Friday, April 4, 2014

Another Review of Noah

Well before an atheist director and Russell Crowe teamed up to create an epic film and spark intense controversy among Christians, America's greatest humorist since Mark Twain addressed the subject of Noah.

Bill Cosby's Noah routine was one of his most famous before tales of family life in Bill Cosby, Himself elevated him to middle aged family man stardom.  Cosby in both cases showed why he was and is the master of comedy.  He could tell gut busting stories based on traditional values without undermining them.

Cosby was and is no conservative. He definitely is a liberal in many ways. In fact, he shows many signs of being influenced by William du Bois' idea of "The Talented Tenth."  Du Bois believed that one in ten black men had the potential to lead in life's largest stages.  Cosby played varsity football at Temple University, earned a doctorate, and worked his way into becoming one of television's most influential stars.  Holding fast to the doctrine of education and work, Cosby get treated like the Left's cranky uncle.  He cannot be ignored, but they rarely like what he has to say.

His take on Noah is worth a revisit in light of a revival of interest in the Great Flood event. 

According to Genesis 6:8, Noah "found grace in the eyes of the Lord."

But as the Old Testament explains with many similar individuals, this is never an easy path. Cosby puts Noah in a modern context.  First, he thinks God is playing a practical joke on him.  Then comes the social consequences of "walking" with the Lord.  God asks men such as Noah, Jonah, Moses, and others to break out of their comfortable lives.  They must do things that are not only uncomfortable, but will definitely aggravate family, friends, and authorities.

Cosby's Noah, in the third sequence, unloads his frustration.  Elephants give birth on him, he has to go get another hippopotamus because he accidentally got two males, the entire neighborhood is laughing at him, and he threatens to quit.  Until, of course, it starts raining.  Then he changes his tune "You and me, Lord.  Always been you and me, right?"  

Despite Noah's anger and social ostracism, however, he did still complete the task God set in front of him.

In this routine, Cosby tells the typical story of Old Testament prophecy.  People have a hard time dealing with God's expectations and usually prefer that He finds someone else.  One could probably guess that God chooses individuals less like Charlton Heston in Ten Commandments and more like John Denver in Oh God. 

Walking closely with God is not an easy task at any level and the demands expose all human frailties.  Like anything else in life, it is not stumbling and struggling that define us as much as working through and completing the tasks set for us in life to the best of our abilities and efforts. Despite how drop dead funny Cosby's Noah routine is, this is still the underlying message.

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