Church bells

Yes. I think a lot of people are confusing bell ringing from a church with a clock, which may or may not have anything to do with the church, sounding the hours. The clock will be mechanical and could probably be silenced between certain hours.

During practices, they silence the bells (somehow). You can't hear anything from outside, but do hear a thumping inside the church, which you get used to the minute you realise what it is.
they're 'muted' by putting pads inside the bells

Actually op that’s a brilliant idea. It’s quite fun - and not bad exercise.

The secret is to join them. The bells are much quieter inside the tower than outside. We are always on the lookout for new recruits.

Our bells ring for about 20 minutes before each morning service - not continuously before, during and after!

During practices, they silence the bells (somehow). You can't hear anything from outside, but do hear a thumping inside the church, which you get used to the minute you realise what it is.

We have ringing for weddings, but again, just about 10-20 minutes before and after the service.

The long rings are peals, which take place on Saturday mornings about 4 times a year. It seems to be a national, competitive thing. These last for 3 hours, and use all 10 of our bells.

Funnily enough, almost all of our ringers are not Christian, including the tower captain. There is only one that regularly comes into the service, and is fully immersed in the life of the church.

As a bell ringer I struggle to believe that they rang for 5.5 hours non-stop. The normal maximum, which is the exception rather than the norm, is a peal which would be 3 hours long. I know no ringers who would be able to ring for that long (or want to). Occasionally very dedicated ringers do strange things but in places chosen where it won’t cause upset - churches in London with few local residents nearby, Oxford where there are bells ringing all the time from different churches, towers in isolated rural settings with no neighbours other than cows.

The norm is 1-1.5 hours practice per week on a set day and at a set time, and 45 minutes before a service on Sundays.

I love hearing church bells but not at 8am or 5 hours solid at a time. That would dirve me bonkers too.

Bought not brought

Bought= buy
BRought = bring

Maybe people shouldn't be allowed to post such utterly miserable sentiments

Oh yes, of course it's constant between 0800 and 1100 every Sunday. Because that's what church people do. Except they don't.

Surely that's the clock?

The ringing for occasions is different

@BarbaraHoward

I didn't see that the OP was in a hostel. I just read the post about the church bells and causing stress and anxiety. Apologies for my crass post.
I presumed the OP moved into a house next to a church (which would be the most likely thing which is why I assumed.) but I can see that's not the case, so apologies.

Yabu.
i’m an atheist and have no interest in church at all.
it’s ridiculous though when a church has rung its bells for hundreds of years and then people move to a house within earshot of that and complain!

the church near my childhood home chimes every 15 mins with a longer ringing on the hour. Day and night. Then loads and loads on Sundays, weddings, special occasions.
you either get so used to it that you don’t notice or like it.
we had people move in to a house right next to the church (about 10 meters away!) and complain about the bells!! Complete insanity!!

Your misspelling of 'allowed' makes your post funny, but the rest of it is miserable. Live your life, and let others live theirs. It's not all about you.

She's living in a hostel. Going to guess her baseline levels of stress and anxiety are pretty high ATM and it doesn't take much to raise them. Some compassion for someone in a very difficult situation wouldn't go amiss.

Were they ringing for longer last weekend for rememberence?
How has it been today?

If that message had been posted you would have been justified in calling it out, but since @NameChangeHelpPls obviously quickly thought better of it and didn’t post it, there’s nothing to "own" and I don’t understand why you’re so keen to criticise.

Staunch atheist but love the church bells - and I live less than 50 metres from the bell tower.

Sunday services, weekday practice (3 hours - with break in the middle), weddings/christenings/funerals, visiting ringers etc - lots and lots of bells.

Luckily the local team are very good, I did live next to a church where the number 4 bell was invariably a bit late coming in and that did used to drive me slightly nuts (very political appointment of bell ringer no.4... turned out I wasn't the only person wincing over it).

OP - headphones or move.

I was a bell ringer and trust me, it is HARD work. 5.5 hours is blatantly an exaggeration, even for national celebrations like a Royal wedding. It’s never that long.

There will be bell ringing before a service on a Sunday morning, but again, not for the length of time you describe. It stops when the service starts.

There is bell ringing practice one evening a week, and again, nowhere near the length of time you are quoting.

Other than the odd wedding, that’s about it.

I think rather than focusing on the bells you need to focus on your perception of them and handling of it. Scale down the hours you quote to a realistic amount of time, get headphones, find something else to do while they are ringing.

Your problem is really something else, not the bells, or you wouldn’t be in a hostel. I hope you get things sorted and back on an even keel.

As a bell ringer..it's an art, skill and a lovely hobby

The church was there before you

“Do you have a religious objection to hearing an unmistakably “Christian” sound?”

How was that posted in error? That’s one hell of an accident to write all that which is coincidently subject related. My guesses are that you posted that thinking you were being clever, read the updates from the OP and realised how foolish you look and decided to try and delete it.

If you’re going to try and be snarky to people on the internet who are having an unpleasant time in life at least have the courage to own it. 🙄

Were they perhaps hosting a competition or had a wedding? It does sound like an unusual amount of ringing on the Sunday. Maybe it won't be that much every Sunday.

Yep, once again. I have never known Church bells ring to this extent either. And like you, I have lived in many places. City, town, and village. Also been to a number of countries and THEY don't have such long bellringing times either.

That does sound far too excessive. I'd contact the church ask them to reduce to half an hour on a Sunday morning which is surely more the norm.

If they refuse then contact the council, your MP, local papers see if you can get people on board. That is absolutely far too much bell ringing.