I am currently in a doctoral program, studying semiotics—cultural symbols—which requires a great deal of reading. Probably the greatest benefit of an education is the wise guide (teacher) who can give a curated tour of the best there is in any given subject, and such is the case with this program. Dr. Leonard Sweet has opened the door to an entire world of scholars and theologians who look beneath the surface of things and reveal mysteries. Now I would like to open that world to you.
Early on I came to trust the order of our book selections, as each builds on the ones that come before. Church Going lives up to that trust. I found this narrative delightful, enjoyable, and informative. Again, as I read along, pieces fell into place for me.
Musing on Yews
I have not read much about yews, even though I went (like all children) through a real King Arthur phase. That it was thought yews had special and ancient power makes sense. Trees live through generation after generation, providing a vital connection between centuries, and yews, evidently, come close to immortality in the way they regenerate.
People burying their dead near yew trees may have been a prehistoric practice for that reason, which may have led to the idea that yews absorbed the vapor of corrupting corpses (pp. 24, 133). I mean, trees do convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, so “forest bathing,” as the Japanese call it, is healthful.
I took a brief side excursus into the world of yews and discovered their pollen is, actually, toxic, so the Greeks were not wrong. Ziminski’s experience of being drugged to sleep as he rested beneath a yew tree did indeed come from the pollen, as he suspected.
Sacred Bees
I loved learning that bees have long been associated with churches (pp. 63, 133). I took an excursus into bees, too, and discovered there is evidence for beekeeping in Neolithic England. Evidently,
Bees symbolize hard work, unity, and spiritual guidance. They are seen as messengers between the physical and spiritual realms, representing personal transformation, resilience, and divine wisdom.
Hunters Fine Jewelry, Symbolism of Bees
In fact, throughout his book, Ziminski gained more and more of my affection and respect with his gentle love for all the creatures that inhabit church buildings—the bees, the larks, the pigeons, and the bats. Dove cotes are everywhere in ancient cities, but you have to know what you are looking at to recognize what they are. And sure enough, cathedrals had dove cotes.
True Sacrilege
During our previous two books on the history of English churches, I had been grieving all of what felt to me as such gratuitous violence and destruction by the Reformation. The Reformers imagined themselves, perhaps, righteous warriors in the spirit of ḥērem (a Hebrew term with multiple meanings, primarily revolving around the concept of exclusion, ban, or devotion to destruction), without any thought that Jesus ushers in the age of chesed (a Hebrew term used often to describe God’s divine love, the attribute of grace, benevolence, or compassion), which is why the writer of Hebrews explains that
Jesus has now obtained a more excellent ministry, and to that degree he is the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on the basis of better promises.
Hebrews 8:6 NRSVUE (boldface added)
So I stopped short when I read Ziminski’s words about
… the turnstile, the most sacrilegious object I have yet experienced in any church.
Andrew Ziminski, Church Going: A Stonemason’s Guide to the Churches of the British Isles,90
Even the destruction, in Ziminski’s estimation, was not nearly as sacrilegious as, perhaps, the selling of seats in church buildings. I wondered how the selling of seats (Protestant) was all that different from the selling of indulgences (Catholic). Both were fundraisers for earthly purposes, for the upkeep of buildings and the lifestyles of the wealthy as well as provision for military conflicts.
As I mused about that and read on, just a few pages later came St Bernard of Clairvaux’s words, “O vanity of vanities! …” referring to all the gold and finery of a cathedral and its clerics (p. 94). This is one of two things that has bothered me for decades, but I had set aside so I could immerse myself in these books about the semiotics of church architecture and furnishings.
Aching Irony
My husband Dave and I toured Italy back in the 1980’s, and had lined up visits to museums and cathedrals as part of our itinerary. About midway, we were in a cathedral staring with horrified fascination at the shriveled and mummified body of some long-dead saint, displayed in a glass enclosure, draped in brocades, with rings on most of their fingers, some sort of diadem on their skull, marveling at all the gold and precious gems. As we walked out of the cathedral, onto what I now know is the porch, on the steps was a very dirty and tiny old woman, with an empty basket beside her, mumbling and holding out her hand.
We of course emptied our pockets of lira, dumped it all in her basket, and promised each other we were done with cathedrals. We just did not have the stomach for it anymore, for a church that stored up its treasure in glass coffins and left the living to starve.
Myth-Busting
In fact, Ziminski did a little myth-busting all along the way.
Tower Facts
Round flint towers are stronger, he writes, they last longer. It is not that the masons were unable to do square corners, because they did them all over the place (p. 114).
And why towers everywhere? For the prosaic reason that a lord could not be a lord unless he had one (p. 115). Turns out, that is not a new rule. In the Ancient Near East, a king could not be a king unless he had a palace, was virile enough to produce children, and had a temple. Now we know, a little better, why temples were on David’s mind. He had moved the tabernacle and the ark, but it was not quite enough to really establish Israel, and himself, as legitimate among the surrounding nations.
Baptism Facts
I did not realize babies were exorcised on the porch before they were brought into the church building to be baptized, but it made me wonder if this was a carryover from the early church when catechumens were exorcised the night before they were baptized (Ziminski, p. 171; Kreider p. 178–182)?
Illiteracy Facts
The other thing that has bothered me for decades is this assertion that because the populace was largely illiterate, the church needed to put up paintings and stained glass to teach the Bible. Ziminski busts that myth.
- Being illiterate does not mean being unintelligent.
- And being identified as illiterate in medieval times meant one did not have a formal education. Most people could functionally read and write in their own language.
- Monasteries and churches promoted education.
(If you are curious, read more here.)
Instead, Ziminski explains that painted walls and glass offer (pp. 212–218)
- a shared religious experience.
- points of meditation and devotions.
- spiritual and practical support.
- moral guidance.
- prophetic warning of the judgment to come.
Sacred Rabbits
Just one more thing before I go.
Among all the too-many-to-list allusions in these church carvings and trappings is the three rabbits whose ears form one of the symbols for trinity (p. 180). I learned that actually, a white rabbit was sometimes depicted next to Virgin Mary as a symbol of immaculate conception because it was thought rabbits sometimes spontaneously conceived. It makes a person rethink the Easter Bunny, doesn’t it.
Honor and Respect
I love this book, and the tone of the author. Ziminski honors the faith and even superstitions of both the ancients and the people who use these church buildings today. He enjoys and respects each aspect of the art and artistry of these buildings and mourns the loss of their knowledge and skill. He is invested in both preserving the past and enjoying the present, while thinking hopefully of the days to come.
What an example to you and me.
He ends his book beautifully, in the crypt, a mysterious and serene setting, seemingly untouched for a thousand years and filled with a sense of God’s presence and peace.
