“Back in the day”…sorry, I just couldn’t resist. Back in the 70’s, one of my favorite TV shows was “Get Smart.” This comedy series starred Don Adams as “Maxwell Smart,” better known as Agent “86” of a secret
I have always loved spy thrillers, detective mysteries and the comedies that satirize them. If we could erase some innuendos and inappropriate behavior, these comedic storylines often provide great insights into universal truths. The power of the satire, sarcasm and stereotyping sometimes opens our eyes to see what’s there that we’ve overlooked. It has been said that “the mind needs to be enlarged to see the simple things, or even the self-evident things.” What we understand in the bottom of our hearts, we often misunderstand with the top of our minds. This is why tragedy and comedy are the main avenues of storytelling. We all have these 2 things in common, tears and laughter…so, joy and suffering carry with them curative and clarifying insights. Because of this, I have found that laughter and tears can sometimes be symptoms of an opportunity to enlarge and connect the heart and mind.
Jerry Seinfeld once said, “All good comedy is incredibly intellectual…it works because of the mind behind it…it takes an absurd premise and proves it with rigorous logic, or takes something completely factual and makes it seem absurd.” Therefore, good humor has the ability to instruct us with the tools of imagination and reason. The imagination is harnessed to make “settled things strange…and to make facts wonders” (G.K.C.). And, the reason is energized by taking thoughts to some wild and logical conclusions…and in the context of good comedy, often carries shock value and laughter.
Being logical and forming conclusions is increasingly rare among both modern thinkers and postmodern feelers. Today’s thinkers and feelers will not follow the “new” ideas to their logical end, nor are they at all accustomed to making up their minds. However, good comedy is like good thinking. It collects clues (observations and facts), makes startling connections, and follows these to memorable conclusions. Today, we tend to prefer incomplete thinking and the impoverishing humor that focuses on fragments, causes disassociation, and majors on being obtuse and obscene. This carnal thinking and comedy is now dominating our modern landscape…it is dehumanizing and promotes doubts and inconsistencies more than understanding or conclusions.
The “Get Smart” TV series was different to me. The symbolism in this show and genre clearly connects with some of the most significant concepts related to Christian faith and calling. I believe there’s much to learn from Maxwell Smart, secret agents, shoe phones, security protocols, and Siegfried-the recurring villain. I also think, many of us will identify with the conflict between control and chaos, and the often emphasized issues of communication and concealment. Hey, there’s got to be something about that cone of silence thing, and it’s going to be fun to think and write about. I will from time to time use the comedy, concepts and characters found here to communicate deeper realities and permanent truths. Most of all, I hope the humor helps us move forward to a place of health and conviction…seeing ourselves and viewing the world with fresh eyes and accurate thinking. It’s my desire that we would experience together a renewal of spiritual hunger and intellectual humility. This would certainly maximize our smarts, and position us to “seize the day” so that God may save today!
