One example of a religious programme which presents religious people as out of touch is The Vicar of Dibley, which is a comedy attracting many viewers. It features a female vicar called Geraldine and the people in her parish. The jokes are mainly on the villagers themselves, because they could be seen as out of touch. It seems that Geraldine is the only sane one in the series. Another similar programme that also presents religious people as out of touch is Father Ted.
Religious people are also featured in scandalous storylines, featuring them as criminals who break the law. This of course adds to the drama of the performance. One example of this is the film ‘Priest’, where the priest breaks the law and is moved to another parish.
Directors of television programmes are not the only ones who can be accused of proving the above statement to be true. Film writers are also guilty of this. For example, in ‘Priest’, there were two male priests, one of which was trying to learn more about everyday society. He ended up breaking the law by having sexual intercourse with another man, and then getting caught by the police. The result of this was that he was suddenly very aware of the issue of celibacy and how much the religious community were against it.
There are more middle aged and older people presenting religious programmes nowadays, suggesting that, because of their age, this makes religious people out of touch. Religious programmes have their own place ‘The God-slot’, when the elderly are often watching television. Also, In soaps there is often an older character who preaches religion. One example of this is Dot in Eastenders.
I think that nowadays, many people would say that religious people would not go out and have fun, they are too ‘old-fashioned’ and ‘too busy worshipping someone in the sky’. This is a factor causing television to make its characters ‘out of touch’. These kind of people obviously don’t understand the concept of religion and make their own assumptions instead of accepting people. Everyone has their own definition of fun, may it be reading, writing, gardening, going out for a drink or for a walk in the park.
However, television can be praised for presenting religious people as being just as in touch with the modern world as non-religious people. Magazine programs such as the Heaven and Earth show, use lively and young presenters. Religious programmes are a vital source of worship for both young and old people.
In my opinion, I think that television presents most religious people as out of touch with the modern world. I think it treats religion as a thing of the past and there are not enough religious programs on television today.
