That whole avoiding loud laughter thing.

Comedy is funny because it reinterprets the familiar in new and different ways. That would be offensive to the spirit just as often as the listener was offended. Now, now, Correlation does not prove causation, only convenience.

Comedy often uses vulgarity to properly convey and emphasize an idea. Unclean language will drive away the spirit.

All the really funny batsh!t crazy stuff in Mormonism is too sacred (not secret) to talk about, let alone laugh about.

Comedy inherently involves mocking of either ourselves, others, situations or things. Since everyone has a calling with some sort of leadership over someone or something and was chosen by God and his servants you are mocking the Lord's annointed servants and leaders.

We have been commanded not to criticize the leaders, even when the criticism is true.

Not all truth is useful.

What other reasons are there?

The church is designed to destroy happiness and laughter. It is a built in function of the design.

I was always so serious in church, now I'm always laughing and joking. I found my sense of humor and I have discovered the world is full of laughter and reasons to laugh.

How about you?

I totally noticed this when I found out the truth about the church! Before, I was really quiet when it came to laughing. Probably the whole thing how women are supposed to be lady like or whatever. Now, things I wouldnt allow myself to consider funny I find hilarious. Things that my TBM self probably would have scoffed or tutted at. I have found a whole ton of comedy that I probably wouldnt have allowed myself to laugh at. I love shows like the Office and the Big Bang Theory, and comidians like Ricky Gervais. All these things that I love now, I probably wouldn't have given a chance before. I love laughing out loud now :)

Blind adherence to doctrine and fear they'll be ratted out if anybody knew what's really in their hearts.

Ron Burr

Another reason why Mormonism is unhealthy because they have found that laughter is good for your health and very helpful in recovery from operations, illnesses etc. The emphasis on being serious is poor advice although few Mormons would say they are serious. They think they are the happiest people out there.

I remember being really worried as a teenager when I heard the no "loud laughter" thing bc me and my friends used to (and still do) engage inloud laughter on a regular basis

In Robert Heinlein's book "Stranger In A Strange Land", Valentine Michael Smith - a human who had lived with Martians all his life and was brought back to earth - spent some time thinking about humor...

Then concluded that all humor is about pain...

If you think about it, that means the TSSC should be funniest place in the Galaxy...

Humor is also an intensely honest art form so it is like acid to the church's belief systems. Many church members derive their identity from those belief systems. The only way to free many of them may well be to laugh at them, long and loud and often to allow the honest acid of comedy to burn through and melt the beliefs that chain them down.

I haven't seen this connection. I've seen very non-serious Mormon and very serious non-Mormons.

I see myself about the same before and after.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/10/2012 12:13AM by bc.

When I was going through cancer treatment I taped every funny thing I could find on TV. I asked friends to give me dvds of comedians. I was determined to laugh, and laugh hard every day.

It not only helped me then, but also now. The warning in the temple ceremony is in itself laughable.

Laughter is the healing emotion. There are so many things that are so incredibly funny. Only an idiot would say its bad for people to laugh. I can't believe they haven't deleted that stupid part out of the temple ceremony. Maybe they are afraid the members will all break out into uproarious laughter when the prophet says some of the insane things that he does. Boyd KK is probably terrified that people will laugh at him and his little factory. Good grief, does it get any funnier than that?

Didn't somebody post here a while back that Joseph Smith put that in the temple ceremony because his family was sort of the laughing stock of Palmyra with their constant money failures, Joe Sr's drinking and their weird beliefs and Joseph was tired of being laughed at? That may have just been speculation but it sounds like a reasonable guess as to why it's in there in the first place.