Session 12: Humor (Sandpaper)

Beautiful orange sunset over a deep blue ocean. — Tapestry is Sunsetting

The UUA is no longer updating Tapestry of Faith programs.

Part of Toolbox of Faith, Grades 4-5

In This Section

Introduction
From Toolbox of Faith

It is the test of a good religion if you can joke about it. — G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936), English writer and journalist Laughter is perhaps one of the most mystical expressions of a human being. — Laibl Wolf, rabbi and educational psychologist People open themselves up to laughter so they…
Session-at-a-Glance
From Toolbox of Faith

ACTIVITY MINUTES Welcoming and Entering Opening 5 Activity 1: Story — Mullah Nasruddin and His Donkey 5 Activity 2: Laughing Exercises and Captain Underpants’ Name Game 15 Activity 3: Parody Songs 15 Activity 4: Clown Painting 10 Activity 5: Council Circle 10 Faith in Action: Ideas…
Spiritual Preparation
From Toolbox of Faith

Take a moment and let your body and mind settle. If you are comfortable doing so, spend a few moments in peaceful meditation….
Welcoming and Entering
From Toolbox of Faith

Materials for Activity Small pieces of scrap wood, enough for all participants Pieces of sandpaper for all participants Optional: A Slinky Optional: A sheet of paper, a permanent marker, scissors, and clear tape Optional: Toolbox of Our Faith poster Preparation for Activity Obtain pocket-size scr…
Opening
From Toolbox of Faith

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Chalice and candle or LED/battery-operated candle Lighter and extinguisher, if needed Newsprint, markers, and tape Tool of the Day — a piece of sandpaper Preparation for Activity Print the opening words on newsprint and post it in the Council Circle…
Activity 1: Story - Mullah Nasruddin And His Donkey
From Toolbox of Faith

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity A copy of the story, “Mullah Nasruddin and His Donkey” Preparation for Activity Read and prepare to tell the story, “Mullah Nasruddin and His Donkey.” This story is quite short. You may like to expand this activity by adding more humorous stories….
Activity 2: Laughing Exercises And Captain Underpants' Name Game
From Toolbox of Faith

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity Captain Underpants’ Name Game. Newsprint, markers, and tape; large blank name tags and markers Preparation for Activity Laughing Exercises. Review the laughing exercises under “Description of Activity” to get comfortable leading them. To add more…
Activity 3: Parody Songs
From Toolbox of Faith

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity Mural paper, masking tape, and markers Preparation for Activity Find a place to spread out mural paper for children to write song lyrics. Description of Activity Participants use humor in creating parody songs….
Activity 4: Clown Painting
From Toolbox of Faith

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity For each group of three participants: a set of face paints or make-up; cotton swabs for brushes, one per color; a cup of water; cosmetic sponges; an old towel or sheet to drape around the neck of the person being painted Optional: Paper and markers…
Activity 5: Council Circle
From Toolbox of Faith

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity Tool of the Day — sandpaper Chalice and candle Safety matches and long fireplace matches Small dish for spent matches Candle snuffer Council candles (a tea light or votive candle for each participant, or some to share if group is very large) One te…
Leader Reflection and Planning
From Toolbox of Faith

Reflect on these questions and discuss them with your co-leaders: How do we feel about today’s session? What parts of the session worked well? What can we learn from the experience of this session? What preparations do we need to make for the next session?
Faith In Action: Ideas
From Toolbox of Faith

Description of Activity Visit the Faithful Fools Street Ministry website. Sister Carmen Barsody and the Reverend Kay Jorgensen bring, respectively, Catholic and Unitarian Universalist training and traditions to their street ministry of “spiritual foolery” in San Francisco, California. The website…
Taking It Home: Humor (Sandpaper)
From Toolbox of Faith

IN TODAY’S SESSION… Today’s Toolbox of Faith topic is humor and the Tool of the Day is sandpaper. The sandpaper symbolizes humor, a tool which smoothes the rough edges of life. In this session, participants engaged in and reflected on humor and laughter, and examined their place in helping us…
Mullah Nasruddin And His Donkey
From Toolbox of Faith

An Islamic folk tale. To engage participants in the storytelling, ask for three volunteers to pantomime the actions of Mullah Nasruddin, his neighbor, and the donkey. One day, a neighbor whom Mullah Nasruddin didn’t like came to see him. The neighbor asked Nasruddin, “May I borrow your donkey?”…
Find Out More
From Toolbox of Faith

For a perspective about humor in Unitarian Universalism, read Rev. Judith E. Meyer’s sermon, “Irreverent or Irrelevant?”http://www.uusm.org/sundays-and-services/sermons/irreverent-or-irreleva…; given in October 2006 at the Unitarian Universalist Community Church in Santa Monica, California. Read…