Now That Was Funny
According to Proverbs 17:5, "He who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished." Actually, the entire proverb reads, "Whoever mocks the poor insults his Maker; he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished."
While I find both statements to be insightful, it is the second half of this proverb that I find poignant. I find that in some ways it has to do with revenge. Or at least it has to do with the indulgence of the idea of revenge.
Now, let me say that this can be interpreted to be a proverb against laughing at people who slip on banana peels just as much as it could be about revenge. I hesitate to think that it is about criticising those who laugh when people get hurt or embarrassed, although that might very well be the heart of it. Think of the show AFV. How many of the laughs come from people getting injured - especially if a guy receives some kind of injury to his genitalia. What makes those funny? Are we glad at calamity?
Here I was thinking that the proverb was about seeing some great disaster and enjoying it - like people cheering when someone dies on death row, or when we celebrate the bombing of an enemy and saying that they got what they deserved. That's where I was going. We like the idea of payback, or that someone gets the treatment we believe they deserve.
Perhaps in my thinking this proverb was far more aloof than it may actually be, I have sought to let myself off the hook when I snicker at someone walking into a wall while they are texting (which I saw a few days ago - that's why it comes to mind).
Maybe the point has to do with the fact that we all come from the Maker, and to forget that is to mock one another as well as the Maker. It also means that we cannot celebrate when calamity strikes.
That may have to do with the idea of treating others the way we would wish to be treated. Would you want someone to laugh at you when you slip on black ice, or when you find yourself on the wrong end of public opinion?
I suppose that this particular proverb is calling us to task for our behavior towards one another. Granted I could be wrong, but what if we were to take stock of our laughter and mockery. What do they tell us about how we feel about other human beings? What do they tell us about how we think of ourselves in relation to those we might consider poor or deserving of calamity?
Because as the proverb implies, we might not go unpunished. Perhaps that means that after our celebration of the calamity of another, we might find ourselves flat on our back after slipping on a banana peel. And then we might find that our calamity has made AFV and people seem to take far more delight in our calamity than we think it merited.
While I find both statements to be insightful, it is the second half of this proverb that I find poignant. I find that in some ways it has to do with revenge. Or at least it has to do with the indulgence of the idea of revenge.
Now, let me say that this can be interpreted to be a proverb against laughing at people who slip on banana peels just as much as it could be about revenge. I hesitate to think that it is about criticising those who laugh when people get hurt or embarrassed, although that might very well be the heart of it. Think of the show AFV. How many of the laughs come from people getting injured - especially if a guy receives some kind of injury to his genitalia. What makes those funny? Are we glad at calamity?
Here I was thinking that the proverb was about seeing some great disaster and enjoying it - like people cheering when someone dies on death row, or when we celebrate the bombing of an enemy and saying that they got what they deserved. That's where I was going. We like the idea of payback, or that someone gets the treatment we believe they deserve.
Perhaps in my thinking this proverb was far more aloof than it may actually be, I have sought to let myself off the hook when I snicker at someone walking into a wall while they are texting (which I saw a few days ago - that's why it comes to mind).
Maybe the point has to do with the fact that we all come from the Maker, and to forget that is to mock one another as well as the Maker. It also means that we cannot celebrate when calamity strikes.
That may have to do with the idea of treating others the way we would wish to be treated. Would you want someone to laugh at you when you slip on black ice, or when you find yourself on the wrong end of public opinion?
I suppose that this particular proverb is calling us to task for our behavior towards one another. Granted I could be wrong, but what if we were to take stock of our laughter and mockery. What do they tell us about how we feel about other human beings? What do they tell us about how we think of ourselves in relation to those we might consider poor or deserving of calamity?
Because as the proverb implies, we might not go unpunished. Perhaps that means that after our celebration of the calamity of another, we might find ourselves flat on our back after slipping on a banana peel. And then we might find that our calamity has made AFV and people seem to take far more delight in our calamity than we think it merited.
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