Troublesome Priest, The (ATOM Study Guide)

Synopsis

Father Rod Bower is an Anglican priest who uses the sign out the front of his church to provoke debate about challenging social and political issues.

Working as a team with his wife Kerry, they share their contentious and often humorous messages via the Anglican Parish of Gosford Facebook page.

Public interest extends far beyond Father Bower’s parish on the NSW Central Coast; he has over 46 000 Facebook followers including people of all different faiths and people of no faith at all. The page receives up to 14 million engagements each week and he consistently attracts both national and international media coverage.

Father Rod believes Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers has put the soul of the nation in peril; that as we diminish the humanity of others, we are diminishing our own humanity. Although inspired by the life of Jesus of Nazareth, Father Rod’s motivations cannot be understood purely in religious terms. Filmed over 2 years, The Troublesome Priest delves below the public facade to reveal the makings of this complex yet simple man who is driven to take a ‘hard line on compassion’ to create the Kingdom of God on Earth.

An adopted child who was relentlessly bullied due to his small stature, Father Rod remembers the rage he felt, not for the physical pain or humiliation, but for the injustice of the abusive acts. The rage still bubbles away just below the surface when he witnesses attacks on the vulnerable such as the denial of human rights for asylum seekers due to tough government policies or the racist slurs towards the Muslim community from anti-Islamic groups like those who invaded his church one Sunday morning.

Sometimes failing to contain his temper Father Rod lashes out against the ‘bullies’, fighting hate with hate, becoming what he despises. He struggles to resolve the traumas of his past and follow Jesus example of fighting hate with love.

Once an ambitious and defiant young priest, Father Rod was unceremoniously fired from his Archdeacon position 14 years ago when he ignored a directive from senior clergy. It meant the end of his ecclesiastical career, which completely devastated Father Rod and sent him into a depressed and suicidal state for over a year. With the support of his wife Kerry, Father Rod eventually let his ego or false-self die allowing him to be reborn as a priest. This is what he believes the death and resurrection narrative is all about. Existing on the fringe of the church institution, Father Rod is now free to be a voice for the voiceless and to speak truth to power. However, it’s not an easy road as he is shunned by many within the church, is the target of hateful trolls on social media and frequently receives chilling death threats Father Rod says that the opposite of love is fear and it is fear of ‘the other’ that leads human beings to harm one another. As the world struggles with the omnipresent threat of terrorism and our fear of ‘the other’ gains momentum, Father Rod’s quest for a more evolved humanity has never been so critical.

Curriculum Links

The Troublesome Priest would be suitable for middle and senior secondary students in a number of curriculum areas.