On having a good, and perhaps cross-cultural sense of humor

July 20, 2010

Some years ago I circulated a piece of cross-cultural humor to my colleagues around the world. Generally humor is culture bound, and I’ve had too many cases in Latin America of having to translate mono-lingual speaker, either from English to Spanish or vice-versa.  Then the primary speaker tells a joke that does not translate to the other culture. I finally handled one such case with these words, “Our brother is telling a very funny story in English, but it does not translate funny in Spanish. However, when he finishes I want all of you to laugh heartily.”  They did, and it was a marvelous case of communication-translation.  The English speaker had no idea what I had done……until much later (I think I told him).

So a few years ago I sent out truly a cross-cultural piece of funny stuff, but one dear Asian colleague wrote back, saying, “We are engaged in difficult ministry with seculars and Buddhists, and there is no time to waste laughing.”  Wow!  Then, more recently, just as that truly global event, the glorious World Cup started, I sent out something else that I thought partially funny and certainly serious–as soccer should be.  But it landed “out there” just as a wave of persecution hit a certain country, and one of my colleagues (this one from USA) wrote a very terse note saying that World Cup stuff was of no significance in light of the suffering church.  Yes, he was right, but I wanted to say, “Hey dude!  Lighten up.”  I didn’t, and it did make me pray more….both for believers in that country, and for my friends rooting for their national teams!

So here are some samples of humor. Cut me some slack and just relax.

The first a fictional “parable”, “contextualization” without Biblical text, but it’s just magnificent. A third-culture friend in Australia gave it to me years ago. I have used it, but only in Biblically literate contexts. Why? Because in some places people might think it was true, the Bible is rather strange, and this is the way it happened………  It didn’t. But it can preach well, and as you build up speed towards the end, the better.

“So my favorite parable is about the good Samaritan.  You see, there was this dude who had to go from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and on the way he fell among thieves, and the thorns grew up around him and choked the poor man, who didn’t have any money.  But lo and behold, along came the Queen of Sheba, who gave him, that’s right, gave him, a 1000 talents of gold and a hundred changes of raiment!  And he got a chariot and drove furiously.  As he was speeding along under a big sycamore tree, his hair got caught on a branch and left him hanging from it.  And he hung there many days and many nights, and ravens brought him food to eat and water to drink.  Then one night, while he was hanging there asleep, his wife Delilah came along and cut off his hair and the poor man fell on stony ground.  And it began to rain, and it rained for 40 days and 40 nights, and he hid himself in a cave until the rain stopped.  But when he left the cave he met a wife who said, “Come and have tea with me.”  But he said, “No, I can’t.  I have married a wife and cannot come.”  So the man went out into the highways and byways and compelled the passers-by to come into tea.  He went on until he came to Jerusalem.  When he got there, he saw Queen Jezebel sitting high up in the window, and he cried out, “Throw her down” and they threw her down.  Again he cried, “Throw her down some more”.  And they threw her down 70 times 70 and of the remains they picked up twelve baskets.  Not then I ask you all this:  Whose wife do you think she’ll be in the resurrection?”

Preach it, as I have, even in a theological seminary. Honest!

The second is simply about Texas, thanks to my younger daughter, Stephanie, and David, my son, and his blog.  The Texana information comes from her and the photo from his blog.  Ah, Texas. And our family spent the first week of June on a Texas Longhorn ranch two hours from our home, and we have the photos to show for it.

This is a must read for all Texans, used-to-be Texans, adopted Texans or wanna-be Texans,

JUST TEXAS

Pep , Texas 79353

Smiley , Texas 78159

Paradise , Texas 76073

Rainbow , Texas 76077

Sweet Home , Texas 77987

Comfort , Texas 78013

Friendship, Texas 76530

Love the Sun?

Sun City , Texas 78628

Sunrise , Texas 76661

Sunset, Texas 76270

Sundown, Texas 79372

Sunray , Texas 79086

Sunny Side , Texas 77423

Want something to eat?

Bacon , Texas 76301

Noodle , Texas 79536

Oatmeal , Texas 78605

Turkey , Texas 79261

Trout , Texas 75789

Sugar Land , Texas 77479

Salty, Texas 76567

Rice , Texas 75155

Pearland , Texas 77581

Orange , Texas 77630

And top it off with:

Sweetwater , Texas 79556

Why travel to other cities? Texas has them all!

Detroit , Texas 75436

Cleveland , Texas 75436

Colorado City , Texas 79512

Denver City , Texas 79323

Klondike , Texas 75448

Nevada , Texas 75173

Memphis , Texas 79245

Miami , Texas 79059

Boston , Texas 75570

Santa Fe , Texas 77517

Tennessee Colony , Texas 75861

Reno , Texas 75462

Pasadena , Texas 77506

Columbus , Texas 78934

Feel like traveling outside the country?

Athens , Texas 75751

Canadian, Texas 79014

China , Texas 77613

Egypt , Texas 77436

Ireland , Texas 76538

Italy , Texas 76538

Turkey , Texas 79261

London , Texas 76854

New London , Texas 75682

Paris , Texas 75460

Palestine , Texas 75801

No need to travel to Washington D.C.

Whitehouse , Texas 75791

We even have a city named after our planet!

Earth , Texas 79031

We have a city named after our state

Texas City , Texas 77590

Exhausted?

Energy , Texas 76452

Cold?

Blanket , Texas 76432

Winters, Texas

Like to read about History?

Santa Anna , Texas

Goliad , Texas

Alamo , Texas

Gun Barrel City , Texas

Robert Lee , Texas

Need Office Supplies?

Staples, Texas 78670

Want to go into outer space?

Venus , Texas 76084

Mars , Texas 79062

You guesse d it.. It’s on the state line.

Texline , Texas 79087

For the kids...

Kermit , Texas 79745

Elmo , Texas 75118

Nemo , Texas 76070

Tarzan , Texas 79783

Winnie , Texas 77665

Sylvester , Texas 79560

Other city names in Texas , to make you smile………

Frognot , Texas 75424

Bigfoot , Texas 78005

Hogeye , Texas 75423

Cactus , Texas 79013

Notrees , Texas 79759

Best, Texas 76932

Veribest , Texas 76886

Kickapoo , Texas 75763

Dime Box , Texas 77853

Old Dime Box , Texas 77853

Telephone , Texas 75488

Telegraph , Texas 76883

Whiteface , Texas 79379

Twitty, Texas 79079

And our favorites. ..

Cut n Shoot, Texas

Gun Barrell City , Texas

Hoop And Holler, Texas

Ding Dong, Texas and, of course,

Muleshoe , Texas

Cowboy’s Ten Commandments

Posted on the wall at Cross Trails Church in Fairlie, Texas

(1) Just one God.

(2) Honor yer Ma & Pa.

(3) No telling tales or gossipin’.

(4) Git yourself to Sunday meeting.

(5) Put nothin’ before God.

(6) No foolin’ around with another fellow’s gal.

(7) No killin’.

(8) Watch yer mouth.

(9) Don’t take what ain’t yers.

(10) Don’t be hankerin’ for yer buddy’s stuff.

Y’all git all that?

The third is a rather bizarre report in, of all places, the Wall Street Journal, “Evangelicals Try Stand-Up”. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704111704575355310076497490.html

So take a breath, relax, smile, and send me your own samples of cross-cultural humor. If we are created in God’s image, does that mean that humor comes from him? Certainly so!  Just consider some of the strange, even funny things we find in creation. Like you……….and me, and a few other pieces of flora and fauna, including the amoeba.

Which leads me to another story about illness in strange places, but not now.

Bill–gently laughing