesn’t merely stir curiosity; it demands introspection. The song’s speculative nature encourages personal reflection, asking listeners to consider the weight of their words in a hypothetical divine encounter. It nudges us towards considering what matters most in the grand tapestry of existence.
This one line encapsulates an entire philosophical journey. It’s this aspect that catapulted ‘One of Us’ beyond the realm of pop music into the territory of a spiritual anthem. The listener is faced with the task of boiling down all their wonder, doubt, pain, and joy into one defining query, underlining the profundity found within the song’s seemingly simple arrangement.
The Humanization of the Holy: A Hidden Meaning Unveiled
While the chorus frames God as ‘just a stranger on the bus,’ there’s a deeper narrative at play. It’s not just about bringing the concept of God down to earth; it’s about recognizing the inherent divinity within all of us. The ‘us’ in ‘One of Us’ is as important as the ‘one’—the song suggests that if we see God in the stranger beside us, perhaps we can learn to see it within ourselves, making way for a more interconnected and empathetic world.
Moreover, this humanization isn’t a downgrade. Instead, it invites a closer relationship with the divine. The song doesn’t aim to diminish God’s greatness; it aims to show that greatness can manifest in the most mundane of circumstances, broadening the definition of what it means to be holy. In this respect, the seemingly sacrilegious tone becomes a call for reverence in the everyday.
Navigating Solitude: ‘Back up to Heaven All Alone’
Amid the grand queries and bold propositions, ‘One of Us’ resonates with a simpler, more personal sentiment of loneliness. The image of God traveling ‘back up to heaven all alone’ echoes the isolation that often pervades human existence. The fact that ‘nobody’s calling on the phone’—save for the Pope, maybe—touches on our innate desire to connect and be recognized.
This lonesome journey isn’t just a commentary on the divine experience; it’s a mirror reflecting our own battles with solitude. Even in her suggestion of the holy, Osborne doesn’t shy away from the shared, sometimes painful thread of seeking home, whether it’s a place of rest or a state of grace.
Iconic Catchphrases: Embodied Theology In Verse
The song’s chorus has seeped into popular consciousness, becoming more than a tune—it’s a mantra, a question, and a provocation. ‘What if God was one of us?’ is a line that embodies Osborne’s entire ethos, delivered with a curious blend of reverence and familiarity. It has evolved into a cultural touchstone, a phrase that invites dialogue and discomfort in equal measure.
The haunting repetition of ‘yeah, yeah’ before proclaiming ‘God is great’ and ‘God is good’ strikes a chord of authenticity. It resonates because of its casual affirmation of faith, couched not in the hallowed halls of a church, but in the accessible truths we tell ourselves daily. The simplicity of these lines belies their depth, as they become a prayer that acknowledges the duality of God’s immensity and intimate presence.
