Abandoned Churches

Interesting, but sad to see.

I am not surprised. Buildings are made by people and need people to take care of them. Buildings disintegrate quickly once abandoned. Perhaps, archeologists will study them 2,000 years from now. Populations shift and we are entering a post-religious era for many reasons.

Touching photos that remind me that the church is people, not a building. I find beauty even in these buildings of various decay.

Interesting to think about all the Roman buildings abandoned, or repurposed, or just cannibalized during the so-called Dark Ages. Purpose-built structures unused for lack of interest. Or the ruins of the English abbeys that Henry VIII "dissolved."

Years ago we spent some days in St-Aignan, a town in the Loire country with a big beautiful Gothic church, not abandoned but obviously much diminished in use, where a circuit-riding priest showed up on a schedule to say mass. In the crypt were some amazing wall paintings that looked medieval, no signage or protection, no apparent current use of the space. Some of the photos in this article reminded me of that place.

I also find it sad to see once vibrant buildings now abandoned and decaying. I've been following a couple of YouTube sites for "urban explorers" and Cathedrals are only one of the types of buildings they explore - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r445lX1QGLw . It's also sad to see multi-million dollar homes and even a few castles in Europe that have been empty for years, sometimes with all the furniture and belongings still there.

There are so many ways to look at these things and the emotional side. There’s “All things come to pass.”
There’s the matter of putting so much into material things. Then, there’s the sense of creativity, beauty, power, dominance, long -term (though, not forever) enduring qualities, and utilitarian function of buildings.

In the end, everyone can find a justification for his/her opinion and will go with it.

Then, there are those who are tired; don’t want to debate; or are simply content and at peace who take the - “It is what it is” stance.

My mom's family are DonauSchwaben from now-Serbia. The villages of the Vojvodinja, the area of Serbia north of Beograd which shifted from Austria-Hungary to Serbia in 1923, used to be Catholic or Lutheran, but now are orthodox. The Catholic or Lutheran churches were abandoned during the communist time, and now are ignored. In many of these small villages, the churches are the most dominant building, but are being allowed to decay and fall apart. They have signs next to them saying "Be careful - stuff can fall off and injure you". In the town my g-grandma was born in, Savino Selo (once Torschau), there is a hole in the roof the size of a human being, which allows wind and rain to come in. It's a shame.

Hey Jeff,
I think repurposing buildings is the best for the long term survival of any building. If the catholic community is no longer active and cannot care for the building, then converting it into a wedding/funeral chapel for general use for the public makes good sense. Other uses - music hall, banquet hall, town hall. I can even see holding court in an old church. Better to repurpose than lose a beautiful building. Sometimes the cost of renovation is prohibitive and not practical.

Hi Jeff,
Maybe a couple of religions could share the building? At least Christians are uniting in the graveyard!
It’s a start for ecumenism. (I’m joking with you here.)

In France the religious buildings have been owned by the government since the Revolution. They are locked due to the theft of statues and other objects. Some are open only briefly, and sometimes you have to find the person with the key and ask them to open it for you.

I was surprised by these photos because objects haven't been removed, much of which is usually stolen and sold. Are the buildings still consecrated or not? Are they open once a month when the rotating priest is conducting services in this particular place or not at all? Many communities can't afford the upkeep of these old buildings.

I'm in a 400 year-old building this winter and when the wind blows out of the Alps, the buidling's sandstone blocks leave traces of sand all over the floor. People have to vacuum daily. So there are really two issues: who is going to keep up these old stone structures in small villages with small populations, and second, the author's has expressed his personal lament that people in Western Europe aren't filling churches anymore.

For those interested in the renovation topic:
Robin Ellis, who played Ross Poldark in the 1970s version of the Poldark TV series, lives in France. He and his wife “inherited” a church with their rectory property. Mr. Ellis has posted about the church and interior work from time to time on his blog.

https://robin-ellis.net/2017/09/15/the-key-to-the-church/

Search “church” to see more blog posts on his website.

I think an old, small church could make a lovely office or library.
The article the OP referenced - the author stated that he was a non-practicing Christian. Traditional religions are declining for many reasons. Also, communities change and populations shift. That’s why there are so many empty churches. It’s happening here in the USA as well.

Binge watching "Time Team." A super long running BBC program. Some how they got permissions to dig around all manner of places we have visited. And, Oh so fun, to watch. :)