2.21.2007

Keeping Faith

Hill Steeple
February 2007

I am quite fond of old church buildings and steeples. In London and I'm sure in other areas of Britain, there are so many small English churches that are big on character and set in picturesque villages. To me...that is the perfect combination for the snapshot I would have to get!

This particular small church is along the beaten path that I call home. The hard thing for me is...this isn't a church anymore. This gothic-style Baptist chapel opened in 1862 and after years of use it was sympathetically turned into office space. Sadly, this has happened to many churches. How discouraging when a congregation can no longer sustain its members or cover its financial expenses and they are forced to close their doors. Something to ponder. I would love to know what you think about it.

Could this sky be any more blue? It was the perfect backdrop for this lovely steeple...so I had to capture it. Maybe at some point years ago there was a cross adorning this. If so, I would have liked to have seen that too.

25 comments:

Chad Oneil Myers said...

Cool one!

Corey Bienert said...

I was gonna say that the sky looked really blue!

excellent shot as usual Anna :)

Anonymous said...

I love this photo and every other...Your the best...love you

kenju said...

I guess it depends on why the church closed. If it was because they moved to another larger building, one which allows them to minister to more people - that's good. If they closed because of what you say - it's bad.

Rebecca said...

You may know my thoughts already :)

And while I'm stating the obvious and repeating, the first thing that struck me was how BLUE the sky was against the steeple. Love it.

Anna said...

I am pretty sure I know what you are thinking Rebecca! :)

I am glad you all like the blue here....ME TOO!

Nicole said...

That is what so cool about London is that it is a really OLD place. I'm sure you could spend days and never run out of things to capture. I love this one.

Anonymous said...

Hi Anna! The sky is beautiful - how come it was never like that when I was there?!?! Awesome picture as usual!

Donna

Kyle said...

I love church photography!

Earlier this year I have a bunch of photographs of the church at DePaul University, and I ended up making a panorama of that church for a photos project in school!

carmilevy said...

Every community seems to have a finite lifespan. The houses of worship and other community orgs that feed them seem to follow along. I know it's sad to contemplate, but none of these things seem to laet forever, especially in this age of increasingly transient people and families.

Still, I love the geometry of this image. You composed it so artfully. You're right: the sky is a perfect backdrop. So rich and welcoming.

bluemountainmama said...

mary and jeremy were talking about that while they were here...how a lot of those churches in london and europe, in general, are dying out...i think it's sad, too....

Michael K. Althouse said...

A very blue sky indeed. I guess that the businesses in that building had better behave themselves!

Mike

Jacob Boll said...

you have great pictures and you always have something good to talk about.

Shammickite said...

Just browsing through your recent pictures, you have some great shots. I love the shot of father and son on the way to the Museum. Regarding the church.... yes, it's sad that it no longer has a congregation to sustain it. There are a number of old churches here that have been made into private homes, and also some churches that have been sold to other congregations e.g. Chinese or Korean. In face one of the churches in this small town has been sold to an Egyptian Coptic Christian congregation.

Anonymous said...

Great shot Anna. It is sad that congregations are dying all over. Yet new ones are being born. As I mentioned in an earlier post my family has recently made the switch to a small Church from a big one. It is the best thing we ever did. I see the struggles a small Church has to deal with, but perhaps there is hope yet.

Ash said...

Beautiful church...love the blue sky!

photowannabe said...

Beautiful picture Anna. The roof has such a great texture. I find it a sad commentary on things when churches close for the wrong reasons. As your title says, we have to keep faith.

Anonymous said...

The blue sky catches your attention. An all around nice shot.

John Roberts said...

First of all, I love the composition you chose. Very nice!

Some churches seem to lose their fire and their sense of purpose after a while. They become social clubs, and as members die or move away, there is no replenishment. Newer churches spring up often because people feel unable to serve and evangelize as they should in older, established churches. I have seen this pattern played out wherever I have lived.

Anonymous said...

Ok, I'm coming to London JUST to walk around & take pictures with you! ha! I wouldn't even THINK to take pictures of the stuff you do..and they turn out amazing! I guess that's why I don't do photography huh? hehe

the banana anna =)

Lori Schmidt (LoriProPhoto) said...

Hi Anna

It is sad, while I was living in London I remember seeing old churches being used as storage houses and warehouses. Such a pity as there is so much beauty in those old buildings and when you consider England's history with religion (a god fearing nation) it is a shame to see so many turning away from it.

I love London's blue skies in the winter. When the sun shines in winter it may be cold but the skies are beautiful.

Nice composition too.

Lori

Oya said...

Brown and blue makes a beatiful composition. Nice photo Anna, as usual...

CG said...

Fabulous sky and great composition. An old chapel near us has just been converted to apartments but it was because a bigger church had to be built for the expanding congregation :)

Kaycee said...

I really like the contrast between the blue sky and the old church!

Anonymous said...

Anna it is sad to see a church building convert to use for something other than worship and faith. However really the church is the people within those walls, not the walls themselves. Hopefully the church that met in that building has dispersed and reappeared in other buiding to continue thier worship and share their faith with others.