Joking around

Humor and theology may seem like opposing concepts, but for many ministers and chaplains, humor can be a valuable tool for connecting with congregants and administering comfort. For Bel Thurston, a third-year student in the Clough School of Theology and Ministry’s Master of Divinity program and owner of Goofs Comedy Club in Somerville, the two are inextricably linked. 

“People need joy, especially when they're feeling spiritually low, and so God gives us the gift of finding humor, laughing, and experiencing joy,” she explained. “I see that as a spiritual support that we receive—something that is a gift from God.”

On a Wednesday evening earlier this month, Thurston led a 90-minute workshop for 10 CSTM students on the intersection between humor and theology, specifically in preaching and spiritual life. For her opening presentation, Thurston was joined by doctoral student Kayla August, who is studying humor and preaching and has taken two stand-up comedy classes at Goofs. Then, Thurston and her fiancé Ryan led participants in a joke-writing exercise, starting with two simple instructions: write down something you think is funny, then say it out loud. 

“It was a lot of fun, and people definitely got into it,” Thurston said. “There are always one or two people who want a formula, and I get that, but once we started going around and sharing, I could see the people who wanted structure getting more comfortable.”

The workshop was part of a weekly event series organized by the CSTM Theology Arts Collective, which serves as an artistic hub for the Clough School community. Past sessions have introduced students to painting, the work of Shakespeare, and even button-making, while exploring each artform’s connections to theology. 

“To me, my theology and my artistry are interconnected—I simply cannot have one without the other,” explained Calista Robledo, a second-year student in the M.Div. program who co-founded the collective. “They inform each other in my life through how I study, explore my vocation, and move and exist in the world.”

Thurston discovered her love of stand-up comedy three years ago, when she was looking for an artistic outlet as a newly minted graduate student. Since then, she’s become acutely aware of the way that humor is used in society, in particular as a coping mechanism for people experiencing grief or loss. During a chaplain summer intensive program inside the long-term cancer unit at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Thurston was surprised at the frequency with which patients were using humor to understand and come to terms with their disease.  

“To see how often people reached for that to make sense of their situation and communicate with God—that was really moving to me,” she recalled. “I would never lead with humor as a chaplain, but whenever someone opened that door, I was comfortable with it, I was ready to go.”

Theologian Karl Rahner was once quoted as saying, "If humor doesn't come to you naturally, don't labor over it," which Thurston finds hilarious and also appropriate advice. For some of her classmates who attended her workshop, jokes will never be how they connect with congregants or patients, and that’s perfectly okay. 

“As a chaplain, I've seen people who really don't need levity. That's not what they're looking for and it would actually be harmful,” she said. “So it makes me happy that just as there is diversity among spiritual needs, there's that same diversity among ministers that are being formed at CSTM.”