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| - Vicars are inherently funny. British vicars are generally portrayed as docile and gentle elderly chaps, with white hair and little glasses and ever so prim and prissy ways. They drink take afternoon tea ("more tea, vicar?"), have a tendency to be a bit liberal with the altar wine and don't believe that anything remotely sexual happens ever, despite the fact that Church of England vicars are allowed to marry. So, to be caught in flagrante delicto--or even mistaken for being so--by the vicar is, of course, the second funniest thing ever. Catching the vicar in the act is the only thing funnier.
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| abstract
| - Vicars are inherently funny. British vicars are generally portrayed as docile and gentle elderly chaps, with white hair and little glasses and ever so prim and prissy ways. They drink take afternoon tea ("more tea, vicar?"), have a tendency to be a bit liberal with the altar wine and don't believe that anything remotely sexual happens ever, despite the fact that Church of England vicars are allowed to marry. So, to be caught in flagrante delicto--or even mistaken for being so--by the vicar is, of course, the second funniest thing ever. Catching the vicar in the act is the only thing funnier. A more recent trope is the "trendy" vicar, who is younger, and probably plays the guitar, but is really just as clueless, especially when it comes to attracting young people to the church. Expect them to make air quotes while using thirty-year-old slang. For those of you who are non-Brits: Vicar is a term used to refer to a parish priest of the Anglican Church. This is the official established religion of England, a faith that was designed -- long, long story -- to be Catholicism without the Papal allegiance. Eventually, other aspects of Protestantism immigrated over. Thus the clergy of the Church of England are often called "priests" and dress as such, but nevertheless are free to marry like Protestant ministers. The word "vicar" technically just means "deputy"; one of the Pope's titles is "Vicar of Christ," for instance. In the Middle Ages, the word 'rector' meant the person that had the right to collect the income of the parish (known as the 'living'), but this could be a bishop, a canon, an abbey, or a pluralist rector with multiple livings. The 'rector' would hire a deputy, the vicar, who was a priest who did the actual work that we associate with ministers and priests. So folks got into the habit of using the term 'vicar' to refer to any 'working priest', even though today most 'vicars' are really 'rectors'. Since 1992, women have been able to become vicars. The first woman vicar in England was appointed (despite some serious struggles) in 1994. However, female clergy have been ordained in the Anglican communion worldwide for some time, the first in 1944 in Hong Kong. It is usually used in a religious context, but not always; a memorable exception is E.R. Eddison's Mistress of Mistresses, starring an Evil Chancellor known only as The Vicar. See Nuns Are Mikos, Naughty Nuns, Sexy Priest, and Nun-Too-Holy for other "subversions" of traditional Catholic clergy. In terms of rank, the Authority Tropes arguably equal are Badass Preacher, Corrupt Corporate Executive, Good Shepherd, Irish Priest, Landlord, Preacher Man, Pedophile Priest, Schoolteachers, Sexy Priest, and Sinister Minister. For the next step down, see Student Council President. For the next step up, see Dean Bitterman. Examples of The Vicar include:
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