For the last two years, most of my daily blogs have been on the serious side, ranging through theology, economics and politics, stressing the reality of human suffering in our age. However, I am also delighted that God has given us the gift of laughter and so occasionally I will slip one in when my editor is not looking. Try this for a change of pace.

Changing A Light Bulb The Christian Way

How many Christians does it take to change a light bulb?

Charismatic: Only 1
Hands are already in the air.

Pentecostal: 10
One to change the bulb, and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness.

Presbyterian: None
Lights will go on and off at predestined times.

Roman Catholic: None
Candles only.

Baptists: At least 15.
One to change the light bulb, and three committees to approve the change and decide who brings the potato salad and fried chicken.

Episcopalians: 3
One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old one was.

Unitarians:
We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, you are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your light bulb for the next Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, fluorescent, 3-way, long-life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.

Methodists: Undetermined
Whether your light is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved. You can be a light bulb, turnip bulb, or tulip bulb. Bring a bulb of your choice to the Sunday lighting service and a covered dish to pass.

Nazarene: 6
One woman to replace the bulb while five men review church lighting policy.

Lutherans: None. Lutherans don’t believe in change.

Amish: What’s a light bulb?

If you understand the humor in each one of these, you are very open to ecumenism because it means that you know some particular trait about that specific religious tradition.

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“Laughter is the best medicine.” Frequently, my mother told me that when I was young and I know that the medical world has documented the truth of that principle, suggesting that frequent laughter promotes mental and physical health. In view of that, I think that the clergy, especially Catholic priests, should laugh more.

I have been to Rome quite a few times and crossing the Piazza in front of St. Peter’s, I was always struck by the passage of priests in black cassocks and black briefcases striding rapidly across the area with stern frowns on their faces. I would frequently make it a point to say to one of them as we passed, “Hi there, Father. I hope you are having a good day.” The usual reaction was startlement or irritation.

The world is filled with problems and suffering but the followers of Jesus Christ know that ultimately the power of God will triumph. We start with the fact that the human family has been redeemed by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and we should all exude joy, laughter and optimism. I realize that we all have different dispositions and some of us are prone to see the darker side of things but such people should resist and concentrate on the world of God, blue skies, beautiful children, scenic mountains and the fact that our relatives will soon be returning home.

Three thousand years ago, the psalmist called us to joy saying,

Rejoice in the Lord you who are just,
praise is fitting for the upright.
Give thanks to God on the harp and lyre
making melody and chanting praise.
Amid loud shouts of joy
sing to God a new song
and play the ten-stringed harp (Psalm 33:1-3)

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Father James Martin, S.J. is the culture editor of that wonderful Jesuit weekly, America, and he has another job as well. He is the unofficial chaplain to Comedy Central’s Steven Colbert. Father Martin has just produced a new book “Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor and Laughter are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life.”

I thoroughly agree with Father Martin but I think he is a little too negative on the issue of how much Roman Catholics laugh. He points out that many of us are dour and serious and use laughter rather sparingly. That has not been my personal experience. I have always gotten a big kick out of the fact that there is so much laughter in the Church about the Church. Cartoons, jokes and lightheartedness flourish in the Church but I do agree that we could always use more of it. It is true that there is a certain segment in the Church today, overwhelmingly on the conservative side, who don’t find much to laugh about. It does have problems, serious problems, but an institution that is awesomely important in God’s plan, inspired by Jesus Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit, should be confident and explosively joyous. Yes, there is pain and disappointment but ultimately everything will be all right.

My hope is that we will all have an eternity of joyous laughter.

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Have you ever been around a group of students, watching them covort outside on the school grounds, or been in a car with them as they drive to the beach? if you have, then you probably noticed something that is almost unceasing in terms of their activities together. They tease each other a great deal.

Teasing by itself is not a bad thing. It depends on how it’s done, to whom it’s done, by whom it’s done and for what purpose it’s done. Teasing in and of itself is not evil. It CAN be evil, and it can be very, very destructive.

I have a seat of the pants rule about teasing that I’ve tried to live with, and that I’ve shared when I’ve given retreats or talks to young people, and I call it the McCarthy Rule. I also share it with older people who are responsible for raising the next generation. They ought to be sensitive to the potential seriousness of teasing and have a way to offer people the opportunity to tease without inflicting pain or real damage into the life of another person. The McCarthy Rule is this:

You can tease people all you want in areas of their strengths and confidence.

You cannot tease people without running the risk of pain and destructiveness by teasing them in their areas of weaknesses or self-consciousness or limitations. So, here is an example I use: The star athlete is almost down to the goal line, and he reaches back to catch the pass that is delivered to him perfectly, and he drops it. You can tease him about that. He’s not going to enjoy the teasing, but he’s a terrific athlete, and he can handle that.

Teasing people who are clumsy in their ability to be a really good ball player, or teasing people who are not overly endowed with academic ability about doing poorly, or being the slowest member of the class-that’s cruel and destructive. If we can’t be sure of someone’s strengths, we’d probably be better off if we didn’t tease at all.

Each of us needs to examine our conscience and see if there is any teasing in our lives that really hurts people. Do we generate laughs when a crowd is around at other people’s expense? Do we make other people laugh by putting others on the verge of tears? An honest look might help.

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