Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury described by critics as the well-meaning but ineffectual head of a dysfunctional family, has turned to the world's best-known dysfunctional family in an attempt to teach children about theology and boost congregations.Rowan Williams has compared himself to Homer Simpson in the past.
| Must Restrain Self From Commenting ..... |
A book, called Mixing it up with The Simpsons, will be sent to youth advisers in every diocese in the country next week. It will urge clergy, or their youth workers, to set up screens in their churches to show episodes of the world's most popular cartoon that deal with key Christian themes such as punishment, love and the Second Coming.
The book suggests activities to challenge teenagers, including putting out a plate of doughnuts with a sign saying "Do not touch" to test whether they can resist temptation.
Youngsters will be told to reflect upon Homer's comment that "inside every man is a struggle between Good and Evil, which cannot be resolved".
In other chapters, Bart's impatience to see Krusty the Clown is compared to Christians waiting for the return of Christ, and the friendship between Homer and Barney, one of the pub regulars, is used to highlight the importance of building strong relationships.
Owen Smith, a youth worker in the Kent diocese of Rochester who wrote the book, said the show's writing was imbued with biblical allusions. To illustrate this in the book, he compares quotes from the show with verses in the Bible.
Mr Smith said the cartoon had "great potential" for reaching teenagers - a group that the Church has struggled to keep in its fold. The number of people under the age of 16 attending worship on a Sunday fell from 180,000 in 2000 to 157,000 in 2005.
"The Simpsons is hugely moral, with many episodes dealing with issues and dilemmas faced by young people," Mr Smith said. "The willingness of the show's writers to deal with questions of both morality and spirituality makes the programme an ideal tool."
The initiative has received strong backing from the Church's hierarchy. The Rt Rev John Pritchard, Bishop of Oxford, said: "By giving youth workers resources that reflect popular culture, we are helping them become storytellers for a new generation.
"Jesus was a great storyteller - as are the creators of The Simpsons - and the power of a good story lies in meeting people where they are, making them laugh and then giving them something to think about afterwards."
The comical cartoon show has in the past been criticised for its "subversive" content. The former US president, George Bush, said: "We're going to strengthen the American family to make them more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons."
The archbishop, however, has spoken of his admiration for the show and even compared himself to Homer Simpson. In 2004, he was reported to have been approached to appear on the show.
He said that the show was "generally on the side of the angels and on the side of sense."
| Maybe. There are a lot of things I like about the show. But I'd be more impressed by this initiative if My Lord the Archbishop demonstrated any discernable core of theological backbone first. |