Can we “be good, for goodness’ sake?”
Why even Christmas songs need critique.
Find out why we should evaluate what we sing by watching our Truth in Two (full text below).
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FULL TEXT
“You better watch out, you better not cry / You better not pout, I’m telling you why / Santa Claus is coming to town.”
One of the most popular Christmas songs has and will be sung repeatedly this Christmas season. Decades before Amazon or Spotify, Santa Claus is Coming to Town became an overnight sensation in 1934, selling 500,000 copies of sheet music and 30,000 records within 24 hours.
But as a biblical theologian, I have to critique the song, not because of Ol’ Saint Nick, but because of human nature. The song continues,
“He’s making a list and checking it twice / He’s gonna find out who’s naughty and nice / He knows if you’ve been bad or good / So be good for goodness’ sake.”
So, is it possible to “be good for goodness’ sake?” I have lost count of the number of times I have heard the line “I’m a good person” from neighbors, associates, acquaintances, or from characters in a movie. The statement, “I’m a good person,” does four things for me.
One, I get to say what is good.
Two, I will evaluate myself by my own standard.
Three, my goodness assumes that bad must exist, though I’m not bad.
And, four, others outside cannot judge me.
Take for example, a Psychology Today article “How to Know if You’re a Good Person.” The suggestion is made to “define what a good person is in 3-5 words and rate yourself on this continuum.” Really? So, humans set the standard and get to evaluate whether or not they measure up by their own standard?
If you believe that you can be good for Santa, you have missed the reason for the season: Jesus is The Good News, the only way we can be good in God’s sight. For Truth in Two, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, President of the Comenius Institute, personally wishing everyone a Blessed Christmas.