Humor Us! Preaching the Power of the Comic Spirit

by Alyce M. McKenzie and Owen Hanley Lynch

Review by Jenny Guilder, Curate in Blackburn Diocese

Westminster John Knox Press, 2023, £22.00. ISBN 978-0-6642-6701-8

Humor Us! Preaching the Power of the Comic Spirit

Very few homiletical textbooks delve into the use of humour. If they do, it is often to warn preachers of the danger of using humorous devices as mere frivolity which distract from the seriousness of presenting the gospel. Through extensive research, McKenzie and Lynch take a refreshingly different stance, arguing that humour, in all its various forms and functions, can provide a deeper and more delightful engagement with God’s good news story.

They build their case in three parts. Part one presents the compelling theological basis that humour resides in the very nature of God. As such, it is intrinsic both to God’s character and to us as humans, formed in the image of God. In an engaging way, the authors give preachers permission to claim their own sense of humour as a God given gift which, when applied thoughtfully, is ‘clearly too valuable and powerful a capacity to be trivialised or set aside.’

Part two highlights the many benefits of enlisting humour in sermons including paving the way for difficult topics, building a common identity and challenging injustice. McKenzie and Lynch provide a whistle stop tour of the academic study of humour and offer fascinating insight into its use in Christian religion throughout the centuries. Whilst theoretically dense, the joy of this book lies in its practical advice for preachers, including honest critiques of the writer’s own pulpit offerings. The exercises, strategies and ‘questions to ponder’ scattered throughout, cause the reader to pause and reflect on personal practice, allowing the gems of wisdom that Humour Us! offers to really sink in.

In the final section, three models of historic humourists are introduced: the Jester, the Fool and the Sage. The authors give accessible, and often witty, advice as they invite preachers to apply these historical methods in the pulpit today. This advisory role continues as McKenzie and Lynch encourage readers to develop a ‘humour-neutic.’ Through creative exegesis of familiar bible passages, the authors demonstrate how a preacher might playfully begin noticing humour in the biblical narrative and forge links with their observations of the world.

Humor Us! would appeal across a wide breadth of contexts and traditions. It is thoroughly enjoyable book which successfully unites humour with the sacred. Reading this text, and absorbing its wisdom, would be beneficial for any preacher who needs a little guidance on how to cultivate and utilise humour effectively in their sermons. McKenzie and Lynch present a holistic approach to preaching, one in which humour and laughter become welcome guests in the life of the Church.

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