There is a show on the BBC that is on American Netflix called Father Brown. It takes place in 1955 in England, so World War II is still fresh in their minds. Father brown was in the infantry in World War I, then became a priest and was a chaplain in World War II. Now he is an overweight, blading, gentle priest in a small British town.
The humor of each episode is that when a crime occurs, the police are notified and Father Brown is usually already there for some other reason. So Father brown gets involved. The police jump to conclusions, arrest the wrong person and Father Brown, amateur sleuth, pokes around and figures out the truth and the police look foolish.
Once he was arrested for obstruction of justice, during his time in the jail, he figured out who sabotaged the town race and solved the crime. The district police gave him a commendation, so now the local police tolerate him better.
In this show, having a priest as a main character is interesting. He is not presented as a buffoon or something unchristian. Instead, he is always seeking the truth. He is telling people they need to repent and confess. His main goal in every episode is the salvation of their eternal soul, from a Church of England point of view. I like the fact that he never defames the church, never defames or discredits God or Jesus Christ, but always lifts them up as holy and pure and willing to forgive.
Too often TV shows use priests and pastors as ignorant punching bags. Police, scientists and even teenagers know more than the local pastor. This show has a priest, who claims to see patterns that no one else sees, will not jump to conclusions, but will work through the problem methodically. He is unwilling to name a suspect early in the show, but watches and talks to people and is always one step ahead of the local constabulary. This fact is embarrassing to the police, but they seem to let Father Brown do his amateur detective work and accept his conclusion when he proves it to be right.
Several times Father Brown’s life has been threatened. During those time, he simply prays. He prays for himself and the person with the gun. This can cause them to break down, but usually it buys enough time for the real police to show up.
Father Brown is a nostalgic view at a simpler time. With World War II still fresh, they have visited bombed out buildings looking for clues and many people in town are ex-military. The “keep calm and carry on” attitude of the British is also very evident in this show and Father Brown’s care for the people of this small hamlet shows that he cares and wants the best for them. The strange thing about a period piece like this is that their town is about 500 people, but the town’s people seem to change every episode. These are production problems and do not detract from the stories or the main characters.
The humor of each episode is that when a crime occurs, the police are notified and Father Brown is usually already there for some other reason. So Father brown gets involved. The police jump to conclusions, arrest the wrong person and Father Brown, amateur sleuth, pokes around and figures out the truth and the police look foolish. Once he was arrested for obstruction of justice, during his time in the jail, he figured out who sabotaged the town race and solved the crime. The district police gave him a commendation, so now the local police tolerate him better.
In this show, having a priest as a main character is interesting. He is not presented as a buffoon or something unchristian. Instead, he is always seeking the truth. He is telling people they need to repent and confess. His main goal in every episode is the salvation of their eternal soul, from a Church of England point of view. I like the fact that he never defames the church, never defames or discredits God or Jesus Christ, but always lifts them up as holy and pure and willing to forgive.
Too often TV shows use priests and pastors as ignorant punching bags. Police, scientists and even teenagers know more than the local pastor. This show has a priest, who claims to see patterns that no one else sees, will not jump to conclusions, but will work through the problem methodically. He is unwilling to name a suspect early in the show, but watches and talks to people and is always one step ahead of the local constabulary. This fact is embarrassing to the police, but they seem to let Father Brown do his amateur detective work and accept his conclusion when he proves it to be right.
Several times Father Brown’s life has been threatened. During those time, he simply prays. He prays for himself and the person with the gun. This can cause them to break down, but usually it buys enough time for the real police to show up.
Father Brown is a nostalgic view at a simpler time. With World War II still fresh, they have visited bombed out buildings looking for clues and many people in town are ex-military. The “keep calm and carry on” attitude of the British is also very evident in this show and Father Brown’s care for the people of this small hamlet shows that he cares and wants the best for them. The strange thing about a period piece like this is that their town is about 500 people, but the town’s people seem to change every episode. These are production problems and do not detract from the stories or the main characters.
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