The History of Easter Laughter

The study provides a historical account of Easter Laughter as a church practice in the Early Modern period and of its aftermath in the following centuries. It attempts to offer some explanations for why a provincial custom has sparked global interest since the 1950s.

May you laugh in church? The church fathers said 'no', but the question resurfaced thanks to a German custom of making the congregation laugh on Easter morning. In 1518, Oecolampadius wrote a book in which Easter Laughter is described for the first time. Until now, his Latin text has never been translated. This study provides a historical account of Easter Laughter in the Early Modern period, traces the controversy it sparked between Catholics and Protestants in the following centuries, and offers some explanations for why a provincial custom has sparked global interest since the 1950s. The author discusses the role of laughter in church and society, demonstrating how the general assessment of laughter has changed radically in an astonishingly short time. From an almost unbroken tradition of suspicion and prohibition, laughter now enjoys high esteem. This transformation is examined with a particular focus, as the book ventures to ask how it can be a blessing that Jesus did not laugh. "The entire study invites an examination of a phenomenon that obviously deserves a more intensive theological study []. It shows the author's amazing knowledge. There is no question that this is linked to significant insights, especially from an interdisciplinary perspective. Cultural studies and theology are equally addressed when the Easter Laughter is pursued in all its diversity." (Benedikt Kranemann, translated from his review of the German edition in Thelogische Literaturzeitung, vol. 147/3, 2022)

Autorentext

Benny Grey Schuster studied theology at the University of Aarhus and Christ Church in Oxford. He taught philosophy of religion as well as systematic and practical theology in Aarhus. Additionally, Schuster served for four years as a pastor. Until 2023, he was a lecturer at the Centre for Education and Research under the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark.

Inhalt

Introduction - What WasEaster Laughter? - The History of the Effects of Easter Laughter - Arguments For and Against Easter Laughter - Did Jesus Laugh? An Essay on the Cultural, Ecclesiastical, and Theological Transformation of Laughter - Johannes Oecolampadius: De Risu PaschaliWolfgang Capito's Preface, April 1518 Johannes Oecolampadius' Letter, March 1518 - Afterword and Acknowledgements - Bibliography - Index of Names - Index of Bible Texts - A Note on the Author.