WHY am I the only member of the Church of England not to
consider that Rev (BBC2, Mondays) is the wittiest and most
profound depiction of inner-city ministry that can be imagined? I
am not widely known for my lack of a sense of humour, nor for
objection to any portrayal of the clergy of the Established Church
which fails to treat us with respect, or dares to suggest that we
may be a fit subject for mockery. It certainly is not any lack of
admiration for the ability of its splendid cast: a well-honed and
top-notch ensemble.
And this first episode of the new third series included, as
always, some delicious scenes that were richly comic or quietly
moving. The way in which the vicarage is a thoroughfare taken for
granted by many of the most challenging members of the community;
the difficulty of responding with gratitude to the well-meaning
generosities of members of the congregation with no sense of
boundary whatsoever, while at the same time not allowing them to
take over your life - all these are brilliantly observed and
presented.
But, for me, it is the playing out of the scenario where the
piece falls to bits. Smallbone, in an attempt to save his parish
from the clutches of rapacious diocesan officials eager to shut
down the less productive branch offices, joins forces with the
local imam to upgrade a local children's playground. The script
allows Smallbone so little in the way of initiative, even of basic
competence - especially, this time, in comparison with his
brilliant and humane Islamic counterpart - that it is difficult not
to side with the diocese and wonder why he should be allowed to
soldier on so ineffectually.
The weakness of the plot throws into stronger relief the
absurdities of the set-up: an archdeacon who shares, for no
discernable reason, every tiny episode in the life of this
insignificant parish; and a sinister Laurel-and-Hardy double-act of
area dean and diocesan secretary who pay a ludicrous level of
attention to the place. The genre keeps changing: is it grotesque
farce, or realistic comedy, or wry tribute to contemporary
Anglicanism? I will keep watching, because the good bits are so
good. No doubt sooner or later I will realise why others love it so
much.
One year into the papacy of Francis I, Secrets of the
Vatican (Channel 4, Tuesday of last week) was a hatchet-job on
his predecessors. By this account, neither John Paul II nor
Benedict XVI was prepared to root out criminality at the heart of
the Roman Catholic Church: child abuse by priests; the Vatican
bank's being used for money-laundering; a Curial gay subculture
that condemned homosexuality in other church members; the Pope's
butler's being scapegoated for his whistle-blowing.
Pope Francis received plaudits for his open manner, for his
refusal to condemn homosexuals, for his refusal to be imprisoned in
his palace, for his radical reform of the Vatican bank, and for his
setting up of an advisory group of cardinals. But he has expressed
support for many of the requirements that liberals want relaxed or
repealed, and his defensive reaction to the UN's condemnation of
the RC Church's failure to halt clerical child abuse was especially
disappointing. The jury is still out.