public repentance
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Celebrity bad-boy Russell Brand has recently been pictured being baptised in the Thames.
Which made me think about repentance.
For me the trouble with the Brand baptism is that it is way too public. It seems as if everything he does ends up as major news, and looks like a piece of self promotery (to coin a phrase) and sows the seed of doubt about whether this is genuine.
On the other hand, I suppose, one might say that if one has been a public bad-boy then the act of repentance also needs to be in public.
As people from a religious community that values repentance, how do you see this stuff?
Which made me think about repentance.
For me the trouble with the Brand baptism is that it is way too public. It seems as if everything he does ends up as major news, and looks like a piece of self promotery (to coin a phrase) and sows the seed of doubt about whether this is genuine.
On the other hand, I suppose, one might say that if one has been a public bad-boy then the act of repentance also needs to be in public.
As people from a religious community that values repentance, how do you see this stuff?
Comments
The baptisms I saw happening in the Jordan on both sides of the river, and those I have seen done in the sea in this country, have been the most profound and memorable.
This. My first impression on seeing the photo was that this was something of a publicity stunt - which was uncharitable of me, to say the least, but, after all, I am a COG (Cynical Old Git).
BTW, of which denomination is Mr Brand now a member?
Do we? I admit to not being familiar with Mr. Brand, but it's my experience that extending the benefit of the doubt to people who have demonstrated their untrustworthiness is a great source of much trouble.
To quote a post of mine from a different, but not unrelated context:
It seems to me that a very showy public baptism isn't really a demonstration of repentance, it seems like an attempt to skip repentance (and definitely skip any attempt at reparation) and move right along to reconciliation and redemption. Has Mr. Brand made any kind of attempt to repair any of his past wrongs? Honest question. That seems like better evidence of actual repentance than putting on a big public show and expecting everyone to love you for it.
Jesus is apparently ready to extend good will to the unknown exorcist until the point where the man makes it clear he doesn't deserve it. Maybe do the same here?
Nice.
Meanwhile, the Mail Online appears to be reporting that no church is claiming responsibility for baptising Brand. It does name evangelical Anglican churches that run Alpha courses with which he's been associated.
I couldn't read much there though as I didn't want to agree to their cookie policy.
Time will tell whether it's the real deal.
Incidentally, I was baptised by immersion in The Thames when visiting a friend's charismatic evangelical fellowship back in 1981.
It was quite spontaneous and not particularly 'showy' but then zi'm not a notorious celebrity.
Lord have mercy on all of us sinners.
It occurs to me that when Saul of Tarsus saw the light, the other believers didn't buy it straight away. He had to prove to them that he had actually changed his ways.
@The_Riv given that we are talking about a man accused of multiple sexual assaults, I find your comment highly distasteful.
However, isn't part of point of a public display of repentance that someone will find it highly distasteful?
I had never heard of the man but whether he is sincere or not time will tell.
The Thames rises in the Cotswolds and flows across much of southern England to Thanet* where it meets the sea. I don't think it would be too unbelievable that there would be parts that are clean enough for bathing, particularly before it gets to major conurbations.
*I suppose technically it isn't Margate which is what I wrote before
I doubt it's substantially worse than the Jordan.
Let's not bicker and argue about who killed who.
Is it either? Looking at a map there is an awful lot of water off that part of Kent. In my head Southend-on-Sea is the end of the river but the Crowstone just off Chalkwell beach, slightly further "upstream", marks the limit of the Port of London Authority's jurisdiction so may or may not be relevant.
Sigh. Does it really matter?
https://server2.pla.co.uk/Port-Information-Guide
You’re inferring something about which I was not posting.
ETA if Brand truly has become a Christian, he will presumably being taking seriously that thing about not suing fellow believers
AFAICT he was supposedly converting to Catholicism but in the event was baptised (presumably into HtB) by Bear Grylls.
Do you mean HTB as in Holy Trinity, Brompton?
Grylls' Wikipedia entry tells us that he's an Anglican, and that his Christian faith means a great deal to him. Who knows? He may well have a very good influence on Brand...
I'm pretty sure HTB would acknowledge that you're not baptised into HTB though...
Well, yes...AFAIK, HTB is still within the C of E's ever-widening fold...
It'll be mildly interesting to see if Brand features in upcoming Alpha course material.
That is indeed a naughty comment @Bishops Finger
Given that a number of HTB clergy were once lawyers I think it most unlikely...
I think John Profumo is a good poster child for "bad boy repenting". After his rather public sexual scandal, he quietly went off and volunteered for Toynbee Hall, and kept on doing that. (Granted, Profumo was independently wealthy, and was free not to need to work for a living, which makes it easier.)
Russell Brand? Time will tell.
I hadn’t really heard a lot about him in recent years, and when I looked him up just now, I found that he’s … Become a conspiracy theorist regarding Covid and such. Oh, goody. :facepalm:
Don’t get me wrong, one can have a sincere faith in Christ and also be a terrible conspiracy theorist. But I’ve seen some very nasty things over here in the US involving the mixture of religious faith and conspiracy theories (including Covid).
I hope his faith is genuine, regardless.