The BYU Humanities Center welcomed professors and students from a variety of backgrounds at its Annual Symposium on Sept. 27-28.
The annual symposium was a two-day event that took place at the Joseph F. Smith Building and the BYU Timp Lodge. The event featured 13 speakers from BYU and other universities who discussed the connection between humor and religion.
Participants at the symposium were treated to several hours of spiritual enlightenment and a free lunch.
The symposium was a collaboration between the Humanities Center and the Humor Research Group, which has been around for three years. Will Carr, an assistant professor of Spanish and Portuguese, is the head of the group.
“When I came to BYU and I was looking at research groups and what was available, I didn't see anything that was centered around humor,” Carr said. “I thought it was just kind of a hole that needed to be filled.”
The Humor Research Group, which consists of faculty in the humanities department, researches the intersection between faith and humanity. Rex Nielson, director of the Humanities Center, said his group partnered with the Humor Research Group to promote their research.
“They came to us with this proposal to sponsor a symposium titled 'The God Who Laughs,'” Nielson said. “The way that we came to this is that we wanted to explore the way in which laughter and humor function within our spiritual practices.”
He also expressed his hopes for attendees of the symposium.
"I think any students or faculty who come will be surprised and ... delighted to hear how humor builds faith, how humor can help us in fact develop our spiritual experiences,” Nielson said.
Richard McBride, a BYU professor who researches Korean Buddhist literature, spoke at the symposium. He discussed humor, Buddhism and zen rhetoric.
From the Humor Research Group, Will Carr and Corry Cropper presented their research on a humorous French play titled "En Attendant Godot" that is full of theological and Christian imagery.
Another speaker was writer Simran Jeet Singh of the Aspen Institute’s Program on Religion and Society. According to his website, he has been featured in publications such as The New York Times and The Washington Post.
In his address, he discussed how humor can break down walls of falsehoods. He also talked about humor as a mechanism for delivering spiritual wisdom and a tool for cultivating humanity.
“I think he opened a whole new way of approaching my own faith tradition, even though he's from a different faith tradition,” Porter Kindall, a BYU student who attended his lecture, said.
Jeremy Dauber, who spoke from Columbia University, discussed how humor and comedy play an important role in Judaism.
Symposium participants, whether they attended the entire event or not, said they learned something new.
“I really loved how each of the speakers explored different ways in which faith and humor intersect,” Starly Pratt, an attendee at the event, said.
Gabbie Schwartz, a BYU student, shared her feelings after attending.
“It enhances the student body and ... our faculty and just gives us a different way of looking at things that's probably a better way of looking at things,” Schwartz said.
Corry Cropper of the Humor Research Group said he hopes people will “appreciate the work that went into making this happen.”