Correspondence
JAMES, (REV.) ANDREW L. J. & DALY, ELIZABETH McCARTHY & MURPHY, DENNIS & CURRAN, T. M. & SANDERS, DICK & FAHEY, JOHN F. & GALLIGAN, ANDREW
Correspondence To the Editors For shame, sort of Shocked!-that's what I was-shocked, when I came across your parody [back page, February 9] of what I took to be the New Oxford Review. New Ostrich...
...dennis murphy Yakima, Wash...
...Funny, but cruel...
...The humor is primarily generated from irony...
...As I read on, pondering this incongruity-I suspect that conservatism and humorlessness may be gene-linked-the satire finally became so outrageous as to overwhelm my gullibility...
...This type of show puts a group of characters in a setting-a living room, a bar, etc., then has them deliver one gag line or double entendre after another...
...I'll bet Sister used to wash your mouths out with soap...
...The issue of January 26, with its thoughtful, scholarly, and balanced responses to the Vatican's recent effort to stifle discussion of women's ordination, is an example of Commonweal's important role as a forum for reasoned discourse...
...ELIZABETH MCCARTHY DALY DeWitt, N.Y...
...Even when I have disagreed with the views expressed in editorials or articles, I have never thought the material in question was unworthy of the magazine...
...Allow me to clear it up...
...Given that possibility, the silence of the minister about contraception may be the result of something other than "latent paternalism" or "poor theological preparation...
...It's all in the genes Oblivious to the marginal warnings, I plunged into the text of your marvelous spoof and got half-way through it (thinking, "Maybe I should give this a try") before a something-is-wrong-here bell began to tinkle in the back of my head...
...And thus we watch glum-faced, while being fed an annoying laugh track...
...That was a delightful spoof...
...Kudos to the author...
...Do it again Please sign me up for a two-century subscription to New Ostrich Review...
...JOHN F. Fahey Moraga, Calif...
...REV...
...Rather than contribute to further polarization and/or confusion, a minister in a parish may best serve the truth by keeping silent...
...curran Auburn, Ala...
...My first doubt had to do with the unchristian contempt being heaped on liberal Catholics...
...ANDREW L. J. JAMES Grand Rapids, Mich...
...New Ostrich Review...
...But finally the nickel dropped: It was that conservatives, especially religious conservatives, just aren't capable of such breeziness and whimsy ("we...know that we don't have all the answers...
...That was cruel...
...Seinfeld," on the other hand, is a true sitcom: an everyday situation develops that creates a conflict requiring a resolution...
...Unfortunately, these ingredients are missing from most other sitcoms, or setgags to be exact...
...He admits that "legitimate dissent may be a manifestation of the Spirit bringing the whole church to truth...
...It is the minister, after all, who feels most keenly "the polarized ecclesiastical climate of today...
...Reason for silence Richard Gaillardetz writes helpfully about "Proclaiming the Catholic Faith" [February 9], but he seems unduly harsh in judging the silence of ministers despite their years of experience...
...dick sanders Joshua Tree, Calif...
...Seinfeld's secret Columnist Frank McConnell explores [February 9] why "Seinfeld" is the funniest show on TV but never quite puts his finger on it...
...Obviously all this leads to a "but...
...The back-cover nonadvertisement in the issue of February 9 represents a lapse in taste unworthy of Commonweal's long history of resistance to such "cheap shots...
...Inside humor For more than thirty-five years, I have found Commonweal's editorial judgments consistently responsible and intelligent...
...Isn't that what a papacy is for...
...Your taste is atrocious...
...Bad taste, but...
...Instead, they are setting/gag comedies, or "setgags," to coin a term...
...The characters then devise and act on a resolution plan that not only doesn't work but produces the opposite of what they intended...
...I fully appreciate its humor but if such material belongs in the publication at all it would be in a witty piece of satire inside...
...Good job...
...You know as well as I do that as former Anglicans the Review's editors feel it necessary to be plus papiste que le pape...
...ANDREW GALLIGAN Tracy, Calif...
...It was so good that I suspect divine inspiration...
...But I must say I relish it...
...They offer the very finest nineteenth-century magazine currently available...
...I hope this will be an isolated instance...
...Re: "Do Catholics Have Bad Breath...
...Irony and extraordinary characters (McConnell got this right) make "Seinfeld" the funniest show on TV...
...Now do one on Nuns for Handguns...
...Most situation comedies on TV today are not sitcoms at all...
...The problem with this structure is that the gag lines are only occasionally funny...
...It is wrong to make fun of other people's afflictions, and I am ashamed of you...
Vol. 123 • March 1996 • No. 5
