Laughing at stand up comics - sinful? At what point?

[Fizendell]

Without getting into immense details, here’s the situation:

At the last minute, me and two friends (one nominally Catholic, one not Catholic) decide to go to a bar where there’s a show with stand up comics. We have met one of them, which is why we’re going.

During the course of the evening, there are four openers and one headliner. All of them funny to some extent - some more than others.

There were several points in the evening when a joke was told that I may or may not have found funny, may or may not have found it funny in the past, but found myself wondering if I should laugh or not.

So here’s my question to all of you willing to answer:

At what point do you feel you have committed sin by laughing at a comedian? If the joke is sexual in nature? What if the joke is about something Catholic? What if it’s about another race, the opposite gender, or another religion?

What’s interesting is that for the most part, comedy is okay. The funniest jokes are about real situations we can relate to.

If I’m at home, and hubby is watching a stand up routine - I can blurt out what I think if I disagree with something or simply not laugh.

But in a live situation, sometimes it’s hard to not laugh, or resist or disapprove or whatever. It isn’t that I am judging anyone or think I should get up and walk out. I can learn self-control and not laugh if it’s not appropriate.

I guess I’m wondering (and I’m sure someone thinks I’m getting worked up over nothing here!):
a: Is it a sin to laugh if the subject of the joke is sinful?
b: At any point during the routines - is it sin to even be there?

Two points in closing:

1. I’ve already addressed this in confession - I’m wondering what others here think or have experienced.
2. At one point in the headliner’s routine, he told one I completely disapproved of, and I shook my head - and being in direct line of sight, he pointed right at me and said, “Don’t shake your head - you know it’s funny!” At which time, as I was quickly informed by my friends, I turned bright red - and laughed.

Maybe it’s a grey area that I don’t need to worry about. I certainly didn’t know ahead of time the content of these comedians’ acts. But it gets me thinking about the ideas of where we place ourselves and “avoiding the near occasion of sin” and things like that.

Thanks!
=)
Kat

 

[Benedictus]

I don’t really know what to say about your particular situation, but here’s paragraph 1856 from the Catechism:

Mortal sin, by attacking the vital principle within us - that is, charity - necessitates a new initiative of God’s mercy and a conversion of heart which is normally accomplished within the setting of the sacrament of reconciliation:

When the will sets itself upon something that is of its nature incompatible with the charity that orients man toward his ultimate end, then the sin is mortal by its very object . . . whether it contradicts the love of God, such as blasphemy or perjury, or the love of neighbor, such as homicide or adultery. . . . But when the sinner's will is set upon something that of its nature involves a disorder, but is not opposed to the love of God and neighbor, such as thoughtless chatter or **immoderate laughter** and the like, such sins are venial.

 

[Antigen]

During a really sad part of my life I was a stand up comedian. I really enjoyed what I was doing and had no problem with making jokes even about sex and being Catholic. Based on my experience with creation, I knew God has a dry sense of humor too. I figured, He had to laugh at my misadventures in the gay bar at least as much as they did.

I believe that I only committed a sin if my joke devalued something that should be taken seriously and if that joke made people think that Catholics condoned certain types of sins.

For example, I never could do jokes about the priest sex abuse scandle. Jay Leno hasn’t quit doing them. I know those very few perverts who abused children do not represent the vast numbers of wonderful souls who have taken on the priestly responsibility, but every time a commedian plays that cards, priests go from being viewed as servants of God to sex crazed lunatics. For the same reason, I can’t do racial comedy. I know I don’t feel that way about that race of people but when I do those jokes, it diminishes their suffering and aenethetises your soul to their pain.

Sometimes I find commedians like Jon Stuart, Dave Lettermen and Jay Leno, the most disturbing because they are incredibly influencial and shouldn’t be. Do you remember how these commedians harped and harped on Dan Quail like hens pecking at feed. Dan Quail was no more a clown than any other politician in the race that year, yet he was ripped to shreds mercilessly night after night until he could nolonger be taken seriously. With the exception of that potato fiasco, much of the belittling and needling was unjustified, uncalled for and unprovoked by Dan Quail.

Also, do you remember the last elections: all these high profile gubenitorial and presidential contenders were announcing their candidacy fromeither Jay Leno’s couch or Jon Stuarts fake news show (something Jon Stuart found himself reminding these candidates when they came on his show to talk serious poilitics.)

I’m not saying politics can never be funny. I think we will have years of laughter thanks to Aunolt in Californis and Erlicht in Maryland.

I don’t like to tell jokes that would make people think that it’s ok to lie or not be chaste. Unfortunately, it happens. Like I had this little monolog about being a virgin all my life. It’s meant to be funny because my father thinks I’ll never give him grandchildren. What people think is funny is that my father believes his forty year old daughter is a virgin, which she really is. The audience thought I was talking tongue in cheek. I discontinued the monologue because I was inadvertantly perpetuating the myth that people can not remain chaste.

Since a recent scare I have found a lot to joke about when it comes to breast cancer. And don’t get me started about how much fun I had with Janet Jackson’s right breast. That didn’t come out right but it did come out funny. Her breast I mean. Moving on.

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