Some Jokesters tell about the three churches situated at the same downtown intersection. One congregation could be heard singing, “Will There Be Any Stars in My Crown?” followed by the second’s, “No, Not One,” and the third’s triumphant, “Oh, That Will Be Glory for Me.”
-Leslie Flynn, When the Saints Come Storming In-
Two porcupines in Northern Canada huddled together to get warm, according to a forest folktale. But their quills pricked each other, so they moved apart. Before long they were shivering, so they sidled close again. Soon both were getting jabbed again. Same story; same ending. They needed each other, but they kept needling each other.
-Leslie Flynn, When the Saints Come Storming In-
Two little teardrops were floating down the river. One teardrop asked the other, “Who are you?” The second teardrop replied, “I’m from a woman who lost her lover, and you?” The first teardrop said, “I’m from the woman who got him.”
-Michael Green, Illustrations for Biblical Preaching-
Unthinkable and unnatural though it may seem, the church has been brawling for centuries. We get along for a little while and then we are back at each other’s throats. After a bit we make up, walk in wonderful harmony for a few days, then we turn on one another. We can switch from friend to fiend in a matter of moments.
In a “Peanuts” cartoon, Lucy says to Snoopy: “There are times when you really bug me, but I must admit there are also times when I feel like giving you a big hug.”
Snoopy replies: “That’s the way I am…huggable and buggable.”
-Robert L. Short, Parables of Peanuts