By Christel Juquois
What does the Old Testament say about laughter?
In the Bible, laughter is most often mocking, ironic, or incredulous. It is the laughter of the wealthy who mock the misfortunes of the poor: “I am the laughingstock of my friends,” cries Job in the suffering of one who has lost everything (Job 12:4). It is especially the laughter of the impious, who turn away from God and refuse to listen to His word. “All day long I am an object of ridicule; everyone mocks me,” complains the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 20:7). As for the author of the Psalms, “he fears only one thing: that he will be mocked,” explained Father Philippe Henne, a Dominican and former professor at the École Biblique and Archaeological School of Jerusalem. “He dreams of being able to take revenge by laughing in turn at his enemies.”
However, laughter can change sides when the righteous achieve victory (Ps. 52:8) or when they rejoice at seeing God’s work fulfilled: “Let those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and be glad” (Ps. 35:27). Even Qoheleth, who declares laughter absurd (2:2), later acknowledges that there is “a time to laugh” (3:4).
Why is the Patriarch Isaac named “he laughs”?
Laughter is also the meaning of the name of the second patriarch in Genesis, Isaac, the son of Abraham. His mother, Sarah, was barren and too old to have children. His father, Abraham, was also aged. But while Abraham had already had a son with his servant Hagar, God told him he would have one with his wife. Abraham laughed (Gen. 17:17). When three strangers arrived and repeated that Sarah would bear a son, it was she who laughed.
“Sarah’s story is extremely touching,” summarized Father Henne. “This woman, humiliated all her life because of her barrenness, hears that she is going to give birth! Many think she laughed out of disbelief. To me, it is above all a laugh of liberation.”
In chapter 21, at Isaac’s birth, Sarah exclaims: “God has brought me laughter! Everyone who hears about this will laugh with me” (v. 6). For Xaverian Sister Juliette Ploquin, a religious nun who recently defended a thesis on the subject, “the story of Abraham and Sarah inscribes laughter within the covenant between God and humanity, fulfilling the promise made to Abraham of an innumerable offspring.” In Bible: The Founding Narratives, Frédéric Boyer writes: “In this laughter, there is everything that was no longer expected, lost hopes, forgotten promises. It is the impossible breaking in and knocking at the door of life.”
Did Jesus laugh?
In the Gospels, we see Jesus weep but never laugh. Why? According to Father Henne, it is because “laughter had a largely destructive connotation in Jewish antiquity, as well as in Greek and Roman cultures. Jesus did not come to mock us; He came to save us.” However, He certainly experienced joy and pleasure.
Did Jesus laugh? In the Middle Ages, the question sparked heated debates between proponents of two traditions. On one side was a tradition of austerity, where compunction was paramount—one had to grieve over one’s sins rather than rejoice and amuse oneself. In his Rule, Saint Benedict formally forbids monks from laughing. Christian life in God’s presence was considered too serious to leave room for humor. Some Desert Fathers were dismayed to see their young disciples laughing and joking. Juliette Ploquin sees this as “a command for self-control: laughter is a release.”
But other Church Fathers defended laughter. “One Desert Father said that a monk who does not know how to laugh is not a serious monk,” recalled Father Henne. Saint Augustine saw laughter as an expression of genuine joy before God’s wonders. “In fact, he converted after seeing a beggar laughing in the street despite his misery.” Saint Thomas Aquinas even considered laughter a “duty of charity,” added the Dominican. “Thomas lived in community,” he explained. “In a community, a gloomy and negative brother who never laughs can do a lot of harm to others.”
Elizabeth’s joy in carrying John, despite her old age, and Mary’s laughter echoed in the Magnificat (Luke 1:39–58) express liberation from life’s humiliations, barrenness, and social status. “Laughter,” explained Sister Ploquin, “arises from the gap between what should happen and what actually happens according to divine plans. It allows us to take a step back and see things differently than from our human perspective.”
Laughter uplifts, it shifts perspectives, and it can also foster true humility when one learns to laugh at oneself. “There is something salvific in self-deprecation; it is a grace,” the nun said. “It can serve as a safeguard against pride.” However, like all forms of humor, self-deprecation requires discernment. “It is all a matter of balance,” Father Henne noted. “When one maintains too much critical distance from what one does, one can no longer truly commit.”
Self-deprecation, humor, lightheartedness, and playfulness… are thus welcome in Christian life—provided they are used in the right measure and at the right time.
Excerpt: “Comedians, you unite people”
Excerpt from Pope Francis’ address to comedians, Jun 14, 2024
“I hold you in high esteem as artists who express yourselves through the language of comedy, humor, and irony. How much wisdom there is in this kind of language! Among all the professionals working in television, cinema, theatre, print media, with songs, and on social media, you are among the most loved, sought after, and popular. Certainly, it is because you are very good at what you do, but there is also another motivation: you have and cultivate the gift of making people laugh. In the midst of so much gloomy news, immersed as we are in many social and even personal emergencies, you have the power to spread peace and smiles. You are among the few who have the ability to speak to all types of people, from different generations and cultural backgrounds. In your own way, you unite people, because laughter is contagious. It is easier to laugh together than alone: joy opens us to sharing and is the best antidote to selfishness and individualism.” – La Croix International
