A Sacred Trust is the seventh episode of the fourteenth series of Midsomer Murders and first aired 26th October 2011.
Barnaby and Jones enter the cloistered world of Midsomer Priory to investigate the death of Mother Thomas Aquinas. Earlier, an ancient stained glass window at the priory had been vandalised, leading the nuns to discuss selling their valuable collection of antique silver to finance its repair. After the murder, it is discovered that the silver has disappeared. The detectives unearth some surprises when the ownership of the priory is investigated; but the real trail leads back to a chilling event that occurred 30 years previously. Barnaby and Jones realise the killer’s identity, but finding hard evidence proves difficult until one of the nuns puts her safety at risk.
Tropes:
- Bad Habits: Jones disguises himself as a nun to trap a murderer.
- Be as Unhelpful as Possible: The Prioress knew all along who the murderer was and what was his motive, but still didn't share this information with the police for reasons of her own.
- Contrived Coincidence: A particularly egregious example takes place here, as the murderer participates in the massacre of a village in an unnamed African country, makes a fortune and over 33 years later settles in one of the Midsomer villages with his wife and son... a village that just so happens to include a convent where the prioress is the sole witness to his crime. And the kicker? He still would've gotten away with it if his Identical Son hadn't snuck into the convent with a girl to have sex and run into the prioress.
- Empathy Doll Shot: A flashback to a mercenary attack on an African village shows a girl dropping a doll that is then trampled by one of the soldiers.
- Irish Priest: Father Behan. Being Catholic, however, does not spare him from the same fate as so many of his Anglican counterparts.
- Murder by Mistake: Mother Thomas Aquinas. As Barnaby points out, one nun in glasses looks much like another in the dark.
- Slut-Shaming: This episode involves some romantic liaisons, including one girl shamed by her involvement with a jock for telling the police about it.
