Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life [Hardcover]

James Martin (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 4, 2011

“Between Heaven and Mirth will make any reader smile. . . . Father Martin reminds us that happiness is the good God’s own goal for us.” —Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of New York

From The Colbert Report’s “official chaplain” James Martin, SJ, author of the New York Times bestselling The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything, comes a revolutionary look at how joy, humor, and laughter can change our lives and save our spirits. A Jesuit priest with a busy media ministry, Martin understands the intersections between spirituality and daily life.  In Between Heaven and Mirth, he uses scriptural passages, the lives of the saints, the spiritual teachings of other traditions, and his own personal reflections to show us why joy is the inevitable result of faith, because a healthy spirituality and a healthy sense of humor go hand-in-hand with God's great plan for humankind.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Winsome and comical but also provocative and thoughtful, Martin’s book is a breath of fresh air for those who would take religion—and themselves—too seriously.” (Publishers Weekly (starred review))

“Martin’s book suggests numerous ways to foster the strength of gracious good humor and makes a wonderful case for replacing suffering and sadness with an abundance of levity and joy.” (Booklist)

“Between Heaven and Mirth couldn’t come at a better time since both individuals and religious institutions are feeling the pressure of hard times. Joy and a playful sense of humor are great antidotes to hopelessness and helplessness.” (Spirituality & Practice)

“Between Heaven and Mirth is delicious, well-crafted and well-paced. Martin draws on his own experience as a priest and demonstrates both a light touch and an impressive command of his subject.” (Harvey Cox, the Washington Post Book World)

“Between Heaven and Mirth uses biblical passages, personal anecdotes and saints’ stories to show the importance of humor to the spiritual life.” (Catholic News Service)

“Holy people are joyful people, Martin says. The author suggests ways that humor and laughter can be incorporated into prayer. This is a book that will make you laugh. Sprinkled throughout are many funny stories and jokes.” (Christian Century)

“If you ever got in trouble as a child for laughing in church, prepare to be vindicated.” (Scott Alessi, U.S. Catholic)

From the Back Cover

In Between Heaven and Mirth, James Martin, SJ, assures us that God wants us to experience joy, to cultivate a sense of holy humor, and to laugh at life’s absurdities—not to mention our own humanity. Father Martin invites believers to rediscover the importance of humor and laughter in our daily lives and to embrace an essential truth: faith leads to joy.

Holy people are joyful people, says Father Martin, offering countless examples of healthy humor and purposeful levity in the stories of biblical heroes and heroines, and in the lives of the saints and the world’s great spiritual masters. He shows us how the parables are often the stuff of comedy, and how the gospels reveal Jesus to be a man with a palpable sense of joy and even playfulness. In fact, Father Martin argues compellingly, thinking about a Jesus without a sense of humor may be close to heretical.

Drawing on Scripture, sharing anecdotes from his experiences as a lifelong Catholic, a Jesuit for over twenty years, and a priest for more than ten, and including amusing and insightful sidebars, footnotes, and jokes, Father Martin illustrates how joy, humor, and laughter help us to live more spiritual lives, understand ourselves and others better, and more fully appreciate God’s presence among us. Practical how-to advice helps us use humor to show our faith, embrace our humanity, put things into perspective, open our minds, speak truth, demonstrate courage, challenge power, learn hospitality, foster effective human relations, deepen our relationship with God, and ... enjoy ourselves. Inviting God to lighten our hearts, we can enjoy a little heaven on earth.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: HarperOne (October 4, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062024264
• ISBN-13: 978-0062024268
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #115,535 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Rev. James Martin, SJ, is a Jesuit priest, culture editor of America magazine, and author of numerous books, including My Life with the Saints, which Publishers Weekly named one of the best books of 2006. Father Martin is a frequent commentator in the national and international media, having appeared in such diverse outlets as The Colbert Report, Fresh Air, The O'Reilly Factor, NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Boston Globe, and on the History Channel, BBC, and Vatican Radio. Before entering the Jesuits in 1988 he graduated from the Wharton School of Business.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

102 of 103 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Funny and Faith-Filled October 4, 2011

By Jonathan F. Sullivan

Format:Hardcover

The nicest compliment I ever received came from a Catholic deacon at a parish in Iowa. My family and I were getting ready to move out of the area (my one-year fellowship at the local Catholic hospital was ending) and he was explaining why our family would be missed: "It's been so nice having you here. You and your family live the faith joyfully."

This compliment came back to me while reading Jesuit Fr. James Martin's new book, Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life, which hits shelves today. Fr. Martin has crafted a wonderful book highlighting the rich tradition of faithful humor and joyful spirituality. He takes dead aim on the gloomy, pessimistic side of Christianity, arguing that it is not only antithetical to the teachings of Christ, but hurtful to the Church's mission of evangelization.

If you're looking for a quick summary of Fr. Martin's insights, skip to chapter four (helpfully entitled "Happiness Attracts: 11 1/2 Serious Reasons for Good Humor"). This is a similar list to the keynote talk I heard Fr. Martin give at the 2011 NCCL conference. At the top of the list is the fact that happiness and humor are ways to witness to our faith:

"Joy, humor, and laughter show one's faith in God. For Christians, an essentially hopeful outlook shows people that you believe in the Resurrection, in the power of life over death, and in the power of love over hatred. Don't you think that after the Resurrection Jesus's disciples were joyful? 'All will be well, and all will be well, and all manner of things will be well,' as the fourteenth-century mystic Blessed Julian of Norwich said. For believers in general, humor shows your trust in God, who will ultimately make all things well. Joy reveals faith...."

This may seem self-evident, but the number of dour and humorless Christians would seem to indicate that it bears repeating. Fr. Martin goes to on extol humor's virtues in the area of health, spirituality, hospitality, play, and interpersonal relations.

What's more, the book is funny. Fr. Martin sprinkles jokes and humor from the saints liberally throughout the text, including stories about Pope John XXIII; Avery Cardinal Dulles, SJ; Dorothy Day; various Jesuit saints; and, of course, Jesus!

In fact, I think his look at humor in Sacred Scripture (both Old and New Testament) will be especially eye-opening for many people. As Fr. Martin points outs, it is easy to overlook the humor in the Bible:

"We've simply heard the stories too many times, and they become stale, like overly repeated jokes. 'The words seem to us like old coins,' [Elton Trueblood] writes, 'in which the edges have been worn smooth and the engravings have become almost indistinguishable.' Trueblood recounts the tale of his four-year-old son, who, upon hearing the Gospel story about seeing the speck of dust in your neighbor's eye and ignoring the log in your own,laughed uproariously. The young boy readily saw the humor missed by those who have heard the story dozens of times."

Besides the Bible Fr. Martin recommends numerous books on humor and spirituality (he admits up front that his book is not intended to be an exhaustive treatment of the subject) and even gives a list of his favorite funny movies.

A quick note about the book's intended audience: some Catholics may wonder why a book about spirituality by a Catholic priest includes insights from other Christian traditions as well as Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism. Fr. Martin writes for a broad audience, and I hope that his Protestant and non-Christian fans from the Huffington Post and the Colbert Report will pick up the book; I think many would be surprised at the relevance of its subject.

I heartily recommend Between Heaven and Mirth for anyone interested in furthering their own spiritual journey -- or just looking for a few new jokes from their repertoire. The Church's rich tradition of faithful joy is a treasure that deserves to be shared, for humor is a gift from God.

Or, as Hilaire Belloc so succinctly put it:

Wherever the Catholic sun doth shine,
There's always laughter and good red wine.
At least I've always found it so.
Benedicamus Domino!

Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book for free from TLC Book Tours. Read more ›

58 of 59 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Want joy, humor, and laughter in your life? This is the perfect guide October 6, 2011

By Brandon Vogt

Format:Hardcover

Sometimes you'll find a book written by precisely the right person. When you see such a book you know that the author was born to write it. For instance, with all of its beauty and intelligence, Catholicism had to be written by Fr. Robert Barron. Likewise, nobody else could have compiled The Future Church like expert journalist John Allen, Jr.. And only a dreaming philologist like J.R.R. Tolkien was capable of producing The Lord of the Rings.

While these books are rare, one new title fits the mold. Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life (Harper One, hardcover, 263 pages) was written by Fr. James Martin, one of the funniest, joyous, most light-hearted religious figures in America and the perfect person to write it.

Martin is the rare priest who personifies levity. Whether writing articles in America Magazine or exchanging one-liners with Stephen Colbert--Martin is the official "Colbert Show chaplain"--he just exudes happiness wherever he is.

Between Heaven and Mirth captures this attitude and shares it with the rest of us. The pages are full of humor and the jokes roll one after another.

But the book isn't just a collection of jokes. An early section, for instance, explores the humor of Jesus. Many people see Jesus as a joyless judge, a sober teacher unconcerned with humor and laughter. Part of this is because many of Jesus' jokes are tinged with first-century Jewish wit and therefore fly right over our heads. To fix this misconception, Martin provides some context to many of Jesus' stories and quips, making them much more lighthearted and, yes, even funny.

In another section, Martin turns to the saints.... "A sad nun is a bad nun," says St. Teresa of Avila and Martin provides plenty of alternatives. From St. Francis' gleeful conversations to Pope John XXIII's regular wisecracks many saints were full of mirth.

But how can we acquire a similar joy? Martin answers in the final chapter by explaining how we can integrate joy, humor, and laughter into our own spiritual life. Through practical tips and time-tested advice, Martin's spiritual wisdom is on full display here.

Also, on a related note, while the book's content is stellar from beginning to end, I can't tell you how much I love its cover. The cover is full of smiling saints, which is strange since saints are rarely depicted as cheerful. Most statues, stained-glass windows, and mosaic portraits show saints with their hands folded, their eyes downcast, and their morose faces fending off a smile. But this cover beams with holy joy. Mother Teresa, Thomas Merton, St. Francis, and more make sanctity seem less like penance and more like fun. If "joy is the infallible sign of the presence God", these look like saints who understand the Divine.

G.K. Chesterton famously wrote that, "Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly." Like the angels, Martin floats through life with levity, making jokes, laughing regularly, and never taking himself too seriously. Between Heaven and Mirth shows us all how to live this way and is the perfect guide to spiritual joy. Read more ›

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Perfect Gift for Lots of Joy October 16, 2011

By Sara

Format:Hardcover

Looking for the perfect gift for your priest, minister, spiritual director or cranky relative? This informative and hilarious book will delight them. Get a copy for yourself, too. If you're like me, you're not sure sometimes what humor is appropriate, when you can laugh in church or even what's funny. Fr. Jim clears it up with serious reasons for good humor, and he clarifies what's good. Fascinating historical anecdotes speak of the humor of many holy people from various times and faiths. Plus, there are really good jokes and lots of joy, the kind that comes from God. Did you know that God has a sense of humor? Get the punch line in "Between Heaven and Mirth." You really need to know this before the Apocalypse.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Making A Joyful Noise for the Lord: the Primer. October 30, 2011

By Frank Weathers

Format:Hardcover

Folks who have been visiting this space know that I have a soft spot in my heart for the writings of Fr. James Martin. You see, the very first post written here, by Webster Bull [...], was about his book "My Life With The Saints." I also read that book and enjoyed it immensely. Fr. Jim, see, has what I like to think of as a unique, folksy style, that appeals to many. Stephen Colbert has noticed.

Perhaps it's because Martin is so effortless to read. The words just seem to pour off of the page and directly into your subconscious, and before you know it, you're on the next chapter. In the particular case of this book, the subject matter is appealing because, and bear with the rhetorical question, how many of us have met the bane of St. Teresa of Avila during our journey along "the Way?" I'm referring to the "sour faced saints" that she begged God to spare us from. If you can find a way to give them this book surreptitiously, it would do them a world of good.

But forgetting about the speck in the eyes of others, and turning to the planks in our own, which Fr. Jim uses as an example of the tomfoolery of Our Lord, this latest book will help you along the narrow path with a lighter step. You see, the subtitle of this slim volume is "Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life," and though there are plenty of sour moments through this "vail of tears," Martin's book reminds us to remember that there is a time and place for everything, which he assiduously goes about pointing out for us through both biblical passages (Ecclesiastes in this case) and numerous other citations gleaned from the lives of the saints and other real world examples of lived, not just theoretical, faith....

He takes the reader through patterns of joy from other faith traditions as well as from theological, psychological, and the views of academic experts from various fields who reflect on historic and anecdotal examples of humor and the Faith. And I have to add that he does so without burying the reader in a sea of footnotes or involving us in long winded academic discussions, which as I recall from my experience in college, serve only to kill joy with the mercilessness of pedantic proofs that can put chronic insomniacs to sleep in 30 seconds. Instead, Martin shares with us some of the best research on this subject matter, jokes that he has heard over the years, and biblical passages that many of us have read, and summarily forgotten, that remind us of the joy we should take in our very personal faith journeys.

On top of all of this, Fr. Jim effortlessly recalls episodes in his own life where a Christian sense of humor has saved the day for him personally, as well as for others he was ministering too. Often times, the humor that "saved the day" was generated by a friend, or colleague, or even a stranger who, by being in the right place, and at the right time, was able, through the skillful application of humor, to make an unbearable situation bearable.

For example, I liked learning that right before his ordination, Fr. Jim became ill and had to be taken to the emergency room. Accompanying him was a 70 year old priest, whom Fr. Jim turned to for, as he called it, "emergency spiritual counseling" along the lines of "Why is God doing this to me?" The answer he got was unexpected, and therapeutic, for in a deeply serious voice (think of that voice-over artist in movie trailers) the priest answered, "God is punishing you for all of your wicked sins!," which caused them both to burst out in laughter.

There is much enjoyment and practical knowledge that is gained from spending time with this book. Because there is enough bad news out there in the world to bring us all to the brink of mental collapse, if we allow ourselves to focus only on what is wrong with the world. But to do so is to miss the point of our lives as witnesses to joy. Fr. Jim reminds readers gently and subtly that God loves us, wants us to be happy, and that making a joyful noise to the Lord</a> is nothing to be ashamed of. He even has an answer for those of you who may believe that "I'm not funny, and my life stinks."

Buy this book and find out why that self-assessment is not true. You'll be glad you did. Read more ›