Pages

Thursday, 5 October 2023

Christianity from the 43 bus: 3. Dress Smart

Continuing a Christian journey on London's no 43 bus! (for others in the series click on the 43 bus tab)

Into Muswell Hill the 43 bus passes the Church which I work in, but we'll ignore that and look at the next church building it passes.

For sure it looks like a church building, albeit one whose flint-clad walls might more appropriately belong in a Scottish seaside town.  This is, however, not entirely fanciful as it was built to be Muswell Hill Presbyterian Church, representing Scotland's major ecclesiastical form.

It is a restaurant (and its Sunday School rooms now apartments).  This indignity must be put in the context that apparently, for several earlier years before my time here, it was a Harngey Council storage area.  Or to put it another way, a junk yard.

In between it was a pub-restaurant and for a while we held midweek Bible studies in one corner of it.  This felt like a nice resumption of its original purpose.  I find closed churches a constant irritant so you can imagine how often this one negatively impacts me!

In its current iteration it has a fascinating warning on its entrance:


We kindly ask all our guests to honour a smart casual dress code or dress to impress

Mmm.  In fairness, the Presbyterian door steward of former years likely held a similar view or perhaps more severe.  Nevertheless I have yet to see a church that places such a notice on its doors (well, head coverings for women) - and I hope I never will.  The Gospel is for everyone.

No comments: