The 13th-century mystic Meister Eckhart said, “The soul has many skins in herself, covering the depths of her being. We know so many things, but we don’t know ourselves! Why, thirty or forty skins or hides, as thick and hard as an ox’s or bear’s, cover the soul. Go into your own ground and learn to know yourself there.

Meister Eckhart was saying the true depths of who we are lie buried beneath layer upon layer of tough “ox hide.” These hides are the hardened habits of acculturation, stale certainties, and rigid roles we’ve wrapped around our tender core to feel safe and give us the illusion of control.

In my sermon I want to explore an effective spiritual way for peeling back those layers: humor.

When we laugh a Holy Laugh, we loosen the ego’s grip. We see our petty dramas for what they are, and the Soul /Self gets a chance to breathe again.

Holy Laughter doesn’t mock or belittle; it liberates. It reminds us that at the heart of life there is a creative core, that invites us to dance, to play, and to love.

So come join us and maybe we will have a few laughs together.