Here's the main thing: funny is funny, whether it comes from Christians, pagans, Muslims, or atheists. And the bottom line: Thou Shalt Laugh 4 is funny, and will be found so by just about anyone. Only one featured comic, Michael Jr., gets into Christian "family business," but even he does so in a way that non-Christians will appreciate. And not only is it funny, it is also pretty darned clean.

Much has been made lately about "Christian comics" and the spate of "Christian comedy" DVDs that have surfaced in the last few years, including the now four volumes of Thou Shalt Laugh—each of which is an emceed program filmed in front of a live audience, featuring several stand-up routines from different comics.

Now, other than market dynamics and demographic niches, which are really a purely secular concern, I've never been able to figure out what makes a certain product "Christian"—so I won't concern myself with that. And I won't concern myself further with whether this material is funny (having already settled that issue) or who is funniest. Instead, I'll just tell you what I found uniquely spiritual about each comic's approach.

First, the program is emceed by John Tesh. One might think the most spiritual thing about Tesh is that he looks like some kind of Norse God (in a nice suit), but the spiritual thing that shines through Tesh, and always has, is kindness. He might be an absolutely nasty person in real life—though I rather doubt it—but when you watch him perform, it's not hard to think that this is how kindness looks and behaves. And you really can't get much more spiritual than that. He also manages to be rather funny in his inter-act segues, in a lightly self-deprecating way.

The program opens with Rex Havens, a traditional stand-up comic whose bits are fueled by observations of the oddness of human behavior. On a spiritual basis, Havens operates more on the Steven Wright level (in a less quirky way) than the George Carlin plane, and you get the idea that he actually likes the people he watches. There's a gentleness in Havens' approach that's very appealing.

Next up is Joe Wong, a Chinese immigrant who gets good mileage out of cultural distances. Based as it is in many of the hardships of an immigrant's life, his humor nonetheless is about much more than making his audience laugh; clearly, he finds it all pretty amusing, too. And that's an attitude that doesn't hold grudges, or take wrongs into account. Good for Wong!

Dana Daniels does a rather conventional vaudevillian magic-act, featuring an unusual sidekick: a parrot. Most of his act also involves audience participation, as one might expect—and in this tradition, much of the humor is obtained at the often merciless expense of the volunteers. But more so than many performers in his tradition, Daniels exercises a certain self-control in his audience interactions. And that's very refreshing and commendable.

"Patience" is definitely the word most applicable to the comedy of Michael Jr., which relies on natural physical ease, timing, and a measure of social consciousness. What's really nice in his case is that his very relevant critiques of Christian behavior don't come off as holier-than-thou; you won't feel like there's a log-and-speck thing going on at all.

Next to last is Isaac Witty, similar in tone to Havens but much more abstract. The spiritual strength of Witty's humor is an obvious introspection that never comes off a self-hatred. When we can laugh at ourselves, we put the world at ease; and while that might not seem very spiritual, it's definitely something many of us could learn from.

Closing the program is series regular and ventriloquist/pianist Taylor Mason. The polar opposite in many ways from almost all the other performers, Mason is all non-stop quickness, carefully crafted patter, and boundless energy. In this installment, he's operating at more of a meta-comedy level than usual, breaking the fourth wall frequently to talk with the audience about his characters and their "performances." It's unusual for him, as he never gets in a groove this time with any of his bits, including one with his new "personal assistant" who is obsessed with texting and tweeting. Again, though, as usual, Mason consistently projects joy.

So what do you get out of this "Christian" DVD? Kindness, gentleness, forbearance, self-control, patience, self-love, joy&ellips; and a lot of laughs. You really can't go wrong with that&ellips; and I suspect those traits can be appreciated by a lot wider audience than merely Christians.