That Time Elvis Presley Shares His Views About The Afterlife
UNSPECIFIED - JANUARY 01: Photo of Elvis PRESLEY; Posed studio portrait of Elvis Presley (Photo by RB/Redferns)
Elvis Presley is well-known to us for his charisma, his hip-shaking moves, and his honey-smooth voice. However, very few would characterize The King as a spiritual philosopher or a deep theologian. After all, he primarily performed as a public heartthrob and didn’t write many of his own songs. But underneath the rhinestone jumpsuits and rock ‘n’ roll fame was a surprisingly deep thinker, especially when it came to the afterlife.
A Southern Boy with Big Beliefs
Elvis grew up in the American South, so it’s no surprise he was raised as a Pentecostal Christian. But according to his former girlfriend, Linda Thompson, his views on religion were anything but narrow. In her 2016 memoir A Little Thing Called Life, she painted a picture of a man who embraced more than just traditional Christian beliefs.
“Elvis was very humble about his place in the cosmos and had an abiding faith in Jesus,” Thompson wrote. But he didn’t think everyone needed to share his beliefs. “At the same time, he was never judgmental about the beliefs of others and didn’t feel everyone in the whole world had to be Christian.”
Beyond One Religion
Despite his strong Christian roots, Elvis was open to the idea that truth and divinity could be found in other faiths, too. Thompson explained:
“We agreed that the God we knew and loved, which was all-encompassing, did not hold the belief that if you’re raised with Hinduism, or Buddhism, or any other non-Christian faith, you’re doomed to hell. That’s not the God we recognized.”
It’s a perspective that challenges the stereotype of Elvis as simply a Southern churchgoer. Instead, he saw spirituality as something bigger and more universal.
Faith Was Personal for Elvis
According to Thompson, Elvis “believed in the laying on of hands and faith healing, and he believed in the Holy Spirit.” She even said that outside of music, religion was “the most profound way in which he connected with others.”
For fans who only knew Elvis through his stage persona, these beliefs may come as a surprise. But they show a man who thought deeply about life, death, and what comes next—and wasn’t afraid to believe in something bigger than himself.
