Is there such a thing as Northern Christianity in England? Can we think of God as northern and working-class?
This event was an online discussion with researchers Elli Wort and Nigel Rooms and stand-up poet Kate Fox. You can watch the recording here.
What did people in the live online audience most enjoy about this event?
“I really enjoyed having a laid back conversation about a new topic.”
“Listening to the interdisciplinary discussion, particularly with performance and comedy.“
“Tackling a theme that is rarely mentioned elsewhere.“
“The humour and open honesty in the answers.”
About this event
Nigel Rooms and Elli Wort have analysed what we might mean by ‘the North’ in England and whether there is a particular northern religious climate and northern character of Christian worship. Given that many churches in the North of England are closing, they describe northern Christianity as fragile, but authentic, community-based and full of humour.
Their recent book Fuzzy Church documents this research in which they refer extensively to the work of stand-up poet and comedian Kate Fox, whose doctoral thesis examines attitudes to the northern voice, northern working-class identity and how it relates to humour and performance.
In this online event, Nigel Rooms, Elli Wort, and Kate Fox come together to discuss how they define northern identity, and whether it relates to ideas about class, and whether there is a particularly northern type of Christianity.
Fuzzy Church: Gospel and Culture in the North of England is published by Sacristy Press