I wrote this song with a children’s chorus in mind, at a time I was helping with a stage production of Dickens’ Christmas Carol, and my sister Tess Hoffman was writing a children’s opera based on the story.
So the themes are largely the themes of Christmas Carol – Christmas adds cheer and motivates kindness for no other reason than it’s Christmas! At the same time, there were many rich people in politics claiming that God really doesn’t expect his people to help the unfortunate – a lie from the true “dark side” that seems to have gotten even more traction in recent years.
If you have any doubt how Dickens felt about such topics, sit down and READ A Christmas Carol beginning to end.
IF you have any doubt about what the Bible says about such topics, sit down and READ your Bible cover to cover, and notice the countless times God calls on his people to have mercy on the dispossessed, the refugees, the orphans, the widows, the sick, the elderly and anyone else in need of compassion. While you’re there, pay attention to what Jesus says about religious hypocrites.
Or if you’re already to inclined that Christmas is a time that should cause hope and generosity to flourish, simply listen to this song.
https://soundcloud.com/paul-race-933212658/christmas-is-a-hope
