Preview: TLC’s “Preaching Alabama”

Opening a church in the thick of the Bible Belt might be a bit like carrying coal to Newcastle, as the old saying goes, but that is not stopping the Speegle family in TLC’s new, six-part reality series Preaching Alabama from trying.

The clan, headed by father Allen and mother Janice, had thrived in central Florida with a community church for over 20 years. Now about to retire, Allen and Janice are ready to turn over the church to their children — eldest daughter Jill, and her husband Rod and daughter Abi; and youngest daughter Lori, and her husband Seth. But the women wanted to start their own church, and return to their original hometown of Madison, Alabama, to do so. The series begins with their efforts leading up to the first day for their non-denominational place of worship, called Movement Church.

Right from the beginning of the episode, we can see what a daunting task this may prove to be. First, as previously mentioned, Northern Alabama is home to many churches already (two young girls interviewed at the start indicate that there sometimes seem to be as many as 10 on a block), so getting noticed and attracting followers may be difficult. Not to mention the whole “non-denominational” thing, which just doesn’t seem to be done much here.

But perhaps more difficult in this area may be Movement Church’s belief system. They are determined to spread love and acceptance, no matter the background, even if many churches have traditionally turned some people away (the gay community and addicts are among the groups of people Jill mentions in the first episode as those welcome at Movement Church).

Also different, and perhaps off-putting to some traditionalists, is the fact that the Movement Church is led in large part by women. Jill is lead pastor at the church, and Lori is worship leader. In the episode, Jill is clearly proud of how involved women are, saying that they “don’t believe they don’t have the right to teach men.” Jill believes this reflects the changes that have taken place for women in the world in general, and she says that, “for some reason, Christianity hasn’t caught up to that.”

And, of course, there is the way some of the Speegles look that might not be what some old-schoolers expect out of preachers. Lori and Seth, in particular, have a look not unlike that of many other twentysomethings — including tattoos and piercings. But at the start of the episode, one older man sneers at the idea of tattoos, so it may be unlikely to get folks like him into the church, at least at first (to be fair, even Allen and Janice admit they were thrown back by Seth’s piercings when he first started dating Lori).

In a way, with their openness, Movement Church seems to reflect what some consider to be the original preachings of Jesus, and it is refreshing to see them join the more progressive views of Christianity that have come to light in recent years in America to help counter some of the more restrictive interpretations of the religion that sometimes comes to the forefront.

The premiere episode of Preaching Alabama is thoughtful in its introduction of the family members, and in bringing us into their initial struggles with not only financially opening and sustaining the church, but in drawing people’s attention to it (some of that advertising involves mom Janice, who may become a breakout favorite on the show, dressed as a chicken and trying to draw drivers into their free car wash).

Even with moments like the car wash and having Janice dressed as as chicken, the show does not make fun of these folks, as some reality series set in the South unfortunately tend to do. There are touching moments of Allen lending comfort to Jill in her moments of doubt about being able to open and lead the church, and Allen himself sometimes struggling, as most parents do, with letting his children go to do their own thing, in their own way (the children say they have the same message as their parents, using different methods), and with letting go of his own church. Much of the comic relief comes from Janice, who is a larger-than-life Southern personality (with a unique, high, inhaled-helium-sounding voice mixed in with her Southern accent). But Janice also brings much of the family love, as we see them praying and eating around the dinner table (and we learn thoughout the episode that making biscuits is apparently a crucial talent in the South).

I’m not a person of faith, but I can appreciate what the Speegles are trying to do, and the message they are trying to convey, and I was fascinated in learning more about them as a family, and their efforts to open Movement Church. The first episode follows the clan about two weeks before the church opens, and as the date nears, nerves, tempers and concerns arise. We end on opening day, with the family still wondering how many — if any at all — people would show up to hear their words.

Judging from a preview of the remaining five episodes of the season, it looks like the family will continue having to work hard to sustain their operation. But it sounds like they will be spiritually strong enough to keep at it, especially having each other to rely on. And it should be interesting for viewers of all beliefs to check in with them and see how they are doing.

Preaching Alabama premieres Oct. 7 at 10pm ET/PT on TLC.