Tuesday, December 20, 2022

So, What Do You Do With Old Churches...?


 We'd seen the building before, but it wasn't until last summer that I took a second look. When driving by, you see that it's another aging building, and by driving by slower, you can tell it's an old church. However, if you turn off the road and check out the south side of the building, you'll notice something not found in many buildings...

Huge holes in the side of the building.

And parked in those holes is farm equipment.

The building, once used as a church, is now a garage.

I think many of us have a thing for old buildings, especially old churches. My childhood church was over 100 years old when we moved into town (and that was more than 50 year ago...). Sure, it had been upgraded and remodeled time and time again. Today, it's still in use. Sure, it has its quirks, but I love that building. When we moved we were fortunate enough to be assigned to another old church--not quite as old (only 100 years old...), but old. I love that church, too.

This church-converted-to-barn building is interesting. I wonder, when it was abandoned, did anyone want it? I know several churches have been purchased and converted as meeting houses for other denominations, and even a few have been turned into private residences--usually with mixed results.

In many ways, I'd love to live in an old church, especially the ones in Utah. Most LDS churches have kitchens and basketball courts. That would be fun. What wouldn't be fun is the conversion of a church into a home. Imagine just trying to keep out mice in a structure that big--best to get a couple of cats.

I suppose no one wanted to live in this church, no other religions wanted it so it eventually became a sanctuary for birds, other small animals, and farm equipment. Even so, I'm glad it's still around.

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