News Release
October 1998

Humor, Laughter, and Healing to be topic at Moravian Theological Seminary

The Moravian Theological Seminary is offering a one-day course that explores the role of humor and its affect on the healing process, as part of the Pastor Care Week Lectures. The course will be held on Friday, October 23, 9:00 a.m. –3:00 p.m., at the Bahnson Center, 60 West Locust Street in Bethlehem.

The morning session, titled "The Bio-Psycho-Spiritual Connections in Humor," will start the program with a serious look at the current state of research into the laughter response and the development of a new branch of science called Psychoneuroimmunology. The laws of humor will be reviewed as well as the concepts of humor impairment and its recovery. The session titled "The New Scientific Pursuit of Happiness: Where Are We Really Going?" explores the concept of "humoropathy." Participants will examine the roots of their own sense of humor. This will be an interactive format with lecture used to illustrate the various key elements, including recovery and growth.

During the afternoon session, Practicing the Laws of Humor, participants will experience the various laws of humor and their responses to them. The "laugh card," a device developed by Dr. Dreitlein, will be used to monitor the changes resulting from humor expression. The research presented in the morning lectures will be used in practical application during this session.

Raymond Dreitlein, Ph.D., C.A.D.C will lead the workshop. He is currently on the faculty at Kean University, Rutgers University, and The New Jersey Institute for Chemical Dependency Studies. He has taught courses on humor at the University of Texas, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and the European School of Alcohol and Drug Studies, Denmark. His work in humor is a direct result of his research into therapist "burnout" and renewal. He has worked in the counseling field for 26 years, specializing in addiction recovery.

The Office of Continuing Education of Moravian Theological Seminary sponsors this lecture in association with the pastoral care departments of area hospital and residential care centers, and Lehigh Valley Hospice.

Registration cost is $70. For registration information, contact the Office of Continuing Education at Moravian Theological Seminary at (610) 861-1519.