Laughter is necessity for healthy Christian, says Jesuit magazine

Published: 2004-07-15

ROME (CNS) -- While faith is not a laughing matter, a healthy Christian is able to laugh, according to an article in the influential Jesuit magazine Civilta Cattolica. "If a Christian lacks a sense of humor, it is a sign, among other things, of a religious education too focused on conformity," said the article by Jesuit Father Luciano Larivera. The mid-July article, "The Nature and Necessity of Humor," offered a dry survey of modern neurological, psychological and philosophical studies on humor, laughter and smiles, as well as a brief discussion of humor and spirituality. The studies show "adults laugh on average 18 times a day, while children laugh 10 times as much," Father Larivera wrote. "Behavioral biologists maintain that hilarity contributes to the survival of our species; otherwise we would have stopped laughing millennia ago." The priest also referred to recent laughter-is-the-best-medicine studies showing that when someone laughs "there is an increase of endorphins and a reduction of substances which weaken the immune system."

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