Posted on 12/20/2006 6:34:26 PM PST by Mr. Silverback
Last week I received an unexpected Christmas lesson from the heavy metal band Twisted Sister.
They appeared on The Tonight Show, thrashing out a steel-reinforced rendition of “O Come All Ye Faithful.” You may remember these guys for their Eighties hits “We’re Not Going To Take It” and “I Wanna Rock,” or you might recall lead singer Dee Snider embarrassing Tipper Gore’s anti-rock crusaders in the Senate with his polite but unyielding testimony. My favorite part was when the committee counsel referred to him politely as "Mr. Sister."
Dee and the boys blew the roof off the place: “O come let us adore him, CHRRRRIIIIST THE LOOOORD!” It turns out they just released a whole album of high-decibel holiday tunes.
So why didn’t anybody set out to harsh Twisted Sister’s Christmas buzz? There seem to be more people every year turning the season into a battleground, or something out of George Orwell’s “1984.” Instead of Orwell’s thoughtcrimes, these days we get yulecrimes. Acknowledge the events in ancient Bethlehem at all and some people can turn downright grinchy.
This year we saw a school in Louisville, Kentucky go gunning for Santa because a reference to him in a hall display might offend Muslim and Hindu students—the same students who had helped construct it. Another school in DelRay Beach, Florida has banned any reference to any holiday, allowing only “winter parties” and (for decoration) teddy bears wearing sweaters. In Riverside, California, a city employee worried that Olympic skater Sasha Cohen would be offended by a choir singing “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” and not only made the choir stop singing, but brought an armed police officer with her to make it stick. Cohen, by the way, was “stunned” at the idea that a Christmas carol would offend her. St. Albans, West Virginia kept the baby Jesus out of the manger at a local park, worried that they’d be sued by the ACLU. Instead they put up a "desert scene" with figures that looked suspiciously like Mary and Jospeh, but weren't of course, because that would imply some connection to Jesus and make them lawsuit bait.
Some PC-loving retail stores have banned “Merry Christmas” or put stringent regulations in place to govern its use. Jerry Falwell’s Liberty Counsel organization issued a boycott list of such “naughty” retailers, but the list also included retailers who had substituted “Holiday” for “Christmas” in any way, even those who called a December catalog a “Holiday Gift Guide.” Apparently Falwell never caught the irony of fighting petty, mean-spirited anti-Christmas regulations with petty, mean-spirited pro-Christmas regulations.
So why does Twisted Sister get away with it? I think the answer is fear, or the lack of it. If some petty interest group calls Dee Snider and objects to his offensive mention of Christ on the Tonight Show, he’ll probably tell them something that can’t be printed here, or maybe just sing the chorus of the Twisted Sister classic “Burn in Hell.” But what about the principal who gets a call from Americans United for the Separation of Church and State regarding those Christmas carols in the winter concert? What about the small town mayor who expects to fight the ACLU in court for years if he gives in to having a crèche and menorah in a park for a week? You can bet your last stocking stuffer they have trepidation in their hearts over the consequences these harassers can visit on them.
Claiming to act for tolerance and against fear, a tiny minority has employed intolerance, bullying and nitpicking, fervently moving our season of beauty toward a season of brawling. This, they tell us, is how we’ll all get along, by exclusion and derision. But not all the PC utopians are part of this mean-spirited crew. Some of them just have fears of their own hidden deep in their hearts, and they haven’t heard from the Church the message that the angels brought on that glorious night: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people.”
What is to fear about someone willing to sacrifice his life for you? To paraphrase Max Lucado, the tiny hands of the Christ child weren’t “destined to hold a scepter or wave from a palace balcony. They were reserved instead for a Roman spike that would staple them to a Roman cross.” Even if one doesn’t believe in it, why make trouble for people who do, and are astonished at such a gift?
The kind of person who is offended by that—or pretends to be for a political agenda—is the kind of person who needs to hear “do not be afraid” the most. They’re the ones living in fear in the valley of the shadow of death, unaware that a new light has dawned.
So what’s a Christian to do when their faith is treated like a disease? Get intimidated? Get mad? Get even? It turns out Twisted Sister has the right answer: Put on a big smile and sing out, just like another Christmas song says:
Go tell it on the mountain
Over the hills and everywhere
Go tell it on the mountain
That Jesus Christ is born
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Silverback's column ping!
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Nice job.
Thanks.
Thank you!
Contains major Twisted Sister references. Xer ping?
Dee really seems like a classy and fantastically intelligent guy. I've been a fan since way back.
I wonder, would Mister Sister and the boys put out such an album if the topic had not become so controversial?
I decided 'Merry Christmas' wasn't offensive enough, so now I go with: 'Have a Blessed Season of the Birth of Our Savior!"
Interesting question. I'd bet they would have, since what inspired it is the fact that "We're Not Gonna Take It" is almost note for note the same as "Come All Ye Faithful."
Thanks and LOL!
"And there were in the same country shepherds, abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them! And they were sore afraid ... And the angel said unto them, "Fear not! For, behold, I bring you tidings o great joy, which shall be to all my people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ, the Lord."
"And this shall be a sign unto you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." And suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the Heavenly Host praising God, and saying, "Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth peace, and good will toward men."
"That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown."
A melody without copyright is easy pickins for winding verses around ... I don't think stealing the melody of a 'religious' song around which to wrap secular message qualifies as 'in sympathy with the original message.'
True. My take was that nobody could have shut them up, not that they have become Christians.
No, thank you!
For my pro-life and Breakpoint lists, I offer this humble Christmas gift.
Merry Christmas, Mr. Silverback!!!
Same to you, ma'am.
I can imagine it's hard to imagine. :-)
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