Religious Documentaries

Religious documentaries are usually quite popular. They deal with issues which tend to be of interest to most people, not just religious people.

BBC have made weeknight broadcasts of the Everyman series. Another popular programme is the "Heart of the Matter" series. 'Everyman' is usually a complete documentary, whereas 'Heart of the Matter' begins with a short documentary which is followed by a discussion of experts in the studio. They can attract audiences of around 2 million viewers.

A successful ITV religious documentary programme was Channel 4's Witness - usually broadcast at 9.00 in the evening on a Thursday. The target audience was certainly the 'vaguely' religious and was often concerned with issues which have to do with "an individual's search for the truth." 'Witness' programmes have looked into topics such as black churches in South Africa and modern Nazis who deny the holocaust ever took place.

Frequently BBC2 and ITV put on special 'one-off' documentaries or a short series. For example, in the past BBC2 broadcast two great series on religion: The Long Search which considered the six main world religions all searching for God, and The Sea of Faith which examined how science and philosophy had affected religion since 1600AD. There have also been The Living World of Islam and, a programme on holy books, Going by the Book

Channel 4's contribution was Testament, which focused on the origins and development of the Bible. Mother Theresa and other workers amongst the poor and suffering have been the subject of documentaries.

More recently, this year (2001) there have been programmes on the great, 12-yearly Hindu festival in India called Kumbh Mela - of especial interest this time because of the record breaking tens of millions attending all at the same time. The BBC produced a three part series entitled Son of God which researched the life and times of Jesus from archaeological and other evidence. In 2006 the BBC produced an interesting analysis of the influence of Christianity in the development of Rock and Roll music.

Heart of the Matter

An Example

The 'Heart of the Matter' programme which was available at FitzWimarc for us to see was called Terms of Endearment

The programme investigated the idea of serial monogamy and whether this is something for which we are biologically programmed. The question of whether marriage as a lifelong institution was doomed, as divorce rates soar and cohabitation increases. Are we to shore up marriage or is serial monogamy the norm (i.e. a series of monogamous relationships)?

Marriage was seen as something which was once a unit of social cohesion. Once most adults in Britain married, now only about half do. Britain has the sixth highest divorce rate in the world. Millions cohabit. Is serial monogamy the new pattern? Is it part of our biological drive? Or should we seek to restore marriage as something that is fundamental to a stable society?

The programme started with a presentation of the theory by Dr Helen Fisher, an American anthropologist. Her ideas were that, from her studies of some 62 human cultures and her observations of other mammal behaviour, nature had programmed humans to stay in a relationship for about four years. British marriages end in divorce in 40% of cases. Divorces tend to peak at about 4 years of marriage. This biological programme is seen as a genetic plan for the species and is part of the continuing evolutionary process. Various things have combined to make us more aware of the "Four Year Itch", including the fact that people now generally have a much longer life expectancy - too much for one relationship? If these new ideas are accepted, then divorce does not have to be seen as a failure but as a chance for a new beginning.

The theory was then discussed by a panel of experts:

Steve Jones, an expert on genetics from University College London, was sceptical about the genetic programme and suggested that you could explain any human behaviour in terms of evolution.

Anne Atkins, an 'agony aunt' columnist, emphasised the human power to make decisions, whereas nature would programme the strong to despise the weak. Do we have the power to rise above our natural inclinations?

Karen, a theologian, explained that the problems were beginning to arise because the divorce rate had replaced the death rate. Marriages are not made in a ceremony but from day to day.

Simon Heffer, a political journalist with the Daily Mail, was adamant that the liberalisation of divorce laws had made divorce too easy. Therefore, commitment is not encouraged. He also felt that our society was based on marriage and, therefore, cohabitation should not be accorded the same rights by politicians.

However, Karen felt that cohabitees are still 'marrying' one another in a sense.

Helen Fisher felt that there should be the facility for couples to enter short term contracts for 4 to 10 years of marriage rather than the current "till death do us part" arrangements.

Anne Atkins did not agree and felt strongly that cohabitation and marriage are not the same. Marriage is not a temporary contract.

Karen did express the view that the modern isolation of the family unit was also a contributing factor. Years ago, people lived in extended family arrangements. The move to nuclear and now, with our technological age, isolated nuclear families has resulted in easier break up of marriage - no one to give support, help etc.