The Humor of Christ

The Humor of Christ PDF

Author: Elton Trueblood

Publisher: Harper San Francisco

Published: 1964

Total Pages: 136

ISBN-13:

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The Humor of Christ inspires Christians to redraw their pictures of Christ and to add a persistent biblical detail, the note of humor. Throughout the Gospels, Christ employed humor for the sake of truth and many of his teachings, when seen in this light, become brilliantly clear for the first time. Irony, satire, paradox, even laughter itself help clarify Christ's famous parables, His brief sayings, and important events in His life.

Laughter and the Grace of God

Laughter and the Grace of God PDF

Author: Brian Edgar

Publisher: Lutterworth Press

Published: 2020-08-27

Total Pages: 170

ISBN-13: 0718848144

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We cannot really love anybody with whom we never laugh, and this is true of our relationship with God. Thomas Aquinas spoke of the sin of having too little laughter as well as the danger of having too much, while Martin Luther said, 'If you're not allowed to laugh in heaven, I don't want to go there.' Having a sense of humour is essential for maturity in faith and holiness, but sadly, the role that laughter plays in life and spirituality have often been neglected. Laughter and the Grace of God restores laughter to its central place in Christian spirituality and theology by examining its role in Scripture and highlighting its presence in unexpected places, including the story of Abraham and the formation of the covenant, and the tragedy of Job. Laughter can be found in the incarnation, the resurrection, and even the crucifixion - Jesus is himself the great laugh-maker - and it is nothing less than a participation in the life and love of God.

Sarah’s Laughter

Sarah’s Laughter PDF

Author: Vinoth Ramachandra

Publisher: Langham Publishing

Published: 2020-05-31

Total Pages: 167

ISBN-13: 1783688580

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Sarah’s Laughter provides a reflection on suffering that is deeply personal and both theologically and philosophically astute. Vinoth Ramachandra draws on his distinctive positioning as a Sri Lankan Christian theologian – one who has lived and ministered in contexts shaped by the destruction of natural disasters and the violence of human evil – to confront the intellectual, moral, and political challenges posed to faith in the increasingly broken world of the twenty-first century. Yet far from being an abstract discussion of theodicy, this book is intimate and vulnerable, embracing the biblical practice of lament and inviting an authentic response to grief – one that makes space for serious doubt and profound questioning. Sharing his own ongoing journey with suffering and a questing faith, Ramachandra reminds us that lament and joy, faith and protest, clarity and ambiguity, belong together in faithful Christian discipleship. It is not in bypassing the darkness of the world, but in embracing it – in imitation of the incarnate God – that we may glimpse the new creation.

Surprised by Laughter

Surprised by Laughter PDF

Author: Terry Lindvall

Publisher: Thomas Nelson Inc

Published: 2012-01-17

Total Pages: 498

ISBN-13: 1595554785

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Surprised by Laughter looks at the career and writings of C. S. Lewis and discovers a man whose life and beliefs were sustained by joy and humor. All of his life, C. S. Lewis possessed a spirit of individuality. An atheist from childhood, he became a Christian as an adult and eventually knew international acclaim as a respected theologian. He was known worldwide for his works of fiction, especially the Chronicles of Narnia; and for his books on life and faith, including Mere Christianity, A Grief Observed, and Surprised by Joy. But perhaps the most visible difference in his life was his abiding sense of humor. It was through this humor that he often reached his readers and listeners, allowing him to effectively touch so many lives. Terry Lindvall takes an in-depth look at Lewis's joyful approach toward living, dividing his study of C. S. Lewis's wit into the four origins of laughter in Uncle Screwtape's eleventh letter to a junior devil in Lewis's The Screwtape Letters: joy, fun, the joke proper, and flippancy. Lindvall writes, "One bright and compelling feature we can see, sparking in his sunlight and dancing in his moonlight, is laughter. Yet it is not too large to see at once because it inhabited all Lewis was and did." Surprised by Laughter reveals a Lewis who enjoyed the gift of laughter, and who willingly shared that gift with others in order to spread his faith.

Laughing Gods, Weeping Virgins

Laughing Gods, Weeping Virgins PDF

Author: Ingvild Sælid Gilhus

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 199

ISBN-13: 0415161975

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Laughing Gods, Weeping Virgins analyses how laughter has been used as a symbol in myths, rituals and festivals of Western religions, and has thus been inscribed in religious discourse. The Mesopotamian Anu, the Israelite Jahweh, the Greek Dionysos, the Gnostic Christ and the late modern Jesus were all laughing gods. Through their laughter, gods prove both their superiority and their proximity to humans. In this comprehensive study, Professor Gilhus examines the relationship between corporeal human laughter and spiritual divine laughter from c`ussical antiquity, to the Christian West and the modern era. She combines the study of the history of religion with social-scientific approaches, to provide an original and pertinent exploration of a universal human phenomenon, and its significance for the development of religions.

The Laughter of God

The Laughter of God PDF

Author: Walter C. Lanyon

Publisher:

Published: 2016-02-12

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 9780692643785

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"And then one day I heard the Laughter of God in the midst of me and within the world, and all was suddenly changed. Old patterns and ideas were shattered and passed away-a new loveliness of life was exposed to view ... "How does one hear the Laughter of God? Walter Lanyon has a powerful message to share with the world, a message based firmly on the teachings of the Master, Christ Jesus, and the joy and promise it brings is evident throughout the book. In his unique style of speaking directly to the reader, the author reveals what is needed in order to hear this Laughter: "One thing alone is necessary, and that one all-important point is your willingness to take your attention away from the limited human concept of yourself." The realization that God is not some mysterious power but is the very presence of Life within us and our universe brings instant freedom from the discords of human belief."One moment's recognition that you are the Son of the living God, and you have attuned your ear for the Laughter of God." When we awaken to this truth, we can no longer be limited, any more than the chick can be limited to its shell once it has outgrown it. There comes a New Day; the prisons of thought are opened, and we are set free."And one day you will laugh the Laughter of God, too."

Beyond Blue

Beyond Blue PDF

Author: Therese Borchard

Publisher: Center Street

Published: 2010-01-06

Total Pages: 189

ISBN-13: 1599952734

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Therese Borchard may be one of the frankest, funniest people on the planet. That, combined with her keen writing abilities has made her Beliefnet blog, Beyond Blue, one of the most trafficked blogs on the site. BEYOND BLUE, the book, is part memoir/part self-help. It describes Borchard's experience of living with manic depression as well as providing cutting-edge research and information on dealing with mood disorders. By exposing her vulnerability, she endears herself immediately to the reader and then reduces even the most depressed to laughter as she provides a companion on the journey to recovery and the knowledge that the reader is not alone. Comprised of four sections and twenty-one chapters, BEYOND BLUE covers a wide range of topics from codependency to addiction, poor body image to postpartum depression, from alternative medicine to psychopharmacology, managing anxiety to applying lessons from therapy. Because of her laser wit and Erma Bombeck sense of humor, every chapter is entertaining as well as serious.

Bacon Sandwiches & Salvation

Bacon Sandwiches & Salvation PDF

Author: Adrian Plass

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2008-10-29

Total Pages: 259

ISBN-13: 0830856072

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Confronting his inner zealot with his weakness for the bacon sandwich, writer Adrian Plass comes through with a "humorous antidote" for the Pharisee in us all.

The Laughing Ghosts -Salvation of the Slaved Spirits

The Laughing Ghosts -Salvation of the Slaved Spirits PDF

Author: Dr. Nidhi Sahore

Publisher: Blue Rose Publishers

Published: 2021-07-08

Total Pages: 125

ISBN-13:

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The Laughing Ghosts is a realization of the self for Meenu poised to find her own truth of ghosts believed to be meandering around and looking up to her to reveal their side of the story. A stray incidence of violence in the vicinity of grown up Meenu, a mother of two children pushes her to reflect upon her joyous childhood which she shared with her neighborhood friends and cousins only to realize that even in those nascent years of her life women around her were suffering however she did find an answer and carried a learning which was kept reserved to her. Each time in her quest as a little girl to find an anchor in a woman from her surroundings to help her identify the very purpose of her existence led to their sad and untimely demise. Not ready to be a slave to the belief of the society attaching a meager and humble purpose to the existence of women i.e. to only live for others, she tries to find her own answers to the questions which no one cared to ask. Eventually she gathered the strength to face the reality with the help of goals of self preservation and salvation by looking around and seeking solace from the stories of challenges faced by women very close to her like her grandmother, mother and aunts. That made her harbor the value that it is important to step back and consciously quit to gather the strength to withstand the eventualities of life. The ghosts of the guilt haunt only the slaved souls but cannot withstand an indomitable spirit that is determined to find its own truth; rather they stand by it to be a part of the laughter of triumph and salvation. Therefore in the situations of self doubt and enigma the inevitable reflections from the past help to purposefully connect with the present to find your own answers. This lesson was true then and shall continue to be the truth.