For thousands of years, comedy has played an important cultural role. In the Scriptures, Proverbs 15:13a says, “A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance” and Proverbs 15:15b says, “he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.” Laughter is good medicine in the midst of personal and societal stress, anxiety, tension and torment.

Today, most comedians deliberately weave the rude and crude negativity of sarcasm, cynicism, insults, criticism, swearing and sexual innuendo into the fabric of their skits. Yet not all comedy must include these things.

There is a growing movement across the United States and in Connecticut that’s broadly defined as “clean comedy.” It’s full of levity without being lewd. For example, I recently participated in the Uncompromised Comedy Conference in Atlanta. Comedians gathered for three days to inspire, encourage and equip each other to enlarge the professional presence of clean comedy in the performing arts of today and the future.

Here in Connecticut, my peers and I such as Rev. Dr. T.C. Brantley, Pastor of Restoration Springs Church in Waterbury; Savanda LaTrece, and others perform clean comedy. We perform at churches, banquets, festivals, fairs, parties, showers and such well-established organizations as the Central Connecticut Cooperative Farmers Association, Comix Roadhouse at Mohegan Sun, Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities, Foxwoods Resort, Funny Bone Comedy Club, Knights of Columbus and Playhouse on Park in West Hartford.

Some of the pioneering churches include Black Rock Church in Fairfield, Calvary Church in Southbury, Trinity United Methodist Church in Windsor and Victory Church in Middlebury. With over 3,000 faith-based organizations in Connecticut alone, think of the potential for clean comedy to permeate our state in a very grassroots way. How refreshing!

Based on our experience, crowd response is consistently positive. In some instances, parents even bring their teenage children for a fun night out! For venue owners, ticket and concession revenues are making clean comedy financially feasible.

For the pendulum to continue to swing away from lewd and toward levity, comedy show ticket-buyers, advertisers and sponsors must intentionally request that clean comedy acts be booked at their favorite local and area venues. I encourage you to make “clean” social media posts supportive of clean comedians. Email, text or mail “clean” messages to booking agents and venue managers.

Perhaps the single best way to reach out is to simply pick up the phone and call these contacts person-to-person. Even a polite and passionate voicemail can encourage more clean comedy in your community. By all means, if you are active in an organization that creates events, suggest clean comedy for the entertainment. It’s funny how just a few advocates of clean comedy can make such a positive difference.

Gerry Williams is co-host of Morning Cheer on WIHS 104.9 FM radio in Middletown.