- Reverend Neil Glover says the late comic’s gloomy Final Name sermons have given the impression that church is ‘dour’
- Rev Glover needs to rework the church’s picture from one in every of ‘joyless Christianity’ to a spot the place individuals can ‘be ourselves’
His comical portrayal of Scotland’s most depressing minister introduced laughter to tv audiences for greater than 40 years.
However the late Rikki Fulton’s iconic character Rev I M Jolly, identified for his doleful Final Name TV sermons has, in accordance with one real-life minister, ‘solid a shadow’ over how Scots understand the Kirk.
Whereas the fictional clergyman’s satirical, gloomy speeches from the consolation of a inexperienced leather-based armchair left followers chuckling, Reverend Neil Glover says it has given the lasting impression that church is ‘dour’.
The Perthshire minister is now making it his mission to vary the picture of the ‘joyless Christianity’ personified by the downtrodden Scotch and Wry sketch present character.
The inimitable Rikki Fulton because the massively fashionable Rev I M Jolly within the Scotch and Wry sketch present
He says it must be ‘much less about locking up swings on a Sunday’ and extra about creating locations that supply the ‘present of stillness’ in a busy world.
Rev Glover, who’s minister at Aberfeldy Church, mentioned: ‘I believe the Rev I M Jolly introduced a model of faith that was dour and, in a method, he hadn’t discovered to be human.
When he was making an attempt to be non secular he felt very boring and picket however when he relaxed and discovered to be himself he may very well be fairly humorous.’
He added that the picture introduced by Rev I M Jolly was that ‘you needed to faux to be non secular to come back to church’.
The minister has written a ebook, Discovering Our Voice: Trying to find Renewal within the Mainline Church, which he hailed a ‘manifesto’ for the Kirk to handle methods it will possibly throw off its gloomy picture and present individuals it’s ‘partaking’.
He needs the church to be seen as a spot the place individuals can ‘develop’ and ‘be ourselves’. In flip he hopes it will possibly encourage extra individuals again by way of the church doorways following a drastic decline in numbers.
Rev Glover admitted that it might be exhausting to shake off the gloomy picture solid by Rev I M Jolly however he was optimistic that the church would survive for generations to come back.
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