A few months ago, I bumped into a teenage boy who was waiting a table in a restaurant. After ordering something, a conversation started based on his Liverpool FC (best football team ever) shirt. What followed was a weird yet intriguing chat.
The young man did not wear the best football team ever’s shirt because he liked them, it was just something he thought would look good on him. In fact, he had never seen this amazing team play on TV. It became even more interesting when he explained that he’s never watched TV. What?
Yes, in all of his 16 years on the planet, he has never seen the content on the small box. He explained that his parents will not allow him to watch TV and it is because of their religion which forbids such a practice.
That got me thinking what he is like at school among his friends when they talk about Vampire Diaries or Idols SA. It must hurt a little or even feel like being blind among the seeing. How long can he go on without the media in his life and stay “pure”? I knew it would just be a matter of time before he left home to go to ’varsity or live by himself and be tempted to take a peek at the forbidden. Here’s hoping that when that happens he still comes out okay enough to learn something and not be completely destroyed.
All this is sparked by Vuzu’s acquisition of a local religious reality TV show, Preacher’s Kids, which follows the lives of the offspring of the clergy. The show was definitely inspired by the international Preachers’ Daughters and Preachers Of L.A. which have done well on TV.
South Africa is a deeply religious country and it will be intriguing to see how the children of some top pastors behave. On one hand they have to live by the rules of the church to be an example to their peers as to how Christians should behave. On the other hand, they did not choose to be born into Christian families and some of them are yet to find themselves and with that comes many mistakes.
Like some good local reality shows on TV right now, Preacher’s Kids will definitely get people talking.
Sometimes religion (even with best intentions) comes across as social and emotional incarceration. It is much better when people make an informed adult decision to belong to a religion of their choice.
Yet the clergy usually insist on raising their kids within their own belief system which can sometimes cause clashes with them in the future as there is a big world out there.
l Preacher’s Kids was scheduled to air from Friday, but it has been pushed to a later date in the month as shooting is still under way.