St Ethelburga's Bishopsgate
| St Ethelburga's Bishopsgate | |
|
London, Middlesex | |
|---|---|
 Current church building | |
| Church of England | |
| Diocese of London | |
| Location | |
| Location: | 51°30’56"N, 0°4’56"W |
| History | |
| Information | |
| Website: | stethelburgas.org |
St Ethelburga-the-Virgin within Bishopsgate is a Church of England church in the City of London, located on Bishopsgate near Liverpool Street station.
In 1993 an IRA bomb severely damaged the church and once the building was rebuilt and restored it re-opened as a Centre for Reconciliation and Peace.
The church is designated a Grade I listed building, and its reconstruction retains the listing.[1]
History
This structure is a rare survival of the City's mediæval churches, which were mostly destroyed during the Great Fire of London in 1666.[2] It is dedicated to St Ethelburga (Æthelburh) a 7th-century abbess of Barking Abbey; who was the sister of Ercenwald, a Bishop of London. Its foundation date is unknown, but it was first recorded in 1250 as the church of St Adelburga-the-Virgin. The dedication to "-the-Virgin" was dropped in Puritan times but was later restored.
The church was rebuilt in the 15th century – possibly around 1411 – and a small square bell turret was added in 1775.[3] A weathervane was added in 1671.[4] In order to raise revenue for the church, whose parish covered just three acres (12,000 m²), a wooden porch was built over its exterior in the 16th century to house two shops.[5] It underwent major changes in 1932, when Bishopsgate was controversially widened. The shops were demolished and the porch dismantled, revealing the façade of the church for the first time in centuries.
The church suffered modest bomb damage during the Blitz of the Second World War[6] and was restored in 1953. In 1993, the church was half destroyed in the 1993 Bishopsgate bombing, when a massive IRA bomb exploded 25 feet from the church, devastating Bishopsgate and causing an estimated £350 million worth of damage. An evangelical faction of the Church of England proposed to demolish St Ethelburga's in the aftermath but, following a sustained public outcry, it was rebuilt to its original plan, though much changed internally.
Description
The church's tiny interior comprises a nave and aisle divided by an arcade. Most of the original fittings were destroyed by the 1993 bombing [7] although they were not as old as the church, dating from the early 20th century, being the work of Ninian Comper. One of the more notable survivals is the curious 19th-century font,[8] which is inscribed with one of the longest known palindromes, written in Greek:
- ΝΙΨΟΝ ΑΝΟΜΗΜΑΤΑ ΜΗ ΜΟΝΑΝ ΟΨΙΝ
, which translates as "Cleanse [your] transgressions, not only [your] face".
Centre for Reconciliation and Peace
St Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation and Peace is a non-profit charity which aims to build relationships across divisions of conflict, culture and religion. Its work includes: a multi-faith conflict resilience programme, community reconciliation, the Narrative Practitioners Forum, Re-awakening the Sacred, an MA in reconciliation at Winchester University;[9] and several strands of cultural exchange work mentoring young adults into social action leadership roles.
The centre also runs a certificated three-day course in conflict coaching aimed at anyone dealing with workplace or personal conflict.[10]
The Centre also works with a social enterprise, Seasoned Events, for building/venue hire purposes.[11][12]
Every year the Centre organises a six-mile walk, 'The Ethelburga Walk', which links two historic sites associated with St Ethelburga of Barking: Barking Abbey and St Ethelburga's Centre.[13]
Outside links
References
- ↑ National Heritage List 1191603: Guild Church of St Ethelburga The Virgin, Bishopsgate
- ↑ Sandler, Corey (2007). Henry Hudson: Dreams and Obsession. New York City: Citadel Press. ISBN 978-0-8065-2739-0. https://archive.org/details/henryhudsondream00sand.
- ↑ Cobb, Gerald (1942). The Old Churches of London. London: B. T. Batsford.
- ↑ Piper, David (1964). The Companion Guide To London. London: Collins. p. 334.
- ↑ "The City Churches" Tabor, M. p33:London; The Swarthmore Press Ltd; 1917
- ↑ Tucker, Tony (2006). The Visitors Guide to the City of London Churches. London: Friends of the City Churches. ISBN 0-9553945-0-3.
- ↑ Hibbert, Christopher; Weinreb, Ben; Keay, John: 'The London Encyclopaedia' (Pan Macmillan, 1983) ISBN 978-1-4050-4924-5
- ↑ Pevsner, Nikolaus; Bradley, Simon (1998). London: the City Churches. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-09655-0.
- ↑ "MA Reconciliation at Winchester University". https://www.stethelburgas.org/ma-reconciliation-0.
- ↑ "St Ethelburga's Conflict Coaching". https://www.stethelburgas.org/training.
- ↑ O'Beirne, Sarah (12 June 2014). "Seasoned finds sanctuary in the city". Facilities Management Journal (kpm media). http://www.fmj.co.uk/seasoned-wins-peace-tranquility-city/.
- ↑ "Event Venue: Seventy Eight Bishopsgate". http://www.seasonedevents.co.uk/venues/seventy-eight-bishopsgate.
- ↑ "The Ethelburga Walk". Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140808184815/https://www.stethelburgas.org/walk.