Silencing of the bells in Phoenix, Bishop convicted. My, how we've fallen..

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Was the Church wrong?

  • Church bells, music/chanting from Mosques should be protected within reason

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    12
  • Poll closed .

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Neighbors file noise complaint about church bells | LOCAL NEWS | Arizona | azfamily.com


Neighbors file noise complaint about church bells

More Phoenix Local News

09:36 AM Mountain Standard Time on Wednesday, May 13, 2009

By 3TV


Bishop in court

May 12th, 2009

Neighbors file noise complaint about church bells -

- A religious leader went before a judge Tuesday morning to face criminal charges regarding his church bells.

The bells at the Cathedral of Christ the King chime every hour from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Some neighbors near 29th Avenue and Greenway Road complained the bells were too loud so they filed a noise complaint.

Bishop Rick Painter said he has received support from other neighbors who enjoy the sound.

However, a judge ruled in favor of the neighbors and Painter will appear in court next month to hear his sentence.


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This is not good, what are your thoughts?

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I would vote the second option, but I can't spell grammatical errors so I voted the first. :wink:

We've had a couple of issues like this here, where a Bishop rang the bells at 6.30 am each morning. I can understand if people complain about that, but 8 am? The bells there now ring from 7 am btw.

It's just part of our heritage, our culture, I don't think we should mess with that.
 
I wouldn't mind the bells, but that ugly ass building is another thing. :yuck:
 
Personally I love church bells but if I were a night shift worker and my main sleeping hours were during the day, it would be tough to take every hour on the hour.
 
do the bells by wi-fi

let the members or people that want to hear them have the amplification inside of their homes, only
 
do the bells by wi-fi

let the members or people that want to hear them have the amplification inside of their homes, only

Oh! Better yet -- implant a little chip in those who want to hear the bells, so it rings right inside their own heads! They could have their own little concert. :)

:hmm: I had an uncle who was sure the army had implanted a radio in his teeth...maybe they could use that technology?
 
Hmm, I've never lived anywhere where the local churches did this.

I understand ringing the bells before and after services, but what's the point in ringing them at other times? Does it serve some actual religious purpose?
 
Well, originally church bells served the purpose of signalling the full hour when people didn't have other clocks, and to call to the service. But today I would say it's just tradition anymore.
Most church bells here don't ring every full hour anymore. Some only at weekends 12 o'clock and in other parts every day at that time.
 
The church nearby my father's friend's shorehouse in South Jersey rings like this. It's fucking loud. It's not actual bells, also, it's a bell-like sound rang through the kinds of speaker/horns you'd find at a fire company.
 
I can understand if people complain about that, but 8 am? The bells there now ring from 7 am btw.
Not everyone is on the same schedule, there are daysleepers...



This is not good, what are your thoughts?

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1. They aren't even real bells...:down:

2. Why every hour?

3. Has anyone actually measured the decibel level, are they too loud?

4. Would the church still use the "freedom of speech" argument if their neighbor played loud hip hop during their services?

I think it's fashionable for churches to yell free speech in the name of victimhood, but if the tables were turned they would be the first filing charges.
 
Well, originally church bells served the purpose of signalling the full hour when people didn't have other clocks, and to call to the service.

I think I even heard that the people in the village all keep on the same schedule by setting their clocks to the bells.



this really has nothing to do with religious freedom
 
Yes, and if you travel around Europe, particularly in small villages in Italy, this is still commonly done. I think it's kind of charming, to be honest. I'm not sure how I'd feel if I lived next to one, though, so I'll reserve judgment.
 
The first clocks had to be wound up every few hours. So of course they weren't greatly reliable. And of course generally not affordable for peasants or other poor households. Alternatively you could use sun clocks but of course it's not as precise. So clock towers and bells were the best way to keep everyone's clock correct.
It's also not only churches that have clock towers and bells. Town halls, parliaments and other public buildings, even some schools, have at least clocks and often even bells. Big Ben, for example, is the clock tower of the parliament. But in villages the churches were the only buildings big enough, and since they apparently had to compensate for other things churches were always built on top of the highest point in the village.
 
rock n roll aint noise pollution. church bells, though? hells yeah... wait, no.

any noise which is above an acceptable residential restriction level is too much.
 
My thinking is ring the church bells reasonably, which means:

-not every hour, maybe 2 -3 times a day.
-not so loud it would wake up people trying to nap during the days.

I think compromise was needed from both sides, and could have been achieved, but now the Bishop has the potentail of a jail sentence.

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Not everyone is on the same schedule, there are daysleepers...


.

That's true, and I can see that being annoying. Perhaps real good earplugs can fix that?

And I didn't realise these weren't real bell sounds. :huh: Kinda odd they're faking it. If it's just digital, just turn the volume down a bit.
 
Hmm, I've never lived anywhere where the local churches did this.

I understand ringing the bells before and after services, but what's the point in ringing them at other times? Does it serve some actual religious purpose?

Not really anymore, I mean it's sort of like a clock chime on the hour but these days most people have their own clocks :wink: The church I have in mind I think does it more as a historical thing - old church with a long history, yadda yadda. On Sundays they ring out hymns.

I actually like them and don't mind. They must be dang loud really annoy or even wake somebody. I hear much louder noises from houses next door or kids outside. The tornado siren practices are much MUCH louder (granted they only run once a month) though still not loud enough to wake me since last time they went off in the night for real I didn't wake up.

I guess if they really are too loud, then turn them down and/or ring less often. But I wouldn't ban them simply because they are "church" bells.
 
Ugggh, my college had bells that chimed every hour in addition to a glockenspiel version of popular oldish songs. "My Favorite Things" is one that I remember and a few others from the Sound of Music. The bells were loud enough. It was really annoying if you were anywhere in the area, so I definitely sympathize.

I doubt he's going to serve jail time/pay a huge fine, or very little of either if he does. This is just one of those "principle of the thing" sentences. If they let him get away with noise pollution then that opens up a loophole to the law.
 
so, i'm reading the title of the thread again, and now i'm confused -- who fell? did someone fall from the bell tower? is that why this is an issue?
 
There's a church behind my parent's house. A few years ago when I was home for Christmas, a few times a day they had an extended loop of electronic bells playing Christmas carols.

That would have been fine and dandy and even pleasant ... had the electonic bells not been out of tune and with a really unpleasant tone. It was laughably horrible. Thankfully, it was only once or twice a day for a time during the holiday season.
 
There've been disputes in neighborhoods of several US cities over the local mosque's calls to prayer being too loud, too. And this isn't the first church to draw complaints for its 'bells' being too loud. Based on the video embedded in the article diamond linked, it sounds like the real problem in this case was that the bishop chose to respond nose-thumbingly to the first complaint and do nothing, rather than attempt to work out some sort of compromise.
 
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