FAREWELL to BEULAH JODRIE
SERVICES:
11am • Private family gathering in sanctuary
Noon • Funeral Service in sanctuary
(Service open to family and church and community friends who knew Beulah.)
Early afternoon • Funeral service at JCC will be followed by private graveside service for family in Chocorua, NH.
BIOGRAPHY: The family shares this biography.
Beulah Viola Jodrie was born on March 21, 1921 in Alton Bay, New Hampshire, at the southern tip of Lake Winnipesaukee. Her mother was Irish catholic living in Boston when she first met Beulah’s father, who was a true Yankee woodsman. He was working as a chauffeur, and kept his long hair hidden under his cap. They fell in love and eloped.
Beulah was one of 9 children and was extremely close to her siblings and parents but in particular her father, who became a White Mountain guide. They had many adventures together probably the most important for Beulah were the hikes in the White Mountains. Other than her girls, she came to love the mountains more than anything else. She felt free in the hills and taught her girls to enjoy the outdoors and mountains too. She would hike whenever she could, even as she aged, never able to give up the quest of just “one more time.” She often hiked alone, with just water and a couple of oranges! She didn’t need anything else, except to move forward on the trail… to reach the summit; whether Mt. Chocorua or Mt Washington.
Beulah was a scholar, although, in her timidity would never admit it. She was an avid and voracious reader from very early on and never gave up her love for books. She excelled academically, never receiving a grade lower than an A; and was the Valedictorian of her high school class. From there she went on to the Conservatory of Music in Boston, studying the violin for two years. After realizing she didn’t care to be in the spotlight on stage she left the Conservatory and moved to be closer to her then love, Bob Jodrie, when she enrolled in a nursing school in Gardiner, Mass. Shortly thereafter, realizing she and Bob did not want to be separated she moved to Fitchburg to be closer to him. They married shortly thereafter and began their family. Daughters Sharon and Gretchen were born in Fitchburg. A short time thereafter they moved to RI where a new adventure started for Beulah. She had two more daughters, Jennifer and Melissa. At the age of 40 she decided she wanted to continue her education and enrolled at Barrington College where she received her BA in literature; then enrolled at Brown University where she received her Masters. After getting her Masters, Brown offered her a teaching position, teaching American Literature – her favorite authors were William Faulkner, Mark Twain, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Walt Whitman and Henry David Thoreau. These writers touched her soul and she wanted to give their message to her students – which she did with the utmost sensitivity and earnestness. They adored her for that.
Beulah moved back home to Madison, New Hampshire after retiring to care for her husband, Bob, until his passing in 1998. She lived independently until 2017 when she moved to Merriman House for support. She will be deeply missed by her family and all who knew her.
JCC and Around Town: MON, Aug 24 – SUN, Aug 30
Note: Rev Gail will be on vacation/”stay-cation” during the period Aug 20 – Aug 31 while her family visits. You may continue to email Rev Gail, especially in emergency, but responses and availability will be limited during this time. You may contact deacon Meg Phillips if any urgent needs arise.
MON, Aug 24
- 1pm Leaders in Training program is concluded for the summer. We will resume in September.
- 4pm Youth Choir & Band resumes on Mon, Aug 30. We are taking a break this week as band & choir members submit their recordings. Contact Billy Carleton for more info or if you have questions.
TUE, Aug 25
- Community Event: STORY by Believe in Books
9:30am • Believe in Books Livestream - STATEWIDE VIRTUAL CHOIR: Tenor & Bass Rehearsal
10am • Zoom (link available for choir member – RSVP by email to participate) 10am – Tenor & Bass - Community Event: FAMILY EXPLORATION PROGRAM – MAGNIFICANT MONARCHS
11am & 1pm • Nature Learning Center, Albany
To register for any session call 603-447-6991 or email us at info@tinmountain.org.- Please bring a mask for each participant.
- Suggested Donation $15/family for members and $25/ family for non-members. Scholarships available.
- Make a day of it and bring a picnic lunch. Each family (or families that prearrange to come together) will sign up for an 11am or 1pm start time and will travel between stations along the trail with a Tin Mountain staff member.
- And because each family group stays with the same instructor for the duration, programming can be tailored to and appropriate for any age!
- CLERGY LUNCH
12:30pm • Zoom
Local clergy gathering for meal and discussion. - Community Event: LIBRARY PICKUP/PRINTING HOURS
2-6pm • Jackson Public Library
You can place a hold –- online via your Koha account using your 14 digit library card number
- Contact by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org. or leave a voice message at 603-383-9731
- We will send you an email as soon as your item/s are ready for pickup. If you need to make special arrangements, please let us know, we want to help.
- Printing and scanning services are also available. Contact us for details.
WED, Aug 26
- Community Event: STORY by Believe in Books
9:30am • Believe in Books Livestream - Community Service: WAY STATION BOARD of DIRECTORS
9:45am • Zoom
Board meeting to discuss policies and programs. JCC volunteers attend as officers of board. - RING BELL
Noon • Jackson Community Church
THURS, Aug 27
- Community Event: YIN/RESTORATIVE YOGA with Anjali Rose
**8am** • Zoom (Link provided once participants complete health waiver is sent to anjalirose15@gmail.com and registration/payment for class received.) See Anjali’s website for full list of classes offered and instructions to register. - Community Event: STORY by Believe in Books
9:30am • Believe in Books Livestream - STATEWIDE VIRTUAL CHOIR: Soprano & Alto Rehearsal
10am • Zoom (link available for choir member – RSVP by email to participate) 10am – Sopranos & Altos - Community Event: NATURALIST LED HIKES (Tin Mountain Conservation Center – Jackson Field Station)
10am • Jackson Field Station, Jackson, NH
Registration required: call 603-447-6991. Highlights include the summit of Tin Mountain, a tin mine on the property, and historic homestead, and a mountain pond. Tin Mountain’s naturalist will explain the historic use of the property, help identify plant species, and point out animal signs. These hikes are a great way to explore the lesser trod trails of the White Mountains and avoid the crowds. Participants of all ages a welcome. Reservations required – please call by the Wednesday prior at noon. Limited to 10 participants. Program fee of $5/person or $20/family; members free. More info: https://www.tinmountain.org/event/naturalist-led-hikes-8/ - RING BELL
Noon • Jackson Community Church - Community Event: LIBRARY PICKUP/PRINTING HOURS
2-6pm • Jackson Public Library
You can place a hold –- online via your Koha account using your 14 digit library card number
- Contact by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org. or leave a voice message at 603-383-9731
- We will send you an email as soon as your item/s are ready for pickup. If you need to make special arrangements, please let us know, we want to help.
- Printing and scanning services are also available. Contact us for details.
- Community Service: WAY STATION SHIFT
3pm • Curbside package preparation
5pm • Shift at curbside with guests - Community Event: CRAFTUP (Jackson Library)
4pm • Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/888091236
All crafts and all skill levels are welcome. - Community Event: WHITE MOUNTAIN JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL featuring GOD’s SLAVE (final in summer series) with guest speaker Marjorie Agosin.
7:30pm • Zoom 1) Contact organizer IN ADVANCE register. Please email: whitemountainjewishfilm@gmail.com
2) In advance, watch the film under discussion, GOD’S SLAVE. Available to rent on Amazon Prime for $4.99 HD, or click on “more options” for the $3.99 SD version. Here’s the link to God’s Slave on Amazon Prime: https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Slave-Mohammed-Alkhaldi/dp/B00SNUT2YY The film’s running time is about 1:35 minutes. 3) Then look for followup email (once registered) that includes link to attend the Film Forum.
Additional info about Marjorie Agosin: poet, human rights activist, and literary critic. Marjorie Agosin is Professor of Spanish, at Wellesley College. Her diverse writing and teaching focuses on Jewish literature, women’s rights and human rights in Latin America, as well as migration, identity and ethnicity. Professor Agosin’s accomplishments are many — deeply tied to her love of her adopted home: Chile, and her commitment to social justice. The United Nations has honored Agosin for her work on human rights. The Chilean government awarded her with the Gabriela Mistral Medal of Honor for Life Achievement in 2000. And in the United States, she has received the Letras de Oro, the Latino Literary Prize, and the Peabody Award, together with the United Nations Leadership Award in Human Rights. Here is a link to learn more about her: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjorie_Agos%C3%ADn and a sample of her books for adults and children which are available on Amazon:
A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile and I Lived on Butterfly Hill and Taking Root: Narratives of Jewish Women in Latin America (Ohio RIS Latin America Series Book 38)
FRI, Aug 28
- Community Event: STORY by Believe in Books
9:30am • Believe in Books Livestream - RING BELL
Noon • Jackson Community Church - JUDY FULLER’S MEMORIAL
3pm •Glen Cemetery, Glen, NH
Link to memorial website: https://judyfuller.alpynservices.com.
RSVP to the service: https://judyfuller.alpynservices.com/rsvp/
Rev Gail facilitates the gathering. From Judy’s Family: “We would like you to join us for a beautiful memorial service planned for Judy. It will be held at the Glen Cemetary in Glen, NH. This will be a casual, socially distanced, outdoor service, in order to accommodate all those who would like to attend. We would like an RSVP and also ask that everyone be considerate and please wear a mask.” They write: “About Judy… Judy was born on April 2, 1936 to Roger A. and Isabel M. Griffin, in Boston, MA. She was the first born of the 6 Griffin children, who’s births spanned 18 years. Being the oldest, Judy was relied upon to help care for her younger siblings, and as the only girl in the first 4, she quickly learned be very resourceful. Her Life… After graduating from college, she met and married the love of her life, in a ski club in Glen, NH. Together, Judy and Carl raised a family that she was most proud of, ran a successful small retail business, and she generously gave her time and energy to many organizations including Cranmore Mountain, the garden club, and the Meister Cup Race. Upon retiring to NH full time, Judy enjoyed their social life, playing golf with the ladies, and skiing with “the gang”. Together, Carl and Judy traveled all over the US and the World to visit with their many friends and family. They enjoyed life on their many trips to fish at Jones Pond, and the chores of daily retirement life, like making homemade maple syrup. Judy will be dearly missed by her family, close friends, and the many people that came to know her.”
SAT, Aug 29
- Community Event: LIBRARY PICKUP HOURS
10am-2pm • Jackson Public Library
You can place a hold- online via your Koha account using your 14 digit library card number
- Contact by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org. or leave a voice message at 603-383-9731
- We will send you an email as soon as your item/s are ready for pickup. If you need to make special arrangements, please let us know, we want to help.
- Printing and scanning services are also available. Contact us for details.
- RING BELL
Noon • Jackson Community Church - Private Event: WEDDING
Afternoon • Jackson Community Church
SUN, Aug 30
- INTERFAITH GATHERING (pavilion only)
8am • Pavilion **ONLY** this week and next week. No zoom in Rev Gail’s absence, group will be lay-led. Small group gathering outside at pavilion. Use social-distancing protocols: bring your own mask. Join us for poetry, prayer and reflection. - CHOIR PRACTICE
9am • Zoom link & password required. Contact church for more info. - IN-PERSON WORSHIP in SANCTUARY with GUEST PREACHER REV. CANON DAN WEIR
9:15am • Social-distancing & Masks REQUIRED
We will use only designated open pews only (2 out of 3 pews are roped off). Families (and quaran-team groups who have already been in close proximity) may sit together. We will avoid passing of peace, handshaking, hugs, etc. We also ask that you use hand sanitizer as you enter and wear your own mask throughout service. Worship will be streamlined with scripture, prayer and live music by Alan Labrie (if he’s able to arrive while worship is in session): no congregational singing. When worship ends, participants are asked to leave the church with social distance between each group; we will immediately be preparing for the next zoom-based 10:30am worship service. If you have any signs of illness such as fever, cough, congestion, stomach upset, you are courteously asked to remain home and take care of yourself. - VIRTUAL WORSHIP with GUEST PREACHER REV. CANON DAN WEIR (Zoom)
10:30am • Zoom link & password required. Contact church for more info.
Join us for worship, music, reflection, prayer, scripture. Stay for virtual coffee hour. Service will also be live-streamed to website and Facebook (if technology supports this function on the day of event). Afterward, recordings of worship service will be posted to Facebook, Vimeo.com channel & Youtube.com channel. - RING BELL
Noon • Jackson Community Church
Memorials: Donald Jackson and Judy Fuller
JUDY FULLER
Memorial Service
Glen Cemetery, Glen, NH
Fri, Aug 28 • 3pm
- Link to memorial website: https://judyfuller.alpynservices.com
- RSVP to the service: https://judyfuller.alpynservices.com/rsvp/
From Judy’s Family: “We would like you to join us for a beautiful memorial service planned for Judy. It will be held at the Glen Cemetary in Glen, NH. We will begin at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, August 28, 2020. This will be a casual, socially distanced, outdoor service, in order to accommodate all those who would like to attend. We would like an RSVP and also ask that everyone be considerate and please wear a mask.”
They write: “About Judy…
Judy was born on April 2, 1936 to Roger A. and Isabel M. Griffin, in Boston, MA. She was the first born of the 6 Griffin children, who’s births spanned 18 years.
Being the oldest, Judy was relied upon to help care for her younger siblings, and as the only girl in the first 4, she quickly learned be very resourceful.Her Life…
After graduating from college, she met and married the love of her life, in a ski club in Glen, NH. Together, Judy and Carl raised a family that she was most proud of, ran a successful small retail business, and she generously gave her time and energy to many organizations including Cranmore Mountain, the garden club, and the Meister Cup Race.
Upon retiring to NH full time, Judy enjoyed their social life, playing golf with the ladies, and skiing with “the gang”. Together, Carl and Judy traveled all over the US and the World to visit with their many friends and family. They enjoyed life on their many trips to fish at Jones Pond, and the chores of daily retirement life, like making homemade maple syrup.
Judy will be dearly missed by her family, close friends, and the many people that came to know her.”
DONALD JACKSON
Memorial Service
Jackson Cemetery
(Jackson Community Church as rain location)
Sun, Aug 16, 1pm
During service, masks and social distancing are requested.
As shared by Donald’s family, “Donald A. Jackson, 88, passed away peacefully at his home in Boca Raton, Fla., on June 25, 2020.
He was born in Lawrence, Mass. He served in the Navy from 1951 to 1955. He married Phyllis Kozaczka. They settled and raised their family in South Glastonbury, Conn. Don worked for Pratt and Whitney (United Technology) for 25 years.
In 1981, Don and Phyllis moved to Bar Harbor, Maine, where they renovated and became innkeepers to two lovely inns: The Tides and Clefstone Manor.
In 1989, Donald and Phyllis retired in Jackson, N.H. They purchased the historical Wentworth Caste and restored it to the beautiful Victorian home it is today. Phyllis passed in 1993.
In 1996, Donald married Carol Gibney. They enjoyed living in the caste where they entertained friends at many holiday parties. Don and Carol also opened the castle to townspeople by hosting home concerts to benefit Mountain Top Music School.
Don leaves behind his wife Carol; stepchildren, Kenneth Gibney, Janet Deschene, Gary Gibey and Tracy McLaughlin; daughter Susan Pooler and husband, Fred; son Barry Jackson and his wife, Susan Fox-Jackson; three grandchildren, Blair Pooler-Yuen, Wyatt Pooler and Ben Jackson; two great-granddaughters, Io and Ezra; a sister Dorothy Schulz; and sister-in-law Carol Jackson.
Don was predeceased by his brother Milton in 2017.
A memorial service will be held at Jackson Cemetery on Sunday, Aug. 16, at 1 p.m. Masks and social distancing are requested.
In case of rain, the service will be held in the Jackson Community Church.
Reflections on liberty of thought and action: themes for Independence Day weekend.
Peace is liberty in tranquility. — Marcus Tullius Cicero
Real change in the world will only come from a change of heart. — Dalai Lama
A hero is any person really intent on making this a better place for all people. — Maya Angelou
Every human has four endowments – self awareness, conscience, independent will and creative imagination. These give us the ultimate human freedom… The power to choose, to respond, to change. — Stephen Covey
Did I offer peace today?
Did I bring a smile to someone’s face?
Did I say words of healing?
Did I let go of my anger and resentment?
Did I forgive?
Did I love?
These are the real questions.
I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now
will bear many fruits,
here in this world and the life to come.
— Henri Nouwen
Song about freedom:
- Oh Freedom! by Golden Gospel Sings (gospel/civil rights)
- Freedom by Geoge Michael (rock)
- Song of Freedom by Hillsong (Christian)
- Song of Freedom by Bob Marley (reggae – whole album)
- Freedom Songs: A Multicultural Concert organized by Hebrew College
Questions to consider:
- Whom do you know who feels that they don’t have equal access to opportunities and basic rights? Shelter? Food? Water? Education? Voting? Employment? Religion? Speech? Thought? Press and media? Love?
- What is the difference between rights and privileges?
- How do we balance individual freedoms and societal/constitutional freedoms?
Freedom of Action
There are two good things in life – freedom of thought and freedom of action. — W. Somerset Maugham
As individuals we can influence our own families. Our families can influence our communities and our communities can influence our nations. — Dalai Lama
Well, one works at it, certainly. Being free is as difficult and as perpetual — or rather fighting for one’s freedom, struggling towards being free, is like struggling to be a poet or a good Christian or a good jew or a good Moslem or a good Zen Buddhist. You work all day long and achieve some kind of level of success by nightfall, go to sleep and wake up in the next morning with the job still to be done. So you start all over again. — Maya Angelou
To be blessed with visions is not enough…we must live them! — High Eagle
Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. — Martin Luther King Jr
Without freedom, creativity cannot flourish. The right to freedom is crucial to progress in any society; and the context is having a sense of global responsibility. — Dalai Lama
America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. — Abraham Lincoln
There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires. — Nelson Mandela
Brute force, no matter how strongly applied, can never subdue the basic human desire for freedom. — Dalai Lama
I believe in Liberty for all men: the space to stretch their arms and their souls, the right to breathe and the right to vote, the freedom to choose their friends, enjoy the sunshine, and ride on the railroads, uncursed by color; thinking, dreaming, working as they will in a kingdom of beauty and love. — W. E. B. Du Bois
You can’t separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom. — Malcolm X
You rarely have time for everything you want in this life, so you need to make choices. And hopefully your choices can come from a deep sense of who you are. — Fred Rodgers
Our present idea of freedom is only the freedom to do as we please: to sell ourselves for a high salary, a home in the suburbs, and idle weekends. But that is a freedom dependent upon affluence, which is in turn dependent upon the rapid consumption of exhaustible supplies. The other kind of freedom is the freedom to take care of ourselves and of each other … the freedom of community life. — Wendell Berry
… it is not enough to love the earth, though that is a crucial first step. We also have to act on its behalf. — Ken Stone
I speak not for myself but for those without voice… those who have fought for their rights… their right to live in peace, their right to be treated with dignity, their right to equality of opportunity, their right to be educated. — Malala Yousafzai
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same. — Ronald Reagan
Struggle is a never ending process. Freedom is never really won, you earn it and win it in every generation. — Coretta Scott King
The end of law is not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings capable of law, where there is no law, there is no freedom. — John Locke
Freedom of Thought & Speech
… surely we should at least attempt to put forward constructive ideas. One thing is for certain: given human beings’ love of truth, justice, peace, and freedom, creating a better, more compassionate world is a genuine possibility. The potential is there. — Dalai Lama
Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds! — Bob Marley
The pursuit of knowing was freedom to me, the right to declare your own curiosities and follow them through all manner of books. I was made for the library, not the classroom. The classroom was a jail of other people’s interests. The library was open, unending, free. Slowly, I was discovering myself. ― Ta-Nehisi Coates
Without freedom of thought, there can be no such thing as wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty without freedom of speech; which is the right of every man as far as by it he does not hurt or control the right of another; and this is the only check it ought to suffer and the only bounds it ought to know. — Benjamin Franklin
Discipline, I have learned, leads to freedom, and there is meaning in freedom. — Anne Lamott
Peace is the result of retraining your mind to process life as it is, rather than as you think it should be. —Wayne W. Dyer
Lock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind. — Virginia Woolf
One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are and to live without belief, that is a fate more terrible than dying. — Jeanne d’Arc
Nobody can bring you peace but yourself. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Success isn’t measured by money or power or social rank. Success is measured by your discipline and inner peace. — Mike Ditka
People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use. — Soren Kierkegaard
Freedom of Religion
You can’t pick and choose which types of freedom you want to defend. You must defend all of it or be against all of it. ― Scott Howard Phillips
There is a difference between exercising religious beliefs and imposing them on others. Our Constitution fiercely protects the former and expressly prohibits the latter. ― Joseph Kennedy III
The Religion then of every man must be left to the conviction and conscience of every man; and it is the right of every man to exercise it as these may dictate. This right is in its nature an unalienable right. It is unalienable, because the opinions of men, depending only on the evidence contemplated by their own minds cannot follow the dictates of other men: It is unalienable also, because what is here a right towards men, is a duty towards the Creator. It is the duty of every man to render to the Creator such homage and such only as he believes to be acceptable to him. ― James Madison
Religion is like a pair of shoes … Find one that fits for you, but don’t make me wear your shoes. ― George Carlin
Ever since the Enlightenment era in the 17th and 18th Centuries—which, among other things, gave birth to the U.S. Constitution and the de facto motto E Pluribus Unum (out of the many, one)—interfaith tolerance has been sown into the fabric of Western society. The rules of one religion are not made into law for all citizens because of a simple social agreement. For you to believe what you want, you must allow me to do the same, even if we disagree. ― Gudjon Bergmann
… Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason … my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen. ― Martin Luther
Reflections on laughter as holy practice: themes from Luke and ministry of Christ
I commend mirth. — Ecclesiastes 8:15
A smile is a curve that sets everything straight. — Phyllis Diller
A child’s laugh should be
the butterfly wing,
the ripple-maker,
for all the world.
There are many children crying —
we hear them echoing
from news media.
It is time to pray
the change of the world
in children’s laughter.
— Maren Tirabasi
Questions to consider:
- Do you have favorite comics/comedians who are able to act in a prophetic way, stating uncomfortable truths, by using humor? What issues do they address?
- Have you ever experienced or used ‘gallows humor’ as a form of coping in tough times?
- In whose company do you relax enough to laugh? With whom do you let down your guard?
- When was the last time you belly laughed?
Songs about laughter:
- Jesus Laughing by Mark Lowry & the Martins (country Gospel)
- They All Laughed by Sarah Holland (musical by Gershwins)
- Live Laugh Love by Clay Walker (country)
- The Laugh of Recognition by Over the Rhine (country)
- Nancy (with the Laughing Face) by Frank Sinatra (croon/ballad)
- Make ‘Em Laugh performed by Donald O’Connor (from musical: Singin’ In the Rain, sampled from Cole Porter’s song Be A Clown)
- Laughter In the Rain by Neil Sedaka (pop)
- Laughter Lines by Bastille (rock)
Holy Humor
Satire, or any sort of humor for that matter, is tough to do right. … using humor as a prophetic, yet disarming, method for sharing with vulnerability, challenging the powerful, and tearing down idols. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses on this — from the prophets, to Chaucer, to Swift. Jesus too was a brilliant humorist, with a penchant for hyperbole—planks in the eye, camels through the eyes of needles, straining gnats and swallowing camels. (I love that God seems to find camels especially comical.) — Rachel Held Evans
It is cheerful to God when you rejoice or laugh from the bottom of your heart. — Martin Luther King Jr
I developed a sense of humor to protect myself from abuse and jeering. I learned to roll with the punches. There’s nothing like humor to help you do that. There’s a line in Plan B that “laughter is carbonated holiness.” Always my salvation was laughter–laughing with friends, with girlfriends, laughing in the dark. The name of my first book was Hard Laughter, about trying to keep one’s sense of humor and one’s head above water in extreme crisis, which at that time was my father’s brain cancer. So I’m not sure how much humor the hardship has given me. But it turned out that when hardships came, the sense of humor of my friends, and of my own, saved the day.— Anne Lamott
The Bible is funny. But it’s not a gag type of funny like Lucille Ball. The humor we experience in the Bible is more of a meeting of the tragic and the absurd. It’s a can’t-stop-laughing-at-a-funeral-because-the-honest-weight-of-our-mortality-is-too-much type of funny. It’s the slightly self-effacing type of funny we get to when we’re willing to see how absurd we are. The Bible offers us an “ouch” type of funny, an honest funny. — Nadia Bolz-Weber
If Christ laughed a great deal, as the evidence shows, and if he is what he claimed to be, we cannot avoid the logical conclusion that there is laughter and gaiety in the heart of God. [and] There are numerous passages … which are practically incomprehensible when regarded as sober prose, but which are luminous once we become liberated from the gratuitous assumption that Christ never joked. … Once we realize that Christ was not always engaged in pious talk, we have made an enormous step on the road to understanding —Elton Trueblood
A master storyteller would never forsake humor as a means to reach an audience. Jesus, who spent much of his ministry breaking down barriers between people, knew that humor does exactly this. Humor disarms and unites; it sets people at ease and leaves them receptive to the speaker’s message. — Father Tim
The opposite is also true, of course: if Jesus wept, surely he laughed. — Jennifer Johnson
Having mentioned the problems in the Middle East, he turned to me and said, “And what is this about chosenness?” I answered that Jews believed God chose them for a particular purpose, but it does not mean we are the only ones chosen; different peoples can be chosen for different things. He laughed, and said yes, it is true, Tibetans think they are chosen as well. It seems strange to say that a religious figure’s authority is dependent on his laugh. There is far more, but nonetheless His Holiness’ laugh is striking. Having met my share of religious leaders, I don’t think any of them is as un-self-conscious and as devoid of a sense of self-importance. Every now and then, if feeling particularly mischievous, he will stick his tongue out to emphasize the ludicrousness of it all. It reminded me of a comment by G.K. Chesterton, that angels can fly because they take themselves lightly. — David Wolpe (about the Dalai Lama)
This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness. — His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
Laughter Is the Best Medicine (excerpt – full article) — Lawrence Robinson, Melinda Smith, M.A., and Jeanne Segal, Ph.D.
Physical Benefits:
- Boosts immunity
- Lowers stress hormones
- Decreases pain
- Relaxes your muscles
- Prevents heart disease
Mental Health Benefits:
- Adds joy and zest to life
- Eases anxiety and tension
- Relieves stress
- Improves mood
- Strengthens resilience
Social Benefits:
- Strengthens relationships
- Attracts others to us
- Enhances teamwork
- Helps defuse conflict
- Promotes group bonding
On Laughter
A smile starts on the lips, a grin spreads to the eyes, a chuckle comes from the belly; but a good laugh bursts forth from the soul, overflows, and bubbles all around. — Carolyn Birmingham
And we should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once. And we should call every truth false which was not accompanied by at least one laugh. — Friedrich Nietzsche
God is a comedian playing to an audience too afraid to laugh. — Voltaire
He deserves Paradise who makes his companions laugh. — Qu’ran
The moment of awakening may be marked by an outbursts of laughter, but this is not the laughter of someone who has won the lottery or some kind of victory. It is the laughter of one who, after searching for something for a long time, suddenly finds it in the pocket of his coat. — Thich Nhat Hanh
I have always felt that laughter in the face of reality is probably the finest sound there is and will last until the day when the game is called on account of darkness. In this world, a good time to laugh is any time you can. — Linda Ellerbee
Laughter connects you with people. It’s almost impossible to maintain any kind of distance or any sense of social hierarchy when you’re just howling with laughter. Laughter is a force for democracy. — John Cleese