God's Gift of Humor

 By Ellen Connelly

A few summers ago St. Peter's had a summer film festival where several of us were asked to come on a Wednesday evening and show our favorite film. It seemed to me to be a very simple, straightforward assignment with no strings attached.  A few days before I was scheduled to make my appearance I overheard Fr. Stockton telling someone about it, and was just short of horrified to learn that the presenter would be leading a discussion with the audience about the religious significance of the film they’d chosen. If you’ve seen Waking Ned Devine you undoubtedly appreciate my concern. (If you haven’t seen it, go rent it) This film includes gambling, nudity, profanity, lying, and sex. (It also includes some spectacular scenery.) It’s one of the funniest movies I’ve ever watched, but probably not what I’d have picked had I realized what was expected.

I tend to enjoy movies and books for the story and have never been good at or enjoyed searching for hidden meanings, nor do I need to find significance in everything ... I’m not likely to be the person who will see the Virgin Mary in a pancake. So this was a real challenge. It was only after viewing the DVD several times, and enjoying it every time, that I felt I’d discovered the message: GOD WANTS US TO LAUGH.

That’s not a conclusion you would come to by reading the Bible. It only mentions laughter forty-two times. (I didn’t count. That’s from Wikipedia). Most of the time laughter is mentioned in Holy Writ it is derisive, as in Psalm 37, “ The Lord laughs at the wicked”, or cynical, as in Genesis when Abraham and Sarah both laugh at the notion they could become parents in their nineties. We even read in Ecclesiastes 7:3 that, “Sorrow is better than laughter, for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.” 

The Bible does talk a lot about joy, but not about any hearty belly laughs. (Unless you count Abraham falling flat on his face when he got the message of his impending fatherhood.)

But does that mean that God has no sense of humor? Surely He must have. Why else would He have given the dog a tail? In Psalm 104, a magnificent paean of praise for all He created, we read that he made whales just to play in the sea. The God who turned water into wine at a wedding obviously wanted people to enjoy themselves. Life includes both sorrow and joy, and just as tears may be our answer to sorrow, laughter is our response to joy. Joy and laughter are good for us. In Proverbs, we read, “A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.” 

As I continued to search for something that would explain the religious significance of Waking Ned Devine, I came across this prayer by Edward Hays. It says it all.

“ Father and God of Fools, Lord of clowns and smiling saints, I rejoice in this playful prayer that you are a God of laughter and of tears. Blessed are you, for you have rooted within me the gifts of humor, lightheartedness and mirth. With jokes and comedy you cause my heart to sing as laughter is made to flow out of me. I am grateful that your son, Jesus, who was this world’s master wit, daily invites me to be a fool for your sake, to embrace the madness of your prophets, holy people and saints. I delight in that holy madness which becomes the very medicine to heal the chaos of the cosmos since it calls each of us out of the hum-drumness of life into joy, adventure, and, most of all, freedom. I, who am so tempted to barter my freedom for tiny speckles of honor and power, am filled with gratitude that your son’s very life has reminded me to value only love, the communion with other persons and with you, and to balance honor with humor. With circus bands and organ grinders, with fools, clowns, court jesters and comics, with high-spirited angels and saints, I too join the fun and foolishness of life, so that your holy laughter may ring out to the edges of the universe. 

Blessed are you, Lord my God, who invites me to be a holy fool.”

Amen

_________________________

Ellen Connelly is a most faithful Christian and wonderful aunt. She lived many years in Kerrville, Texas but has since moved to a smaller community outside of San Antonio. Each summer we visit and part of the annual ritual is movie night. Aunt Ellen has a knack for picking gems that even young great-nephews will enjoy. It is with her permission that I post this blog entry. (Originally posted 8.27.2012