This afternoon we celebrate the High Holy Day of our other true faith. It is Superbowl Sunday. And judging by the hype, hoopla and hysteria -- even if the Cowboys aren't playing -- this is our ritual of modern paganism. Certainly it's a spectacle as raucous and thrilling as any Roman circus.

I've often wondered why sport and cinema and TV are fun and religion isn't. I wouldn't presume to criticize the fun merchants. I just want to know why they have the corner on the market. Clearly fun pays. Clearly fun sells. People love to have fun. But we seem to have it in our heads that religion to be meaningful should be serious, thoughtful and dignified.

To be fair, there is some humor to be found in church activity. I submit as evidence these holy bloopers which actually appeared in various church bulletins:

This being Easter Sunday, we will ask Mrs. Johnson to come forward and lay an egg at the altar.

On Sunday, a special collection will be taken to defray the expenses of the new carpet. All those wishing to do something on the new carpet, come forward and get a piece of paper.

A bean supper will be held on Saturday evening in the church basement. Music will follow.

Thursday at 5 p.m. there will be a meeting of the little mothers club. All ladies wishing to be little mothers please meet with the pastor in his study.

Tonight's sermon: What is hell? Come early and listen to our choir practice.

It's true. Fun in the church has a bad reputation. Besides being undignified, it smacks of frivolity and folly. Look through the Bible and there is not one reference to fun. I also tried the word "play." There were a few references, but most were negative. For example, when the Hebrews forsake Moses and make the golden calf, they eat and play in the afternoon. You remember what happens. Charlton Heston comes down, sees Edward G. Robinson, and draws a line in the sand. Those who don't cross it perish in a Cinerama earthquake. Message is clear: You don't fool around with God. Fun in the Bible can be deadly.

In the four gospels there are only two references to laughter, both found in the 6th Chapter - Luke.
Blessed are you that hunger for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you that weep now, for you shall laugh.

This is encouraging until one reads a few lines later:

Woe to you that are full now, for you shall hunger. Woe to you that laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.

From scripture, we might infer Jesus was not much a comedian.

Then there's the fable of the ant and the grasshopper. One works, the other plays, and guess who prevails? In fact, about the only positive reference I can readily think of is "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Work makes you dull, but fun makes you dead. When you think about it that's not much of a choice.

There is reason to be circumspect about fun. It can be frivolous. Time is precious and using it nonproductively can be wasteful. While children are supposed to play, we think less of adults who spend too much time playing.

When it comes to religion, which is supposedly the really important stuff, it's not supposed to be fun. I personally have problems with that since I believe fun and play are vital to healthy human living. Perhaps the dullness that stalks funless Jack is not merely boredom but dullness of mind and dullness of soul. Perhaps in that sense real religion should be fun.

Pentecostal Christians think delight and joy are proofs of divine proximity. At UBC, I don't see us speaking in tongues or dancing in holy delirium. But certainly there are ways we can loosen up without fear of losing our mind or our soul.

As a congregation, we need to have more fun together. Play is how we cement our affection to each other. Only away from the serious and significant can we relax enough to reveal our less dignified, less admirable, less impressive selves. And it is when we share these things that we truly fall in love and stay there.

Here at UBC, we are known for our devotion to justice and social improvement and this is great. But unless the world we are building is a fun place, it will still be unjust. There's no rule that says we can't have fun while we're hastening justice. Remember Lenny Bruce and Mort Sahl. Their humor made laughter into insight. They taught us power also flows from the barrel of laughs. Frederick Buechner said, "Your vocation in life is where your greatest joy meets the world's greatest need." Justice grows out of joyful service. In other words, we can have fun while we save the world.

Fun also saves you and me. It is fun that makes us whole and that makes life lively and memorable. The funny stories are the ones we tell over and over. Fun is what builds. Fun is what heals. The best weddings are where everyone laughs. So are the best funerals.

Fun, play, humor and glee empower communities. When we have fun we recall our love for each other and what we are working so hard to accomplish. When we play together we taste something of that beloved community we want to create here in our midst in this world. When we laugh we realize the sheer pleasure of living. When we have fun we are feeling our values, not just talking about them.
So let's go out and have some fun. Watch the Superbowl, laugh at the sitcoms, play with your friends, and don't check your funny bone at the church door. Let's smile when we enter and laugh when we leave. Let's be eager for the pleasure and giddy with the joy that being part of this community creates. There will be enough occasions for gravity without our asking.

Jesus came into this world and put his life on the line not to bring more weeping and gnashing of teeth but to bring liberation from suffering and bondage. Jesus proclaimed that all people were children of God -- that all people had inherent worth and dignity. That alone is cause enough to smile.

Or to quote from another church bulletin:

Don't let worry kill you off. Let the church help.

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