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March 7, 2014

The Unfinished Church

27 Comments/ 2933/ 0

P1010272One of my favorite stops on our recent trip to Bermuda was to visit the quaint town of St. George’s.  We had a lovely time strolling around the very quiet town on a warm and sunny day and were thrilled to be able to visit so many of the historic and beautiful places that were within walking distance.  Since our visit was timed in the off season for the island we did not have to fight crowds of people and it really was the most wonderful way to visit the island.P1010270

Being part of a church family does not always work out exactly as planned as the parishioners of this particular congregation found out.  The “story” of the unfinished church is a complicated one.  Seems the congregation decided to build a replacement for St. Peter’s Church in 1874 but due to a series of events including disagreement among the church members (Imagine!  Church members disagreeing!!!) and storm damage the building of the structure was halted and never completed.  P1010273

What did happen was that the Bermuda National Trust stepped in and worked to stabilize the crumbling structure so that it has become a tourist stop and wonderful place to photograph an interesting architectural wonder.  The ruins are just that–ruins—and the public is not allowed inside the actual church but there is plenty to view from the outside.

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Someone obviously has a good sense of humor when it comes to naming streets in this town, don’t you think?P1010281

Now I bet you are all wondering about the existing St. Peter’s Church, aren’ t you?  I will give you a sneak preview —we did see it also and it was amazing.P1010213

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27 Comments

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  1. treadlemusic
    March 07, 2014 at 06:20 am

    And the ruins will become more interesting as the trees/vegetation grows up around it!!! Really neat!!!!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 06:58 am

      It was really neat. We almost did not go to see it because the people we talked to talked like it was really far to walk to. However their idea of distance was much different than ours, thank goodness!

      Reply
  2. The Presents of Presence
    March 07, 2014 at 06:58 am

    Wow beautiful! Love the photos and the history! 🙂

    Reply
  3. georgettesullins
    March 07, 2014 at 07:22 am

    Interesting timing of this post. Imagine a gothic style church in Bermuda started in the 1800’s. Natonal Trusts for Historic Preservation certainly are at work.

    Just last weekend our church celebrated the debt retirement of our education building. It made me think of “unfinished churches” such as Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Westminster Cathedral (not Abbey) with its unfinished interior, St. John the Divine in NYC. How can such beautifully conceived structures not reach completion? Wars, money, political interference of all kinds. It made me grateful that our little church in comparison could see something from start to finish. However, who knows God’s plan? Are these structures just physical metaphors reminding us to get on with the job, preferably harmoniously? Perhaps my view regarding our church is naive…there is much struggle and a lot of work to do in our world as you remind us of with your “Cause” blog posts. Excellent post!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 07:30 am

      Thanks so much! It is a huge undertaking for a church to make the commitment to build and then to stick with it. I have been in several congregations that undertook building projects that did not quite go as planned for various reasons. Thanks for sharing your story of your church!

      Reply
  4. Joanna graham
    March 07, 2014 at 08:15 am

    Great picture of the unfinished church. Jeff and I were at that exact se place in the fall of 2012 and everything you have said about Bermuda is just as we experienced it. You tell it so much better than I do. I think you need to be a storybook writer because you tell about your adventures in such a wonderful way. Don’t ever stop what you are doing, I sooo love to read about them. Until next time…..

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 09:06 am

      You totally made my day, Joanna! My BFF from Mooresville just sent me pics from her honeymoon album as that is where they went 30 years ago!!! We all experienced a lot of the same things and how cool is that?

      Reply
  5. Minnesota Prairie Roots
    March 07, 2014 at 08:17 am

    Imagine how beautiful this church would have been upon completion. But there’s still a beauty to the ruins. I’ll await the tour of the non-folly church.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 09:05 am

      The other church is beautiful and I spent a lot of time exploring the outside where there is a cemetery as well as the inside. Pretty amazing place and somehow not what I expected to find in Bermuda for some reason.

      Reply
  6. Darlene
    March 07, 2014 at 08:43 am

    I love your pictures of the church ruins. It’s so sad it was never completed and used as it should. I think there are many stories there inside those walls.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 09:04 am

      I bet there are a million stories that surround this structure—if only those stones could talk.

      Reply
  7. Pix Under the Oaks
    March 07, 2014 at 08:46 am

    Great clicks Beth Ann! Such beautiful stone work. And the arch windows.. so pretty. The exisitng church looks charming. A sneak preview.. ? Fun!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 09:04 am

      It was a beautiful sunny day and the perfect day for taking snappies of this wonderful structure.

      Reply
  8. Jennifer Flaa (@JeniEats)
    March 07, 2014 at 09:57 am

    That church is beautiful and you take such nice photos. Abandoned buildings are fascinating.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 11:19 am

      Thanks! It was a really neat place and my BFF just sent me pictures of her there on her honeymoon 30 years ago which was pretty neat!

      Reply
  9. behindthemask
    March 07, 2014 at 11:40 am

    There’s so many parallel’s there in that story eh?! I love the pics. I love looking at ruins.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 12:43 pm

      There is something so intriguing about the ruins and the story of the church. It was such an amazing visit.

      Reply
      1. behindthemask
        March 07, 2014 at 01:11 pm

        I believe it, I got lost in your story and the pics, so I can imagine being there was quite the experience. 🙂

        Reply
  10. Thread crazy
    March 07, 2014 at 05:00 pm

    What a magnificent structure and so sad the church never reached completion. If walls could talk, just imagine the stories it would tell us. Looks like you had a wonderful trip and so glad you’ve shared it with us.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 07, 2014 at 05:12 pm

      Thanks! It was such a neat place to visit and I am so glad that people enjoyed seeing my pictures of it. I imagine there were a lot of stories that surrounded it!

      Reply
  11. Helen Brown
    March 07, 2014 at 05:44 pm

    These were beautiful pictures and so glad you got to enjoy your vacation.

    Reply
  12. Rorybore
    March 08, 2014 at 04:59 pm

    beautiful architecture — such a shame it’s not in use. but it certainly does make for great photo ops!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 08, 2014 at 05:01 pm

      It is a very popular photo spot –several people have told me they have been there and taken shots, too. It is a beautiful place but sad, too.

      Reply
  13. benzeknees
    March 10, 2014 at 05:22 pm

    Looks lovely!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann
      March 10, 2014 at 09:11 pm

      It was a really neat place to visit, let me tell you. I could have spent a lot longer there walking around.

      Reply
  14. Their Majesties Chappell – It's Just Life
    March 28, 2014 at 06:03 am

    […] in Bermuda that was left unfinished that we fell in love with.  You can check that post out by clicking here.  The church that was left unfinished was supposed to replace St. Peter’s Church which is the […]

    Reply
  15. Stones With History – It's Just Life
    April 03, 2014 at 06:00 am

    […] Bermuda we toured St. Peter’s Church (you can read my post here) and the Unfinished Church (you can read that post here).  Both were beautiful examples of architecture and craftsmanship and the bonus for me was that […]

    Reply

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