to think that pews should remain in churches?

I don’t go to church so I guess I shouldn’t reply but there is something so majestic and solid feeling about pews Safe and strong Chairs just seem so ordinary and not part of the structure and although they might be more practical they are NOT symbolic of age, strength, wisdom and togetherness they are separate, they are mass produced they are flimsy so no I don’t like this idea at all

Churches with pews that are therefore empty six days a week because there is nothing else they can be used for. Or churches with movable chairs to provide space for their community seven days a week.

I know which I prefer. The "church" is not a building, it is the fellowship contained within.

The pews in my church were removed some time ago to make way for chairs, this has freed up a great deal of space for midweek activities, coffee morning, knit and natter, etc., so full use is made of this space. It was a good move and the church is well attended with the activities if not for the Services themselves.

EllanVannin the chairs in our local church have a shelf with a lip on the back of each chair, the person behind can put their hymn book etc in there.

The pews on another church I go to are extremely heavy to move every time they want to hold another activity there.

Bridgeit is spot on.
I had the idea that pews were also a safe piece of furniture to be able to get down on your knees to pray , where as a chair could cause a problem ?.
As I say ,it`s just a thought.

Our church is a traditional beautiful building but no pews. We have rows of chairs, many of which have a little grooved shelf on the back where you can put your hymn book etc if you want to and there are kneelers just underneath if you want to use those.

Our church is used for concerts and various fund raisers and we always have coffee served after the services which are usually full

Petra, that is wonderful to hear.

The people who use the building regularly should be free to choose what seating they have. People who just like to visit churches don’t really have a stake in the building. You wouldn’t tell someone not to get a new sofa because you like seeing the old one when you visit them.

Except that these are buildings which we hold in trust for future generations. I have no objection to some pews being removed and some space made, but something should be left otherwise we are little more than vandals. How can we explain how people attended and were seated in church if there is nothing to show?
I did think churches were supposed to welcome anyone seeking a spiritual experience not just accommodate a few.

For most of the time the churches have been around they have not had pews. Most pews date back to the 19th century and no earlier.

Churches have always adapted and changed their internal fixtures and fittings to meet their current needs and this is what is happening now. pews have outlived their usefulness and are being replaced by chairs.

I suspect that most of those so wistfully nostalgic about pews are not church attenders. But see churches as some kind of museum around for their delectation, not as lived in used buildings.

I live in an old house, but not as old as many churches. My house has every mod con from central heating and a modern plumbing and heating system and insulation.

If I want to see a house like mine looking as it was in any time before the present I go to an outdoor museum like the Weald and Downland Living Museum near Chichester. I do not look at the old houses like mine and bemoan the fact that they have gradually been adapted to meet modern living needs and now have running water, gas and electricity and comfortable upholstered chairs and beds.

The churches I sometimes attend, still have pews except the one which is used as a polling place.
That one is often used for concerts too.

The crematorium, where I seem to go all too often, has pews.
St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh sold off theirs in 2002. Pews aren't very versatile and they are heavy.
Sorry about your peace and quiet trisher but YABU

Our church has medieval pews, some with holes for tapers. The church has no running water and does not lock so cannot be used for some of the activities suggested. However the pews are one reason why we get visitors and we would be very sad if they were not there.

I live in an old house which is just as it was made for the most part a few changes but no central heating, no insulation, no garage beautiful fireplaces in the bedrooms curved stair bannister I have got a bathroom though which it didn’t have and I furnish it with up to date decoration and furniture Everyone who comes loves my house
I do understand that it’s better to use a building more than once a week and I thought that’s why most churches have a church hall but as I said I don’t go so maybe I m not on the ball with that, I just know most of the churches in my area have quite biggish halls

M0nica there are churches with central heating and electric lighting but these have been installed without changing the character of the building. Some churches have pews which date back to the 1700s. I do find it interesting that those who use churches for worship regularly seem to be unwilling to share the space with others who may find spiritual comfort there. Sometimes it does seem to be an Ango-Saxon issue. I have seen very few RC churches stripped of their pews. And the churches I visit abroad are usually intact. They seem to have incorporated visitors and realised they are valuable.

I attend a Quaker Meeting where we have chairs, with cushions available for anyone who needs extra padding. Our Meeting House is relatively new so is comfortable.
I don’t expect to visit a theatre, cinema or any other venue and sit on a hard straight backed bench. So I welcome the replacement of pews with cushioned chairs in churches which make church services a better experience.

I have yet to meet a church that is unwilling to share the space with others who may find spiritual comfort

Some have to be locked at times because of the high danger of vandalism, theft or desacration, but most are open all day for anyone who wants to visit. Church visiting is a family obsession and I have never been made to feel unwelcome anywhere.

When pews are removed it is usually, to make the church more flexible and welcoming, to enable it to hold concerts and theatre events, to hold social events and provide a welcome ministry for everybody.

There is a difference between a church welcoming visitors, who wander in, walk round vaguely and walk out and make no contribution to the upkeep of the building that is helping them pass their leisure hours in a pleasant way and a church that wants to be a social hub to the community it serves. You cannot run amother and toddler group in a church with pews.

Some churches do have church halls and the like, but not all. These are the ones most likely to keep their pews, but pews are merely furniture tat help a church meet its real purpose to life and if they come between the church community and its mission they are expendable.

I suppose my response is yes YABU as you suggest you don't attend a church! If congregations choose to change their seating arrangements that is their choice! Churches are primarily for worship and to support the church community. The fact that I like to look at them and admire architecture/art etc. does not mean I can get cross if the folk who use it regularly choose to change it!

I think exactly that attitude was taken by town planners at one point PECS when they tried (and succeeded sometimes) to destroy old towns and buildings. As I said entirely the opposite approach seems to be taken in other European countries. You rarely find a church which has been changed.

My DH would be very grateful for any church that offers chairs rather than pews. He has had to sit through several performances of the St Matthew Passion, the St John Passion etc. and has come out with a sore backside. I'm OK, I'm standing for most of it as part of the choir.

We are regular churchgoers, and love visiting churches but I can see no reason to keep the uncomfortable pews. Hassocks are not a 'thing' here in Germany.

In view of the fact that pews were deliberately designed to be uncomfortable (partly penance for cloistered orders, partly to keep them awake) I'm glad they are going.
They serve no useful purpose now.

Our church had no cushions, just bare, polished wood (I polished the dratted things every week) and they were deadly after sitting 15 mins and torture for an hour-long sermon.

In some mediaeval churches, they had 'mercy seats' (misericordia) and the monks-nuns would sit on the edge of the upturned seat (similar to old lift-up cinema seats but no padding) and if they fell asleep, the seat and they, would crash down and wake them and probably everyone else in church.
The older monks were given these seats, poor old things.

Ordinary pews had no mercy - but they looked good when a bit of elbow grease and some beeswax had been used on them.

Pews do tend to give you ants in your pants, especially if sitting through a long sermon.

I do wonder how many people posting have a garden bench they regularly sit on.

No

No

You can squash more people into pews

Very useful when it is Christingle or the nativity for instance and everyone wants to see their little darlings.