Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
In All Things

Did Jesus Laugh? NPR Wants to Know

James Martin, S.J.August 22, 2009

 

That's what Scott Simon on NPR's "Weekend Edition" asked me the other day.   Here's my answer from today's show along with some reflections on an occasion when humor went too far.  The America piece on humor that Mr. Simon mentions at the beginning is The Most Infallible Sign.   The piece on The New Yorker, from "In All Things" is here.  And yes, someone really did ask me that question across the street from Carnegie Hall!

James Martin, SJ

Show Comments (
1
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
15 years 8 months ago
There is a song I was taught at an American Baptist camp called "For the Joy".   One of the verses goes: "Jesus didn't laugh every day, Jesus spent a lot of his time crying, For the bible says he was a man of sorrow.   Get ready for sorrow, if you're going to follow."   I would say that's a sign that, at least for some bible-based churches, we're not supposed to be overly perky.   But this is also the church that frowns on dancing & alcohol...

Most popular

1
The U.S. bishops have stopped resettling refugees in the Trump era. What does the future hold?
J. Kevin Appleby
2
What will the restoration of Notre-Dame mean for the future of the French Catholic Church?
Jason M. Baxter
3
Pope Francis delegates cardinals to celebrate Holy Week liturgies
Gerard O’Connell
4
Vatican updates norms on donations for special Mass intentions to allow ‘collective’ celebrations
Cindy Wooden - Catholic News Service
5
Video | Praying through Holy Week
America Staff

Your source for jobs, books, retreats, and much more.

President
Jobs
Mission Doctors Association
Volunteer / Vocation
St. Joseph’s Seminary and College
Seminaries & Theology Studies, Volunteer / Vocation
San Alfonso Retreat House
Retreat Houses, Retreats
Faith, Food and Friends Outreach Program Director
Jobs
See all Classifieds

The latest from america

‘The Great Gatsby’ got a bad review in America. A century later, how do we see F. Scott Fitzgerald?
F. Scott Fitzgerald was not a favorite of America's editors for many years, but they all read 'Gatsby.' Everyone reads 'Gatsby.'
James T. KeaneApril 15, 2025
Trump’s trade war misses the point: Americans do not save enough
The root cause of the chronic U.S. trade imbalance is macroeconomic: We save too little relative to our major trading partners. Tariffs will not address that problem.
Paul D. McNelis, S.J.April 15, 2025
Pope Francis delegates cardinals to celebrate Holy Week liturgies
Asked whether the pope would meet with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert who will be in Rome for the Easter weekend, the director of the Holy See Press office said he did not have information on that.
Gerard O’ConnellApril 15, 2025
This Holy Week, Christ is being crucified around the world
All over the world, Christ is again being crucified in the bodies of human rights lawyers and journalists who stand up for justice in the face of criminality, whether from gangs or governments.
Thomas J. ReeseApril 15, 2025