Why You Need to Watch Jennifer Fulwiler’s “Minor Revisions” TONIGHT

After yesterday’s big news, today brings even more. Jen Fulwiler‘s long-awaited reality show, “Minor Revisions”, debuts TONIGHT, December 13, at 8:00pm EST (7:00pm CST). I’m really excited about it. Here’s some background:


 

“Minor Revisions” is a three-part reality miniseries offering an entertaining and refreshing glimpse into the life of 30-something writer and columnist Jennifer Fulwiler. During a quest to reassess meaning in her life after her first son was born, a skeptical Fulwiler (who was raised as an atheist since childhood) started “The Reluctant Atheist”—a blog of earnest trepidation and questions into the realm of spirituality.
 
Determined to find the Truth (with a capital “T”), Fulwiler and her lawyer-husband Joe started investigating Christianity, and soon found themselves fascinated by Catholicism. Gradually abandoning the idea of a world without God, Fulwiler eventually entered the Church and switched the name of her blog to “Conversion Diary”.
 
Now, seven years later, she writes a national newspaper column, speaks at Catholic events around the country, homeschools her five kids, blogs about authentic Catholic life (and the finer side of humor), and somehow still finds time to wrangle the ornery scorpions that tend to sneak into her Austin, Texas home.

 
There’s a ton of buzz about the show already. In Dan Lord’s interview with Jen, he called the show “reality show with a heart of faith”. Dorian Speed praised it over at Dappled Things while Stacy Trascanos covered it at The American Catholic. Jen provided her own ten reasons to watch “Minor Revisions,” including things like:
 

8. A brilliant philosophy professor gives me advice about explaining faith to atheists from a philosophical perspective. Anyone with atheist or agnostic loved ones will enjoy hearing what Professor Rob Koons has to say on this topic.
 
3. You get to hear Joe’s take on our conversions. Even if he’s not wearing his banana suit, some folks might find it interesting to hear what Joe has to say about our conversions and our unexpected foray into big family life.
 
2. My dad and I talk about atheism, my childhood, and my conversion. In Episode 1 I have a long chat with my dad about why he doesn’t believe in God, and he gives his honest opinion about what he thinks about my conversion to Catholicism.

 
I caught a sneak preview of tonight’s episode, and can therefore confirm: “Minor Revisions” is as hilarious, insightful, and fun as everyone is saying. I’m not a big fan of reality shows, and I’m typically leery when it comes to overtly-Catholic media, but this series masters both genres. It’s a living embodiment of Jen’s excellent blog which means you’ll find at least these three things:

Minor RevisionsAuthenticity. Many reality shows are stilted and forced. Not this one. The conversations flow naturally, and Jen is transparent about the ups and down of life with five kids. Her dialogues about atheism, especially with her skeptical father, are notably sincere.

Hilarity. Jen is an extraordinary writer and when she covers weighty topics she’s at her best. But she’s also one of the funniest people I know. Her humor is mostly self-deprecating, which makes it even funnier, and “Minor Revisions” is packed with it. There’s a scene in tonight’s episode with Jen, her daughter, and a toy unicorn that I’m still laughing about two days after seeing it.

Scorpions. A Jen Fulwiler reality show without arachnids would be an egregious failure. But rest assured, the pests make several cameos in Episode 1. As a bonus, we’re even treated to a careful breakdown of appropriate “Scorpion Responses.”

In addition to these reasons, there’s another one that was surprisingly absent from Jen’s top ten list: Yaya. If you’ve read Conversion Diary over the years, you’re familiar with Jen’s eccentric, hilarious mother-in-law. Yaya makes a brief cameo in tonight’s episode and in those few minutes offers several great one-liners. She even suggests calling Child Protective Services…on herself.

How to Watch Tonight

 
So how can you catch “Minor Revisions” tonight and in the future? Here’s the great news: anyone with an Internet connection can watch it. NET, the New York-based TV station that is running the show, has a live, 24/7 internet feed of their programming. You can watch it live online at http://netny.net/watch-now/. It will also air on the NET network in the New York City area (TimeWarner Ch 97 and Cablevision Ch 30) and will be available as an on-demand show for Verizon FiOS subscribers. Unfortunately, though there may be reruns, the show won’t be archived online. So be sure to catch it live tonight at 8:00pm EST (7:00pm CST).

The other two episodes in the series will air on December 20 and January 10, also at 8:00pm EST (7:00pm CST), so mark your calendars now.

Finally, Jen is hosting a Twitter viewing party tonight which you can follow through the hashtag #MinorRevisions (if you don’t know what that means, just click here during the show.) You don’t have to sign-up for Twitter to follow the discussion and Jen’s personal commentary, but if you do you’ll be able to jump in and share your own thoughts. See you tonight!

Minor Revisions - Jennifer Fulwiler