Laughing Toward Heaven
Photo by Victoria Quirk on Unsplash
A Man who laughed at death
There was once a man who was tried for treason. This man was a faithful advisor to the infamous King Henry VIII long before his eye drifted from his wife to that of Anne Boleyn. Though the King’s good servant, he was God's first.
Steadfast in his faith, he did not waver as the King collapsed under the temptation of falling into sin, and soon following, decreed all his Kingdom to side with him in his fall. No – in silence, he held his peace. He held it as his companions hounded him to bow, he held it as he was shut up in the Tower of London and held it until the moment where his sentence was pronounced.
At his sentence to be beheaded, he declared the truth of the Gospel in the face of all who condemned him. Following this, as this virtuous man walked surely to his place of execution before mounting, took hold of the executioner with a twinkle in his eye and joked:
“I beg you will help me to get up; as for coming down, you may leave me alone for that.”
As if that wasn’t enough, likely to a completely stunned executioner, he then took his beard, and jestingly, asked the executioner to allow him to fix his beard over the block lest he should cut it, since his facial hair was not charged with treason as he was…
This man was St. Thomas More – a man who gave his life faithful to God above all else and literally laughed at the face of death! What a witness to everyone who saw him at his end!
The Prayer behind his joy
How did this man display such merits of virtue at such a critical moment? It may have something to do with a prayer, this same man, many years before this moment, composed to the God he adored. A powerful prayer, it begins with this amusing plea:
“Grant me, O Lord, good digestion, and also, something to digest…”
Yes, my friends, this is St. Thomas More’s prayer for Good Humour and is indeed the hidden virtue I wish to shed some light on; a hidden virtue displayed not only in him but in so many of our beloved Saints too.
What is good humour?
Beyond just the ability to crack a joke or stir up a witty line, it begins with truly knowing oneself. St Francis of Assisi famously prayed, “O Lord, show me who You are, and show me who I am”. From this knowledge of knowing who we truly are, which is firstly God’s children, and growing in knowledge of who God wishes us to be, our perception of the whole world begins to shift.
St. Josemaria Escriva, a man who practiced and advocated for holy cheer, often talked about the sense of divine filiation, that is, of truly knowing that you are a child of God and so living in response to this. This is where we begin to have good and holy humour!
What begins to happen is that our hearts and minds become ordered, or as St. Paul puts it, we are “transformed by the renewal of your minds” (Romans 12:3). We see more as things truly are. For example, we may begin to notice more the beauty and grandeur of creation, leading to awe of our Creator, or we become more attentive to the joys of domestic life, becoming fervent in humble service. We see God’s goodness more, so all the more we wish to will good to others. In this order, we place “our treasure in Heaven” and we allow our eyes to perceive the world around us with the light of Christ (Matthew 6:21 – 22).
And therein enters holy humour. The only serious business is Heaven, and so we can joyfully use the good around us to share the Good News with others.
Seeing ourselves clearly and joyfully
As our perceptions shift, we will most likely discover more our own imperfections yet my friends, we are not bowled over in shock at the sight of our imperfection. No!
For “God shows His love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8). Did you ever think that God loved you so much that He took all that sin and brokenness on Himself, and bestowed freely all the graces you needed for your salvation and redemption, long before you even came to the point of recognising your need for God?
That should fill us with joy! If it doesn’t, I’d strongly recommend letting that sink in. For though we see ourselves as we are, we also see Jesus, and His Love, and what He calls us to be. The only thing then that is truly serious is the salvation of souls; our own, and those we encounter. So, we start to have an ordered perspective of our lives and what’s around us.
The word humour itself originated as the idea of balanced fluids in the human body. By practicing this virtue, we so balance our priorities and our perspectives appropriately in ourselves, in line with the Truth.
how do we practice humour virtuously?
I would like to just highlight two aspects (purely from the motive that I have already failed to be concise in discussing this virtue).
Humour keeps us humble
Firstly, it is a wonderful means of remaining humble. That thorn in the side of us all, that is our ego, often likes to inflate our image to that which it is not, which thus effects the way we see ourselves and others. Imagine someone that has a notion that the universe in fact does revolve around them – how much of an inconvenience will others be to them!
As one proud mother pronounced in defence of her son marching in a large scout group: “everyone is out of step except my Johnny!”. There is a soured look of life, a disdain and intolerance for the faults of others, and often a blindness to our own. But this is not what we are called to live. We are called to bear each other’s faults with patience (Col 3:13) but this is not possible without humility.
With humility and humour, we tend not take ourselves so seriously in light of God’s mercy to us, and we resolve to light-heartedness to witness to the truth. St. Philip Neri “the Humorous Saint” was famous for pulling incredible stunts like waltzing into a meeting with a half-shaved beard! Why?
These humorous stunts were also acts of humility so to not allow himself to be esteemed in the world or allow his perception to prioritise what others thought of him.
He was a fool for Christ (1 Cor 4:10) and would lower himself in the sight of all men, whatever their status, in order to bring them Jesus.
Though joking in many ways, he was fixed steadily on the serious business of saving souls. Christ was His vision, not his own self-image, and so he was one of the most effective evangelists and apologists!
A way of sharing the Gospel
And that leads on to the second point which is humour can be a wonderful way of sharing the Gospel. People are drawn to cheerfulness. Can we talk about sharing “Good News” if we deliver it with a frown or without at least a smile?
That’s why it is crucial to know the joy of the Gospel ourselves before sharing it! How can we give Good News if we ourselves do not believe it?
So, St. Paul calls us to walk in the Spirit and its fruits, including joy, if we wish to live by the Spirit (Gal 5:25).
If we are open to the work of the Holy Spirit and ask for the grace to walk in His ways, He is faithful and will sustain us, even in the face of evil or adversity. Or even before this, in the face of annoyance, frustration, irritation or inconvenience.
No matter who may bring about such a moment, or how such a moment may arise, we are still called to speak the truth in love (Eph 4:15) and to defend our faith in gentleness (1 Peter 3:15). He may inspire you with a smile, a funny line or a cheerful remark, but all these can be wonderful tools to pave paths towards reconciliation and peace. In other words, to witness to the faith we believe in.
A Virtue worth asking for
There is much more to speak of humour, a virtue which is really not one to laugh off ( but maybe laugh on …).
The ability to have an ordered perspective of all around us, the ability to take a joke and discover life’s joys and share it can in fact be part of the pathway that paves our steps to Heaven.
And what if we lack this ability? Fear not my friends, for if we are in need of holy virtue, we can turn and ask our good God for this grace. I’m sure the Lord who is the source of humour would only be too glad to share His joy.
I think it is only apt to finish with St. Thomas More’s prayer for Good Humour which dives deeper than my words ever could into the wonders of this hidden virtue, which enflamed his heart and life to the moment of giving both completely to the Lord in his martyrdom.
St Thomas More’s Prayer for Good Humour
Grant me, oh Lord, good digestion,
and also something to digest.Grant me a healthy body, and
the necessary good humour to maintain it.Grant me a simple soul that knows
to treasure all that is good
and that doesn’t frighten easily at the sight of evil,
but rather finds the means to put things
back in their place.Give me a soul that knows not boredom,
grumbles, sighs, and laments,
nor excess of stress, because of that
obstructing thing called “I.”Grant me O Lord, a good sense of humour,
Allow me the grace to be able to take a joke
to discover in life a bit of joy,
and to be able to share it with others.Amen.