ABSTRACT
Humor is the lingua franca of the Jewish people. Lenny Bruce had a routine in which he differentiated between things that are "Jewish" and those that are "goyish." In his estimation, Count Basie and anyone living in a big city would be considered Jewish. Kool-Aid, evaporated milk and Butte, Montana—goyish. The Jewish people—in fact, we are referred to as a people in the Holy Scriptures—have variously been considered a race, a religion, an ethno-cultural group, and a nation. A large portion of assimilation-related Jewish humor is especially meaningful, poignant, and humorous to the wandering Jew who periodically is forced to lay down roots in a new and alien land. Sociologist Peter Berger, a proponent of the redemptive power of humor considers the human instinct for humor and playfulness a vehicle for salvation. Many individuals look toward religion for salvation but, as we know, religion can just as easily be a force for evil as a force for good.
