Theology / TV

Bad People in The Good Place

by R-J Heijmen on Aug 23, 2016 • 2:30 pm 2 Comments

In case you missed it during the Olympics, NBC will have a new Thursday night sitcom this fall: The Good Place (I went to high school with Michael Schur!). It’s about an abominable woman (Kristin Bell), who, by some cosmic error, ends up in Heaven.

Not surprisingly, the show appears (admittedly from the 2-minute trailer) to propagate the notion that good people go to the “good place” and bad people go to the “bad place” (although I hold out hope that the creator of Parks & Rec and Brooklyn Nine-Nine will be a bit more insightful). Of course, this is the Law, not the Gospel. It is Karma, not Grace. In contrast, the New Testament affirms that the only Good Person went to the bad place so that bad people could go to the good place.

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Another Week Ends: Knuckled Mascots, Poetry Haters, Holy Fools, Q-Tip Effects, and Well Loved Waterboys | Mockingbird says:

Sep 16, 2016

[…] its disturbingly non-gracious premise, The Good Place is getting good […]

On Being Outsiders…and Not Quite Bulletproof | Mockingbird says:

Aug 1, 2019

[…] The Good Place has been a reliable source of laughs for a few months now, and my husband and I have watched every episode. Ted Danson? An absolute delight. Kristen Bell? Appealing as always. Supporting cast: Scene-stealers! Message? Umm… […]

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Bad People in The Good Place