Bishop slams TGOM's Bible scripture references on The Queen
While Rami Chuene's character on The Queen has been a hit with viewers, her tendency to quote from the Bible in the popular drama has earned her criticism from some people, including a bishop she apparently knows.
Although her utterances of the scriptures have raised some eyebrows before, she has mostly received praise from fans.
However, Abraham Sibiya, the Archbishop Elect of The International Anglican Orthodox Episcopal Communion was not impressed and took to Facebook to slam the use 'holy' words.
"I wish to express my strongest objection in the direction that The Queen has taken with the introduction of the Character of Gracious Mabuza. While the person Rami Chuene is a great actor and does an amazing job in portraying the character of Gracious Mabuza, the manner in which the name of God, the Bible and Christian practices are portrayed, leaves much to be desired and a bad after taste in the mouth. While it may seem that this practice adds some sensation to the story, it borders at ridiculing the name of the Lord our God."
The bishop made it clear that it is not a personal attack on Rami and that he only had a problem with how they used "God's word".
"I do not object in using the name of God in the production, since religion is an integral part of our people's daily lives, but I object to the ridiculous way it is being used. The aim comes out as if it is trying to show how ridiculous it is to hold the creed of being evangelical and of born again."
The actress, plays the role of the flamboyant Gracious Mabuza aka TGOM, who is a rival of the Khoza family.
TGOM occasionally quotes Bible scriptures, which she revealed earlier to a fan that she adds to her script.
My question is about the bible verses you always quote, are they part of the script or you just add your own spice by quoting them
— Nonkululeko Evelyn Makhubu (@nkulie_makhubu) January 4, 2018
No, the Bible verses are not part of the script. I add them whenever I see fit. Or when the spirit of the Lord comes upon TGOM 🤣🤣🤣🤣
— Rami Chuene 1st Lady (@ramichuene) January 4, 2018
Rami also took to social media, partly shook by the Bishop whom she claimed to have personally known all her life, to respond.
"Then again, in other news... the Bishop whom I love, respect and have known all my life put this on FB. Is anybody out there...? Am I missing the mark? Haai, this gospel bakithi!"
The actress declined to give any further comment.
Read the rest of the open letter from the bishop below:
Grace and peace to the Executive Producers, and the entire cast and crew of The Queen. Firstly I would like to thank...
Posted by Abp Elect Abraham Sibiya on Tuesday, 16 January 2018