Ever since the Apostle Paul thundered against 'foolish jesting, which is not convenient', and John Chrysostom announced that Jesus never laughed, Christianity and humor have had an uneasy relationship. David Di Sabatino takes a second look at religion as an untapped source of comedy.THERE WAS A RABBI, a priest, and a minister... For most of us, this sentence prods us to bend an ear in anticipation of a deliciously wicked punchline. We offer thanks to those who provoke our guffaws with a heartfelt, 'you made my day!' after our deep belly laugh subsides. Since these moments of hilarity most often stem from insights common to the human condition, one of the richest sources of humor is religion. The relationship between Christian faith and humor has never been a healthy one. Both the early church fathers and medieval scholastics thought laughter was contemptible and utterly reprehensible. This world and its trivialities were not to be enjoyed, but overcome. This thinking climaxed with John Chrysostom's bald and unsubstantiated assertion that Jesus never laughed. Ever! Sociologist Peter Berger argues that Christianity has never felt altogether comfortable with humor because of the subversive nature of comdey. However, he says that satire should not be damned as the seeds of a bitter soul, but that a comedic mind can offer a much more complex social critique than Christians have ever thought valuable. Says Berger: 'The comic experience provides a distinctive diagnosis of the world', and he adds that comedic irony is perhaps 'the most serious perception of the world that there is.' In other words, as Shakespeare once wrote, it is the jester who often proves to be the most poignant prophet. IN THE 16th CENTURY, one shining moment of religious humor arrived with the publication of In Praise of Folly by the humanist scholar Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam. The book delivers what one commentator noted as perhaps the first 'full-blown comic worldview' in its attempt to lampoon its surrounding social setting with a delightfully ironic wit. In our day, comedy has been overtaken by angst-riddled, secularized thirtysomethings, who turn audiences into giant therapy sessions, publicly relieving themselves from pent-up childhood trauma. In this sarcastically driven arena, religion is usually lampooned – be it George Carlin's image of a fire-breathing nun, or the late Sam Kinison's imitation of a Pentecostal preacher – as something to avoid at all costs. Wit and irony can be an attractive servant, but ultimately a terrible master. There is, however, a difference between redemptive humor and just plain negativity. I am not thinking about those well-meaning but ultimately stale one-liner anthologies with frightening titles such as Heavenly Humor and More Good Clean Jokes. What I have in mind is the satirical insights of The Door magazine, the wit of musical group Daniel Amos, or solo artist Steve Taylor – each of whom have begun the long Erasmian ascent out of the church's otherwise comedy-starved malaise. SOME OF OUR MORE dour-minded brethren, for whom Chrysostom's statement is an obvious point of emulation, might insist that the Bible is silent about such a comedic call to arms. Perhaps so, but the story of Abraham and Sarah reveals something about the divine character that has gone unnoticed for far too long. When God appears and claims that Sarah will bear a child in her old age, both husband and wife chuckle at the ludicrous nature of the proposition. What is most interesting, especially to those of us for whom pushing the envelope is something of a sport, is that they do so without reprisal. God not only shows tremendous understanding, but he obtains the last laugh in that the child is named Isaac (a name which means, 'he laughs'). As Karl-Josef Kuschel writes: 'Here is talk of a God who himself tolerates the laughing doubt of human beings and in the end turns it into the happy laughter of joy.' Thus, if it really is God who laughs last, should we not put this wonderful gift to use in more diverse ways? Apparently, God can take a joke. David Di Sabatino wishes that when he grows up he will ultimately be taller. Top of Page | Archive | Ship of Fools Central © Ship of Fools 1999 |