Life is serious all the time, but living cannot be. You may have all the solemnity you wish in your neckties, but in anything important (such as sex, death, and religion), you must have mirth or you will have madness. —G. K. Chesterton
I have heard it said that Chesterton is one of the most oft-quoted individuals of all time. When looking at the truthfulness contained in the above statement, it’s clear why. It just feels right, and has the ring of truth about it, doesn’t it? But just what is mirth? For you lexophiles out there, mirth is, along with being a pleasurable feeling, also a state of enjoyment, gratification, joy, or happiness. Mirth can specifically be related to a spiritually rooted joy. In this season when we celebrate the Christ Child’s enfleshment, I believe Chesterton’s call to mirth is especially timely.
So for this Christmas issue, we present you with interviews from a variety of thoughtful people who have pondered or contributed – mirthfully – to laughter and humor. From the prodigious authors Terry Lindvall and Steve Wilkens (both of whom have written specifically on laughter and humor to Dan Taylor, who handily practices the vocation of both pastor and professional comedian, and David Regier, the mastermind behind the grumpy but lovable – and often sagacious – Church Curmudgeon (who has over 100,000 Twitter followers!). Plus, as always, we have poetry. And if you haven’t heard of the painter Philip Guston, check out Arthur Aghajanian’s thoughtful essay.
Speaking of thoughtful, Radix is pleased to announce our new podcast venture: Visually Sacred: Conversations on the Power of Images, and you will able to listen a new episode every month. Here is a description to whet your appetite:
Christian contemplative and essayist Arthur Aghajanian explores how images influence our understanding of reality and the sacred through conversations with thought leaders on art, visual culture, and religion. Each episode delves into a different area of visual theology, opening to spiritual wisdom while deconstructing an image-saturated world.
May your Christmas be bright, and especially mirthful. – Matthew