6/22/14 Zach and Gary early 20's
Are
you “good people”? I’m not sure how the
term is used elsewhere, but on the south side of Chicago to be “good people” (and
you must use incorrect grammar to say it correctly) generally means you are not
a northsider or a suburban snob, you go to mass when you need to but don’t
talk about religion or any deep subjects, you like to drink beer and cheer on
your favorite team, and you are responsible for your family and loyal to your
neighborhood. I met two good people – Zach and Gary – on their way into a
neighborhood tavern and gave them a million dollar gospel tract as a
conversation starter, which automatically disqualified me of being good people,
but I don’t pretend to be one anyway. Many
others who are not good people by virtue of snobbery would say this is a tacky
approach, but it allowed me to start with a laugh and take a lighthearted and
conversational tone in sharing some heavy truths: “So what do you think about the million
dollar question on the back ‘Will you go to heaven’? “Well, I’m Catholic, so yeah, I will” “How can you be sure? Are you good people?” This would be correct grammar when talking
to two people, but they could tell I was using the phrase in its incorrect
grammar form, and they smiled knowingly.
“I mean, you know you aren’t perfect, so how good do you think you need
to be?” I went on to use some of the Ten
Commandments to show them their sin and need for forgiveness, in much the same
way Jesus did: "You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You
shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honor your father and
mother; also, You shall love your neighbor as yourself." My bottom line – No one is good enough for
heaven, not even Good People. It gave
Zach and Gary something to think about over a brewsky or two.
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