Following the release of its self-titled debut album in 2001, A Camp went from being the solo project of the Cardigans vocalist Nina Persson to a three-member band.

Written and produced by Persson along with the band's remaining members Niclas Frisk and Nathan Larson, "Stronger Than Jesus" stood as the project's first musical output in seven years.

The song achieved commercial success as it reached a peak position of number eight on the Sverigetopplistan singles chart, marking it as A Camp's highest-charting entry in Sweden.

Nina Persson, a founding member and lead vocalist of rock band the Cardigans, formed a solo project under the name A Camp with Niclas Frisk in 1998.

[1][2] In September 2001, the project released its minimalist and acoustic debut album A Camp, which spawned the commercially successful single "I Can Buy You" (2001).

[4][5] In the years that followed, Persson released two studio albums with the Cardigans, Long Gone Before Daylight (2003) and Super Extra Gravity (2005),[6] before revisiting the A Camp project in 2007.

[1][9] While the first album drew inspiration from country music, Persson said that Colonia takes on more of a "city" character, describing it as "more urban, more restless", "louder", and "obnoxious" compared to its predecessor.

Furthermore, the band drew musical inspiration from Adam and the Ants, David Bowie, and Grace Jones, and the new wave genre.

[11] Once he deemed the chord progression and melody finished, Frisk handed over the song to Persson and Larson to compose lyrics.

[11] Persson initially came up with the lyric "I don't wanna live longer than Jesus",[11] but it was ultimately discarded as she found it nonsensical.

During the mixing process with Al Weatherhead at Firehouse 12 in New Haven, Connecticut, Larson recorded Persson's final vocals for the song using his own laptop and equipment.

[11] As interpreted by Jennifer Heape from The Local, the composition showcases a departure from Persson's typically buoyant and pop-infused vocal style as it is "displaced by a darker, more mature sound".

[9] While Persson regarded it a sing-along song similar to the Plastic Ono Band's "Give Peace a Chance" (1969),[14] critics noted different musical influences on the song; Brian Baker described its musical style in the Cleveland Scene as "Sam Phillips arranged by Burt Bacharach",[22] while Kenneth Partridge of the Hartford Courant likened its songwriting to works by Aimee Mann.

[24] Per Hägred of Expressen recognized influences from the Beatles, particularly the 1967 songs "All You Need Is Love" and "Strawberry Fields Forever", and identified Persson's nasal vocal style as reminiscent of John Lennon's.

According to the Los Angeles Times writer August Brown, the song draws parallels to colonialism by delving into power dynamics reminiscent of adventuring nations within the context of love.

[14] Persson compared its theme to the Cardigans' "Lovefool" from First Band on the Moon (1996), telling the Windy City Times, "[L]ove makes people do fucking crazy things.

[14] Commentators observed cynicism throughout "Stronger Than Jesus";[28] The Line of Best Fit's Andy Johnson asserted that the lyrics deconstruct the concept of love through a "filter of a disaffection and disappointment",[29] and Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine characterized it as an "anti-love anthem".

[37][38] In February 2009, an acoustic live recording of "Stronger Than Jesus" was offered for free download to those who signed up for the band's mailing list.

[16] Similarly, Contactmusic.com's Andy Peterson viewed it as a standout on the album, describing it as a moment of "startling quality",[18] and Göteborgs-Posten critic Jan Andersson chose it as their favourite track on the record and deemed it as strong as "I Can Buy You".

[45] In their review of Colonia, BBC Music's Jaime Gill compared the single favourably to album tracks "The Crowning" and "Bear on the Beach," expressing that "Stronger Than Jesus" is equally impressive in quality.

Music, who referred to the song as an "obvious single", described it as a "beautifully cynical take on the power of love, complete with twisted metaphors and swelling gospel for the chorus.

In a critical assessment, Britt, writing for PopMatters, opined that many tracks on Colonia are "overly adorned", commenting that "Stronger Than Jesus" includes an "unnecessarily insistent vocal delivery".

"[24] Alex Young of Consequence wrote that the album's method of "elegant and rich orchestrations" may not necessarily add excitement to the music, which they felt was evident with "Stronger Than Jesus".

[61] Writing for Stereogum, Brandon Stosuy concluded, "[E]ach member gets a moment to multiply kaleidoscopically, but it's [Persson's] appropriately (a) campy hand gestures and belted vocalizations that fill-up the frame.

[67] During its tours in Sweden and the United States in the spring and summer of 2009, A Camp included "Stronger Than Jesus" in the set lists.

[68] Critics gave positive reviews of the band's live performances of the song;[71] Thomas Björling of Sundsvalls Tidning regarded it as one of the concert's highlights,[72] while Johan Persson of Kristianstadsbladet described it as "paradoxically an almost religious experience", singling it out as a standout moment of the show.