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Description
In an increasingly globalized society, diverse religious groups interact as never before. This interaction has proven disastrous among groups who are polarized in their absolutist ideologies and produce isolated extremist sects fuelled by nationalism and ethnic alliances. Humor has been proven to be an effective tool in mediation and conflict resolution, but difficulties arise in utilizing humor to mediate among Jewish, Christian, and Islamic fundamentalist groups who, along with mainstream religion, have eliminated humor from their doctrines and denigrated its spiritual value. Modern monotheistic religion is largely divorced from the idea that laughter is as valid an expression of the sacred as solemnity. Yet, humor is as intrinsic to the religious experience as it is to the human experience. This study draws from a broad base of scientific and literary humor theory, anthropology, history, religious studies, psychology, and sociology, that is presented in a three-prong approach to uncover the humor in the Judeo-Christian Bible and the Islamic Quran and Hadith, along with comedic religious practices. The works of theologians Conrad Hyers and John Morreall delineate the tragic vision and comic vision as worldviews, which inform modern religious ideologies and societal values, have been greatly utilized. Aristotle's Poetics is foundational to Hyers' and Morreall's studies, as it is herein, with particular attention to Aristotle's bifurcation of tragedy and comedy, the tragic hero and comic characters, and a discussion of katharsis. A further consideration of katharsis is offered with regard to modern psychological catharsis and post-Christian implications regarding conversion. Also foundational to this study are the psycho-sociological studies of Vassilis Saroglou on the effects of religiousness on humor. Religious and anthropological studies examine the religio-aesthetic impulse and the evolution of religion from pre-historic shamanism to the emergence of monotheism, including the development the High God/Sky God and the Trickster. These archetypal deities are further analyzed with regard to the tragic and comic modes and dualism. The culmination of this research provides a framework to recognize and deconstruct the instances of humor, comedy and tricksterism within the Judeo-Christian Bible, as well as the Islamic Quran and Hadith. The conclusion posits that humor is both intratextual and intertextual and can, therefore, provide an effective means to bridge communication and understanding between diverse religious groups including fundamentalists. The increasing number of comedy acts focused on dispelling religious stereotypes and creating interfaith alliances provides hope that this process has begun to occur.
