“Christian humor is a remedy that dethrones the idol of self. When you see the humor in a situation where your own self is ascending to the throne, then this situation is ridiculed and rendered harmless to you, at least for a while. Your vanity and pride become unmasked; whatever pretended to be great or was the threat arousing fear in you is ridiculed and unmasked. In this way, the religious remedy of humor also has the significant role of preserving your psychological balance.”

Perhaps, it comes as a surprise that God has a sense of humor. We can see this in the Gospels, where God chooses the weak and the unimpressive to take on his ministry. He even showed the way by his incarnation, not as a great and powerful ruler, but as a tiny, weak and defenseless baby. Is this the person, we might have asked, who is going to save the world? He also chose an obscure backwater of the Roman Empire to carry out the work of salvation. He could have gone to Rome and started at the highest echelons of society. Instead, he chose this insignificant fragment of the empire in which to save the world.

Similarly, when Jesus grew up and began his ministry, he didn’t go and call the high priest, or the king, or the influential pharisees. He chose a group of rather unimpressive individuals, outcasts, public sinners and working-class men who, even at the end of his three-year ministry, still didn’t understand his message or get on board with his plans for salvation. God certainly has a sense of humor. After all, he called you and me too, to be part of his people.

Humor allows us to bear life’s troubles with detachment. When we look at the world through a wry lens, we realize that by ourselves we are weak, powerless human beings who are of little account in the kingdom of God. That in turn leads us into freedom.

Discouragement is a tactic of the devil. But one of the main ways in which we can combat that attack of the Devil is by making fun of him. Satan hates to be ridiculed. He is deadly serious about his position as lord of the underworld. And yet, he has already been defeated and is powerless in the face of Christ’s victory. Demons flee from laughter. God is not daunted or frightened by the Devil. Psalm 2, verse 4, tells us what his attitude is when he is confronted by evil powers and dominions:

“The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.”

Saint Paul urges us, in Philippians 4, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, rejoice.” This lightness of attitude stops us from taking ourselves too seriously and is an antidote to our pride and self-importance.

Does humor sound unspiritual? Does it sound as though we’re trying to make light of serious matters? If we’re still in doubt about the value of humor in the spiritual realm, it’s worth remembering that many of the saints were noted for their sense of humor. Saint Francis of Assisi had an acute sense of humor. After lodging for a time at the house of Cardinal Leo of the Holy Cross, Francis was beaten by devils. Afterwards he was heard to remark that that was his punishment for consorting with cardinals. Saint Thomas More also had a robust sense of the absurd. As he was about to be beheaded for defying King Henry VIII regarding his marriage arrangements, Thomas was standing waiting for the inevitable to happen and he turned to the Lieutenant of the Tower of London and said, “Assist me up. As for coming down, I will look after myself.” Saint Teresa of Avila, when she considered the usual advice given about the spiritual life, was heard to pray: “From silly devotions, and from sour-faced saints, good Lord, deliver us.”

So, it doesn’t matter how serious the situation is, humor ultimately stops us from falling into despair and provides a remedy for our spiritual life that makes sure that we are neither puffed up with pride, nor downcast by life’s troubles.