‘Sometimes you can change the world’: the serious message from comedian minster

When Rev John Purves arrived at his first charge, Drumchapel St Andrew's in Glasgow, some years ago, he admits it was a shock to the system.

"I have never been conventional and there were people there who just didn't like me and didn't want to change," he reveals in this month's regular Talking Ministry feature.

"What kept me there were the other people who cared for me and looked after me when I struggled," he explained.

"But we moved from there and grew together as a church family and by the end of my ministry there, Drumchapel St Andrew's was the church I had dreamt of when I went there first."

"That dream was of a church where everyone felt included and part of the same loving church family.

"The heart of a church is people, so for me, it was about being a family where everyone is welcomed, cared for and affirmed and can be the best version of themselves.

"They don't need to worry about what other people expect them to do and can do their own journey knowing that there are people there who will care for them and share that journey with them.

"That's why we had ‘belonging' instead of ‘membership', so people would feel they were a part of the church because they belonged, not because it was as though they had signed up for a club."

Mr Purves' ideal church is also one that is at the heart of its community, and he added that he was very fortunate to have the support of a congregation that did not make demands to the exclusion of what he did in the wider community.

Whether it was helping local charity 3D Drumchapel grow from a fledging organisation with a group of mums meeting regularly and just £5,000 in the bank to a well-established local support with a £500,000 turnover, or working with asylum seekers making a new home in Scotland's largest city.

Supporting families and individuals from around the world could be harrowing, but also rewarding.

Mr Purves said: "There was so much about it that was sad and tragic, hearing about things that I never thought I would have to hear, but it was also uplifting, seeing the resilience that brought people through those horrendous experiences.

"That was another incredible chapter in my life."

The buzz of laughter

One indication of Mr Purves' unconventionality – apart from the changing hair colour – is his unusual side-line for a presbyterian minister: stand-up comedy.

"I love live comedy and happened to see an advertisement for a comedy course at Strathclyde University in Glasgow," he explained.

"I thought the course would be fun, I'd do the showcase at the end, and that would be it, but the showcase went very well and it felt very natural to keep going."

Keeping quiet about his day job with the Church of Scotland as he did not want to be seen as a novelty act, Mr Purves combined ministry with comedy for almost a decade, playing the Edinburgh Fringe seven years a row and performing for audiences ranging from packed out theatres to an audience of one at the Fringe.

"They were a fabulous audience because they laughed all the way through," he mused.

"It is the most incredible buzz, making people laugh. I don't think there is anything like it.

"Comedy communication and church communication are not that dissimilar and I do think that a lot of it is about connection.

"If you connect with people, they will get your humour.

"A lot of my comedy is observational.

"I will see things that other people see every day, but they don't find the humour in it until you flick that switch.

"I think it's the same with faith - a lot of what I say to people on a Sunday is about opening people up to seeing things in a different way."

Another way in which Mr Purves defied convention was in the only time he spoke at the General Assembly when he challenged centuries of dogma to call for the recognition of same sex marriage.

"That is probably one of the most important things I have done," he said.

"That was about including everybody, and that was a big part of who we were as a church family.

"We welcomed everybody and everybody was significant and valued and cared for and that was at the heart of what we did.

"I have always believed I could change the world.

"Sometimes that can be frustrating, but sometimes you recognise that you can make a difference.

"Sometimes you can change the world."

Read the full interview on our Talking Ministry page.