The cover art for Paul Wiebe's parody of the Old Testament, The Church of the Comic Spirit, strange though it is, reveals a lot about what lies within. It depicts a short basketball player (David) rising for a jumper in the snarling face of a defending Goliath. If you appreciate wacky, surreal storytelling, can suspend disbelief enough to accept the infusion of modern devices into ancient settings, accept irreverence as a high virtue, and are the sort who has viewed Monty Python movies multiple times, this book will be a gift from on high. Otherwise, you may find Wiebe's brand of absurdist humor a little forced at times and some of the twelve scrolls more amusing than others.

The funniest part of the book, for me, was actually the introductory portion, recounting in a tongue-in-cheek voice how Father Lecher was visited by angels, came upon the Bear Lake Scrolls, and launched the titular Church of the Comic Spirit. The parallels between the dubious origins and motives of this Church, and our more established religions, are dead-on. I also enjoyed the depiction of God as a somewhat hapless creator in "First Person Omniscient," the bawdy "Miss Holy Land," and the David-Goliath showdown on the hard court in "The Big Man in the Middle." Other scrolls, like the soap operatic "Playing God" were less engaging, although the genius of Wiebe's shifting narrative styles and creativity continued to shine through.

Overall this is a book that's worth giving a shot (whether or not you're well-versed in the Bible), written by an author with a true talent for religious parody and gift with words. ( )