I recently had my first serious written complaint about a sermon I delivered at my church. It was emailed to my vicar after I preached about Jesus’ birth, raising various political concerns.
T hese included speaking about Donald Trump’s misogyny and narcissism, and the postBrexit racism across the UK. A parishioner wrote to complain, seeking assurances that the church pulpit would never again be used in the way I had used it.
My vicar was very supportive of me, though he did acknowledge that I should have made it clearer that my views on Donald Trump were personal rather than the ‘Christian view’. Another email was sent describing me as ‘short sighted and ill mannered’ with him insisting that ‘we should rid our community of such ignorant extremists with their weak-willed gestures and views’. He assured my vicar that he would never allow myself ‘…or likeminded people to prosper and spread their cancerous views amongst us’.
