S03.E05: Episode 5

[maraleia]

The nuns and midwives are busy preparing for Sister Evangelina's surprise jubilee celebrations, marking 50 years since she took her vows, but a face from the past threatens to ruin the party for the guest of honour. It's back to business when a young woman with Down's syndrome is brought in feeling unwell. To everyone's surprise, they discover she is six months pregnant, causing some of them to think the worst, and the staff are joined by new nurse Patsy, whose sense of humour and no-nonsense attitude make her an instant hit.

 

[MaryHedwig]

There are real tears in my eyes- and we didn't even get our two baby quota!

 

Nurse Patsy seems like a great addition.  I am amazed that each sister and midwife they add is a distinct, unique character loveable in her own way.  Instantly I felt like I knew and understood Patsy (which means I think Trixie's comment about being a little in love with her was a foreshadowing of something..).  Are we supposed to remember her from the London?  Do we already know her back story?

 

So Sister Julienne and Jenny ended up being at the Mother House at the same time- I bet that was comforting for Jenny.

 

Who are those extra nuns who come for the daily sing-a-long?  Do they also live at Nonnatus House?

Edited April 28, 2014 by MaryHedwig

[Cheetosandchoc]

Wow I was not sure I would be able to watch this. I worked with Mentaly handicapped women in a Catholic facility, and had a lady I cared for go through an abortion many years before I worked there but she still mourned for her lost baby.( I don't know the details and she lived with her family at the time) I also have a sister with Downs. I thought it was nicely done though.

I have not been watching lately I forgot how much I loved this show!

[Tara Ariano]

Here's what I wrote about Sister Evangelina's showcase episode!

[LittleIggy]

That "Romeo and Juliet" story brought tears to my eyes. I thought it was so cruel to ship Jacob so far away. I assume he had CP.

I like the new midwife, too. I immediately said "Sister Monica Joan!" when Jenny opened the cake tin and found a slice missing.

[Lillybee]

Back in the day, people with CP were often institutionalized with people with Down's Syndrome. At least the place "Romeo and Juliet" were seemed be be well run and the patients were treated with dignity. Not all places were like that. Say what you will about Geraldo Rivera, NYC had a home (Willowbrook) for challenged people and it was awful. Patients tied up, etc. He got that place closed down.

[SunnyBeBe]

I've never heard of a person fainting and then getting orders to take off work for 2 weeks.  (At least with no other medical diagnosis.)

[Swedish Chef]

I'm so glad Tara wrote that article, because she detailed the exchange between Shelagh and Sr. Evangelina that was truncated in the PBS cut. Seeing as the exchange explained a) Sr. Evangelina's frustrations with Shelagh and b) why Shelagh was experiencing such anxiety about being a mother to Timothy, it only, you know, explained half of what was going on in the show last night. Thanks, PBS. Those "behind the scenes with the midwives" bits and ads for *Mr. Selfridge* were totally worth not understanding a good chunk of the show tonight!

[Ticketyboo]

I didn't realize it, but this is the episode I've been waiting a long time for-- we get to know more about Sister Evangelina, and she gets acknowledgement she so richly deserves! We got hints of her background in that first Christmas episode, but I think her feature episode is long overdue.  I also wonder what she would think of me if I were a midwife at Nonnatus (what, doesn't everybody do that?) and my hope is it would start out very Trixie-like, and end up very Trixie-like.  I love how that relationship has progressed.  

 

I also liked all the callbacks in this episode-- Jenny's time at the London with Patsy, (who I did not expect to like but happily liked her immensely as a character and as a part of the group) the home where the couple nearly placed their baby born with spina bifida, Sister Monica Joan's tendency to wander off-- and many more.  I love that we know these characters so well that these little things stay consistent and can just be referenced in one little scene.  Although I wish some scenes weren't *quite* as little-- I'm really irritated PBS cut the Shelagh/Sister Evangelina scene short!  

[Badger]

They also skipped  a rather funny scene where Patsy described a cake that they were going to bake for Sister Evangelina's party.  She said it looked like a crown of penises .

 

The actress who played Sally is also in Heidi Thomas's remake of "Upstairs, Downstairs."  

[attica]

In particular, it makes me happy to know that Sister Evangelina's real name is Enid. That suits her.

[camom]

I'm really impressed with Sarah Gordy's acting.  I think they handled the Romeo and Juliet storyline very well.

[Libby96]

I can't believe they cut so much of Shelagh and Sister Evangelina's conversation. I was reading the review and though maybe my DVR had skipped or something. Come on, PBS. Let us see the whole show our friends in the UK get.

Though I always find this show touching, I don't usually tear up. This one made me tear up twice. First when Sally's mother held her hand and told her she loved her during her delivery, and the second when Sally opened the package with the sweater and read the note from Jacob.

Surprised I didn't really miss Jenny, but I didn't. I just pray they never take our Chummy away.

[HerLadyship]

If anyone would like to see the full UK version, PM me.  I can direct you to where you can find it. 

[Embron]

So it looks like they are setting up that very handsome neighbor priest (pastor?) for a romance storyline. Can some one tell me about the rules around celibacy for them? I assume since they're not catholic they can get married? Or is another "forbidden romance" like with Shelagh?

[HerLadyship]

No celibacy for Anglican priests.  Every priest I've ever had has been married, most with children.  

Edited April 29, 2014 by HerLadyship

[MaryHedwig]

No celibacy for Anglican priests.

So those nuns took a vow of celibacy, right?  Does the Anglican church still have nuns?  Also, are there Anglican monks that take a vow of celibacy?   I grew up Catholic but I know the name of a hunky priest like that if he were Catholic- he would be a Father What-A-Waste.

[fastiller]

No celibacy for Anglican priests.

During Secondary School, I was close friends with the daughter of a Protestant Priest (not Anglican b/c this was in Ireland, so it was Church of Ireland (same thing I know, but anyway)).  Near where they lived was a Catholic seminary.  While they're in seminary, the students are allowed to date. My friend dated two seminarians and converted them.  The thought process was this: "Wait, I can serve God and be married?! Sign me up!"

[SilvaVocat]

So those nuns took a vow of celibacy, right?  Does the Anglican church still have nuns?  Also, are there Anglican monks that take a vow of celibacy?   I grew up Catholic but I know the name of a hunky priest like that if he were Catholic- he would be a Father What-A-Waste.

The Anglican church still has nuns, but like the Catholic church there are fewer and fewer of them for a variety of reasons. And the Anglican church ordains women priests as well. There are also Anglican brothers who are similar to Catholic brothers. They may take vows of celibacy, but not all orders do.

[Badger]

Roman Catholic priests take a vow of celibacy but Eastern Rites Catholic priests can marry.  Also, if a married Anglican priest converts to Catholicism, he can still be a priest.  

 

They also cut a scene of the priest talking to the woman who ran the Home.  

[TheAnglican]

The moment in this episode when I cried was when Sister Evangelina opened the door to see all the people gathered for her jubilee party.  Sob.

 

As you may gather from my username, I have some interest in the questions raised about Anglican nuns, priests, and celibacy.  *putting on my academic hat here*

 

An interesting historical note is that there weren't Anglican nuns from the time when Henry VIII broke with Rome until the mid-nineteenth century, when the Oxford Movement brought back practices and institutions to the Anglican church that had previously been deemed too Catholic.  Religious orders were probably the most visible of these, but other things that came back included confession and reservation of the sacrament.  One other thing that enjoyed a brief renaissance was the idea of voluntary celibacy for male priests.  If you were a priest in certain parishes from say, the 1860s through the 1920s, you might have gotten the side-eye if you had gotten married!  

 

There are a few contemporary Anglican women's religious communities that were just delighted when women became able to be ordained as priests - because it meant that they could send their own through seminary and ordination. Then they wouldn't have to have a man as a confessor or to celebrate the sacraments.

Edited April 30, 2014 by TheAnglican

[Lillybee]

I find it amazing the way people with Down's Syndrome are treated today, compared to the way they were treated in the 1950's.

There are so many who have been mainstreamed in school and are able to live independently. I felt badly for the baby's father who appeared to have CP because so many advantages have been made for them too. I am glad that the home that they lived in then treated them as people.

[MaryHedwig]

I am glad that the home that they lived in then treated them as people.

Except that they would not allow two consenting adults to continue their sexual relationship.

[captain1]

Another great episode that jerked a tear or two from my eyes!

 

Was no one else grossed out when Sister Evangelina was scrubbing the dog poop off her shoe in the kitchen sink??

 

Rooting for Trixie and the cute priest to get together!

[Portia]

Okay, I'm sure I'm the odd man out here--my husband definitely thought I was overreacting--but I was very much bothered by the fact that Jacob was clearly of average IQ while Sally was clearly not. Sally was high-functioning but also very childlike, and she obviously didn't didn't understand that a baby was a possible outcome of having sex. To me that doesn't exactly translate to "consenting adult." He, on the other hand, didn't seem surprised to learn that Sally had become pregnant. It was terrible that they were not given a choice about whether to pursue a sexual relationship and/or marry, but I wanted to give him a hard shake and ask him why he didn't make sure she was properly educated about sex and reproduction so they could make a mutual decision about contraception. I still really cared about both Sally and Jacob, but I wasn't completely comfortable with him being cast as a tragic hero.

 

I know it's a mistake to think too hard when watching Call the Midwife, but I just can't stop being bothered by this. Just me?

[HerLadyship]

Not just you.  That bothered me too.  Regardless of how Jacob might have appeared to other people in the 1950s, he is of average intelligence and is mentally an adult.  Sally, as you said, was very childlike (unlike some people with Down's that very much function as adults) and really didn't seem to understand what was happening to her.  I really wondered if Sally had been pushed into a relationship that she was not developmentally equipped to handle--either by Jacob or by her own impulses.  I agree that Jacob, as someone who did understand the consequences of a sexual relationship, should have been the one to explain consequences or just not had sex with someone who was not mature enough to deal with what could happen, or even the emotions that come with a sexual relationship.        

[zoey1996]

In that time period, and to a certain extent, even today, priests (and ministers, etc.) and nuns are expected to be celibate until they marry.  An Episcopal/Anglican priest can marry, and I have known a former Roman Catholic priest who became an Episcopal priest and married.

I agree, I don't think Sally was capable of consenting initially.  And again, back then, it (premarital sex) happened, and happened a lot! but young women were still expected to be "good girls" and therefore virgins when they married.  "Friends with benefits" was an alien concept.

[AllAboutMBTV]

Somehow I managed to keep my eyes from leaking during this episode, although my throat felt tight during Sister E's jubilee tributes. That said, when Jacob was in the kitchen with... someone who was explaining to him why there were no treats and said that a mouse had run away with them and he murmured "Lucky mouse" I had to look away from the screen for a bit. Then I finally remembered that he was on an earlier episode and talked about how the local biscuit factory gave them all the broken biscuits. I have to go lie down now.

[AnnieBeez]

 

Was no one else grossed out when Sister Evangelina was scrubbing the dog poop off her shoe in the kitchen sink??

I was ready to be, but it didn't look like she was in the kitchen. 

[captain1]

Thank goodness!

[kater]

Am I the only one who is rooting for this to be Jenny's send off?  I know she's supposed to be our view into the Call the Midwife world, but I'm over it.  We know the world and the other characters are much more developed.  

 

Cheers for Sister Evagelina getting her own episode!  

[anna0852]

Okay, I'm sure I'm the odd man out here--my husband definitely thought I was overreacting--but I was very much bothered by the fact that Jacob was clearly of average IQ while Sally was clearly not. Sally was high-functioning but also very childlike, and she obviously didn't didn't understand that a baby was a possible outcome of having sex. To me that doesn't exactly translate to "consenting adult." He, on the other hand, didn't seem surprised to learn that Sally had become pregnant.

 

You are not the odd man out. My first thought was that CP does not affect cognitive abilities the way that Down's can. Jacob may have issues controlling his muscles but he is not intellectually impaired. Sally is. I didn't see that as a romantic story, I saw it as Sally being taken advantage of.

[Boton]

 

Jacob may have issues controlling his muscles but he is not intellectually impaired. Sally is. I didn't see that as a romantic story, I saw it as Sally being taken advantage of.

Catching up with my viewing and commenting after a vacation here, but I didn't see that as romantic either.  Sally was incapable of understanding the consequences of sex, at least well enough to insist on the birth control available at the time.  And Jacob, although of average range intelligence, may have been sheltered enough to not understand the implications completely either, especially given the lack of long-term or permanent contraception.  He would hardly be the first man taken over by hormones, love, and lust, but the potential outcomes were much more disastrous.

 

This episode reminded me of a long-ago episode of ER, which I may be slightly misremembering, but it featured a high-functioning married couple with Downs who lived independently under the supervision of the woman's sister.  They were seen as consenting adults, and that included the right to marry and to not pursue a reliable form of birth control.  Not surprisingly, the woman got pregnant and showed up in the ER with her sister when it was time to deliver.

 

When the baby was born, the sister asked whichever doctor when the authorities would take the baby, and the doctor assured the parents (the couple with Downs) that the doctors wouldn't take a baby from such nice people, in what was supposed to be the tear-jerking triumphant moment of this couple getting to live "normally."  But I can't forget the sister being devistated -- pleading that she had to go over to their apartment all the time to make sure that their bills were paid and that they remembered the basic tasks of living, and she was already exhausted from dealing with two families, her sister's and her own.  She simply could not take in a baby at this stage of life.

 

I think that's what Sally and Jacob would have been facing had the baby lived and/or they been allowed to be together -- ultimately, an innocent, live baby would result that someone would have to raise.

[Ohwell]

I remember that ER episode.

[LeGrandElephant]

On April 28, 2014 at 10:35 AM, Swedish Chef said:

I'm so glad Tara wrote that article, because she detailed the exchange between Shelagh and Sr. Evangelina that was truncated in the PBS cut. Seeing as the exchange explained a) Sr. Evangelina's frustrations with Shelagh and b) why Shelagh was experiencing such anxiety about being a mother to Timothy, it only, you know, explained half of what was going on in the show last night. Thanks, PBS. Those "behind the scenes with the midwives" bits and ads for *Mr. Selfridge* were totally worth not understanding a good chunk of the show tonight!

I'm watcng on Netflix (in the states), and it seems like that must correspond to the PBS cut? Annoying! 

Edited June 7, 2016 by LeGrandElephant