Chris and I love visiting old churches, the older and more historic the better. We enjoy seeking out churches with Anglo-Saxon crosses, Viking remains and Pre-Raphaelite windows, as well as lots of other features. Over the years, and our visits to many churches, we have particularly enjoyed squint holes, which allow the congregation to see the high altar; boxed pews, these are a huge weakness of mine, and beautiful reredos. We’ve seen towers, glorious carvings, rich tapestries, west galleries and even paintings.
There is so much to look at in a church, so much history to uncover and nooks and crannies to explore. In a small church on Morecambe Bay, near Ulverston, I spotted an original drawing of the Great Urswick cross by W G Collingwood. An original Collingwood, I was quite overcome!
It was only recently that I became aware that there is a phrase to describe our hobby, and that is "church crawling"! It seems that John Betjeman coined the phrase in a radio broadcast in 1948. He maintained that "for those who have eyes and ears and imagination" every church is of interest. As Betjeman further remarked: "the old churches of England are the story of England. They alone remain islands of calm in the seething roar of what we now call civilisation. They are not backwaters… but strongholds."
We will continue with our fascinating hobby and seek out interesting and unusual churches whenever and wherever we can.