In keeping with a long-running Jewish comic tradition, two rabbis will perform stand-up comedy Saturday, Feb. 10, at the Congregation Agudas Achim, 2767 E. Broad St.
The 7 p.m. show, which is open to the public, features professional stand-up comic and rabbi Bob Alper. Alper, who has been performing for 20 years, was a rabbi in Buffalo and Philadelphia for 14 years before becoming a professional comic.
Alper performs for synagogues, churches, colleges and other venues as he travels the country. His tag line: "The world's only practicing clergyman doing stand up...intentionally." He is also the first Jewish person to earn a doctorate from Princeton Theological Seminary.
His comedy, which is sanitized for a family audience, isn't totally preoccupied with religion.
"My comedy is half religious. You don't have to be Jewish to get the jokes," Alper said.
Alper's career took off after he placed third out of 100 entries in a Philadelphia comedy contest. He was beaten by a chiropractor and a lawyer, he said. He travels across the country, performing about 100 shows a year.
He frequently performs with Ahmed Ahmed, an Arab Muslim stand-up comedian. They sometimes team up for college shows that are sponsored by the school's diversity department or the Hillel and Muslim Student Association.
Rabbi Jason Miller of Agudas Achim will warm up the audience with a few jokes of his own. Laughter and fun, Miller said, are key components to the Jewish faith.
"It is important in life to be able to laugh at ourselves. It is a core concept in Judaism to have fun and enjoy life," he said.
When Miller became the Agudas Achim rabbi eight months ago, his first column in the congregation's newsletter addressed how important it is to have fun in the synagogue.
"One thing that not enough rabbis drive home is how important it is to have fun while they are in the building," he said. "Both young and old should feel like this is a place to have fun."
Miller even teaches a class about Jewish humor. Comics like Woody Allen, Larry David, Mel Brooks and Lenny Bruce are the public faces of the comic tradition in the religion.
The sometimes self-deprecating style of Jewish comedy recognizes that there is humor in being Jewish. Miller recently took some congregants to New York to see "Jewtopia," a Broadway show that lampoons Jewish stereotypes.
"We were in pain from laughing so hard," Miller said. "It's healthy."
Anyone interested in scoring free beer and learning more about the relationship between Judaism and humor can attend Rabbi Miller's monthly class, Torah on Tap, at the Bexley Monk on East Main Street. The next installment is at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 22.
