It was so funny.  I had my 7 year old daughter using Cutie orange boxes as drawer organizers.  She looked at me and said, “It’s so cute.”

“Really?” I asked.

“Mommy,” she said, “I’m being sarcastic!”  It was a double “hoot!”  First, she was trying to make a joke, and second, because she had to explain to me that it was sarcastic!

I’m not opposed to sarcasm.  In fact, I’m a sanctified sarcastic speaker.  Gone are the mean-spirited jibes.  Now, I only use my power for good!  A little jest here or there and sometimes a point “pointed” out.

As a mother and educator, I’m glad to see that sarcastic skill developing in my daughter.  Why?  It shows mental, emotional, and language development.

You see, some studies have shown that the part of the brain that understands sarcasm also deals with empathy.  As an author of one of the studies stated, “To detect sarcasm, irony and jokes, and to better understand what people mean when they talk, we must have empathy.”  Can we have empathy without having sarcasm?  Probably, but it’s interesting to note this special connection God built into our brain.

Sarcasm also makes the brain work harder.  The brain has to jump past the literal meaning and attempt to understand the unspoken.  This exercise, in fact, leads to more creative problem solving,  according to a recent Smithsonian.com article.

This sarcastic skill has to be developed in our children.  Initially, they understand very literally, but as they develop language and cognitive skills, their ability to understand sarcasm grows.  They start recognizing sarcasm sometime between 4-6 years old, but don’t always see the humor in it until around 10.  My daughter is apparently “gifted” when it comes to sarcasm!  The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Now before you say, “Big deal.  She’s just quoting all these studies and articles.”  Let’s go to the Bible.  Men of God have used sarcasm in MIGHTY ways.  Not just quips, but down-and-dirty, get-the-point-across sarcasm.

I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when Elijah told the prophets of Baal, “Cry aloud, for he is a god.  Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened”  (1 Kings 18:27 ESV).  That took some chutzpah!  However, I don’t think I’d want to be nearby when the Judaizers read Paul’s letter which read, “I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!”  That statement is painful on many levels.

And let’s not forget the Father of the Reformation, Martin Luther.  He once wrote, “[The papist] ought to have sympathy with us weak, poor Christians, and not condemn us or make fun of us because we are learning so childishly to toddle along the benches, nay, to creep in the mire, and cannot skip and dance, on such light feet and legs, over and outside of God’s commandments, as they do, the strong heroes and giants…God forbid that we should!” (On the Councils and the Church).

But it’s not only saints of old who can wield the sword of sarcasm in an efficient way.  Recently, while at my book group, I shared a prayer request about desperately needing a new vehicle.  I lamented because I’m heavy; it limits our choices since I have to be able to fit behind the wheel.  Others in the group tried to encourage me.  The leader, however, looked me in the eyes and said, “Yeah, that’s going to make it so much harder for God to meet your needs.”  That sarcastic comment lovingly reminded me that I was limiting God.

What I’m saying is that God can use sarcasm.  I’m sure my daughter’s skill to say, “It’s so cute” sarcastically will not bring others to Christ.  Or will it?  Who knows?  Maybe her ability will one day correct an erring sister in a book club or at least help my daughter feel more empathy for her.  Maybe she’ll be able to figure out a creative way to solve that sister’s problem.  All I know right now is that she is growing and understanding more each day.  Maybe someday she’ll be a sanctified sarcastic speaker like me!

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