Stephen Schwartzs's Godspell, first performed in 1971 and made into a movie in 1973, is a more light-hearted musical version of the Jesus "event"; this time Jesus is once again surrounded by a troupe of carefree young people.

The novel Ben Hur: A Story of Christ (1880) by Lewis Wallace, as well as the 1959 film version Ben Hur, starring Charleton Heston, portrays the time period from the angle of a young Jew who is sent to the galleys on a false charge, escapes, and converts to Christianity.

The Greatest Story Ever Told (1949) by Fulton Oursler is a fictionalized biography of Jesus, told in a compelling style.

Quo Vadis (1897) by Nobel prize winner Henry K. Sienkiewicz (translated by W. S. Kuniczak) describes the historical times, focusing on Roman culture at the time of the birth of Christianity.

Webber and Rice collaborated one other work...