World's Greatest Collection of Church Jokes

I was caught between giving this a 3 or 4 star review because some of the jokes are great, others are offensive and tacky. Overall this could be used as a reference book to select humorous content when needed. There's some oldies sprinkled throughout the book, along with new jokes. Some of the more salient material makes a point as only a joke can, i.e., it's not to be taken literally, but more as a figure of speech to highlight an idea. The joke on various denominations of currency comes to mind; a twenty dollar bill and a one dollar bill discussing where they've been. There are some modified versions of "Top Ten Lists" as popularized on TV that are quite cleverly done. Other list type jokes are also pretty good in this collection. Kid humor is also found throughout the book. Fortunately the subject matter is topically arranged so it's easy to pick material for an appropriate occasion. Generally speaking this is a good source for speakers seeking material to use in a wide variety of settings.

Reviewed by Dr. Michael Philliber for Reader Views (12/07) Church life generates a lot to laugh about, and Paul Miller has pulled together loads of morally clean humorous stories and jokes which are enjoyably accurate. In his book, "World's Greatest Collection of Church Jokes," Miller relates many hilarious tales and short pieces from many topics and puts them together in an easy-to-read format. Teens, adults, pastors and youth leaders will find much here to chuckle over. In fact, a number of these stories have already been used by pastors of small churches, and those of national fame. These funny, little joke-stories cover several topics, such as those about pastors, church staff, pew-sitters and kids. One of the strengths of the book is the ease of finding these stories and jokes. There are 15 subjects under which the jokes are pulled together. For example, under the title, "­Pastors," the reader will find humorous pieces about pastors on the golf course and the pastoral faux pas. In another instance, in the chapter called; "The Music Department," Miller has collected funny stories relating the comical tension between a pastor and his music director, an organist and the janitor, as well as how to get men into the choir. One of the main weaknesses of the book has more to do with jokes themselves. Some jokes are flat and lack funniness, unless the reader happens to be one who likes a specific topic or style. Overall, Miller's work at collecting these amusing stories will bring a smile and a chuckle to people of different ages and tastes is a success. I have enjoyed reading some of these entertaining stories and jokes from "World's Greatest Collection of Church Jokes" to my own children and wife and watching their faces light up with laughter.

Working with middle school age kids requires humor! This little book has helped. I use jokes to add to the newsletter or postcards a lot.