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“I think the sense of irony and asking
questions became very associated with
the Jews, not taking the world immedi-
ately on face value. — RABBI JOSEPH TELUSHKIN
the idea that neither answer always
applies, uses humor to draw atten-
tion to the subject, loosely in the
style of the Talmudic rabbi.
“Humor makes it hard to be overly
abstract,” Telushkin says. “That’s
what makes it very helpful. If you
challenge an audience about certain
things, people can get defensive; but
if you do it with humor, you can get
them laughing and nodding along.”
Telushkin, who has written almost
20 books and whose range of sub-
jects stretches from the reality of
religious values to the make-believe
of his Rabbi Daniel Winter myster-
ies, has addressed many issues
through previous Michigan speak-
ing engagements. Talk magazine,
published between 1999 and 2002,
named him one of the 50 best speak-
ers in the United States.
“I want to cover how Jewish
humor really reflects on the human
condition, and the disparity and
irony of the human condition — the
disparity of a perfect God and the
imperfect world in which we live,”
says the rabbi, a cousin of the late
Rabbi Morris Adler of Congregation
Shaarey Zedek.
“I think the sense of irony became
very associated with the Jews and
so did questioning, not taking the
world immediately on face value
[another element of Jewish comedy].
The very word ‘Israel,’ if you look in
the 32nd chapter of Genesis, actually
means to ‘wrestle with God’ based
on when Jacob is given the name
Israel after wrestling with an angel.”
Telushkin thanks his mother for
bringing a sense of humor to his
family. She was the joke teller.
“I grew up with a natural attrac-
tion to humor, and I think I had an
aptitude for it,” says the rabbi, whose
talk strictly focuses on jokes and not
the jokesters who told them. “From
the time I was very young, I had a
humorous take on a lot of things,
and people responded.
“I think some people are just
naturally funny. I recently met a
contemporary non-Jewish comic,
Adam Corolla. I was sitting with
him between segments of a radio
show and I found that he was just
as funny speaking one-on-one as he
was on the show.
“I can laugh at myself and believe
people who can’t [laugh at them-
selves] become insufferable. Part
of the power of humor is when it’s
spontaneous.”
When Telushkin appears before
groups, he only includes a joke if
he thinks it’s genuinely funny and
reveals some truth.
“Years ago, as I started speaking
on Jewish humor, I tried to get my
hands on everything I could read
about it,” he recalls. “Sometimes, I
picked up a book on Jewish humor
and realized it had nothing to do
with Jewish humor. The author gave
the characters Jewish names, but
names don’t make the jokes Jewish.
“If culture, religion and history
have an impact on a people, then
certain traits will become more
pronounced. The history of anti-
Semitism is a factor in why Jews are
thought of as a more nervous group.”
An example is given of a telegram
sent by a Jewish person with that
nervous characterization: “Letter to
follow. Start worrying.” •
details
Rabbi Joseph Telushkin will speak at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25, at Adat
Shalom Synagogue in Farmington Hills. A dessert reception will follow the
program. Although there is no admission fee, reservations must be made
by going to JNF.org/Detroit. (248) 324-3080.
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October 19 • 2017
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