Peter Owen Jones has been a vicar in the Church of England for 15 years. He started out as a farm labourer and ran a mobile disco on the side then moved into advertising, before hearing the 'call' to become a vicar. Peter is interested in the role of the church today and how it can be made more relevant to people's lives. One of the things I'm considering at the moment is how to be a priest, and what exactly is a priest in the 21st century. You can pay priests for weddings, baptisms and funerals but the rest of the time I think that priests ought to earn a living if they have a skill.
photo by kind permission of Alan Burles
Peter Owen Jones presents the definitive guide to faith on earth by going off to witness eighty rituals of faith and belief across six continents in the space of a year.
The big six world religions are only part of the story. Faith is belief in the sacred, and it’s expressed in a rich diversity of rituals, in denominations, sects, cults, tribal faiths and new religious movements. Pete’s mission is to witness and take part in rites rarely filmed before, to take the religious pulse of the planet and to understand the depth of humanity’s fascination with the divine. As an Anglican priest, Pete will be confronting cultures that will challenge his values and prejudices – he’ll be surprised, even offended, but also enlightened.
Peter is interested in the role of the church today and how it can be made more relevant to people's lives. One of the things I'm considering at the moment is how to be a priest, and what exactly is a priest in the 21st century. You can pay priests for weddings, baptisms and funerals but the rest of the time I think that priests ought to earn a living if they have a skill.
"I have three parishes in Sussex. I know that the idea of your vicar popping in for tea is a very seductive ideal but I'm not sure that it's sufficient. I think the church should be love and about being in that space." If the church is about love, then he sees no reason why it should be contained in specific buildings. "Why should a church as a building be any more sacred than a factory? I don't buy into any of that."
The Lost gospels
Documentary presented by Anglican priest Pete Owen Jones which explores the huge number of ancient Christian texts that didn't make it into the New Testament. Shocking and challenging, these were works in which Jesus didn't die, took revenge on his enemies and ......
Walk With Me - Peter Owen Jones
2010 Produced, directed and written by Sara Proudfoot Clinch this TV Pilot presented by Britain's favourite TV Vicar Peter Owen Jones, looks at man's relationship with the land,
Religion and Atheism in Russia
With the fall of Communism, Orthodox Christianity has been revitalised in Russia. However, atheism has not died out. Peter Owen-Jones explores the revival of religion in post-Soviet Russia.
What Does the Return of Christ Mean to Some Christians
Many Christians read the Bible with the expectation that the world will come to an end and Christ will return, and some Afrikaans Christians talk about why they believe this.
Hinduism extreme pilgrimage - 59mins
Pete Owen-Jones, a vicar in a Sussex parish, is dissatisfied with some aspects of his faith and sets off on three extreme pilgrimages to China, India and Egypt to explore Zen Buddhism, Hinduism and ascetic Christianity.
