In terms of the theme of this web essay, People and the Land, only a few rituals or "ritual complexes" are related to the larger theme. These rituals are those that significantly involve the "land" including streams and the products of the land. Among these rituals are baptisms, church raisings, burials, revivals, and--in recent decades--recreation.
Before the advent of water-tight baptismal tanks with heated water in many Baptist and some Methodist churches, it was the practice of rural Christians to baptize--even if using only the methods of pouring or sprinkling--in a stream or pond nearby the church. The occurrence of so many creek and river names among rural churches suggests the importance of locating the church near a source of baptismal waters. River imagery is also an important component of nineteenth century southern protestant hymnody.
Some Franklin County and nearby area churches with water course names include:
Another ritual complex of importance for People and the Land is the older practice that was referred to as "church raising." A church raising was the gathering of a group of people in rural community to build--or raise up the walls of--a church. Churches are among the first permanent buildings of frontier or settlement communities and were typically build by volunteer labor. In the customary fashion, when it had been determined to build a church, word was sent out setting a day or several days for building the church. The aggregated labor of dozens of volunteers was often enough to build an entire log church in a single day. The frame churches that came a decade or so later with the advent of sawmills, might take several days to frame and raise. During the construction of the church, the families of the workmen would gather for social purposes and would prepared the ample food for the workers. The construction, if extended over several days, might be interspersed with singings, preaching, and bible instruction.
The scene of a church raising was a noisy, busy area as workers cut logs, sawed boards, hewed logs or timbers to fit, and as trim wood was nailed into place. If the church were built of logs cut from the surrounding forest, draft animals were used to draw the logs to the church site. Often the building of a church also involved the clearing of a space around the church and some workmen would be involved in felling trees and opening up the forest immediately around the church. The new church for several years would exist in a clearing where there would be dozens if not hundreds of stumps. Eventually the stumps would rot away or would be dug out, but in the interim, they were often sawed flat and used for tables or benches for picnic lunches.
Another aspect of church ritual that involved the land was the building of what were sometimes called "brush arbors." These structures were pavilions made by constructing an overhead frame out of saplings or small trees which was then covered over with "brush" or tree boughs. Logs placed in a parallel row served as seats. Brush arbors were sometimes constructed for use while a church raising was going on. Although the brush arbor would not give complete shelter in a downpour, it would give some shelter in a mist or light rain. The main purpose of the brush arbor, however, was to give protection from the sun. Brush arbors were often constructed annually in the spring or early summer just outside of a church and were used to escape the summer heat of the interior of the church. On occasion, the pews of the church would be moved from the church into place under the arbor. During summer revivals or "all day meetings" the brush arbors offered some respite from the midday heat.
Although brush arbors are emotionally associated with the memory of rural churches as well as with the powerful emotions of summer revivals, they have generally been replaced by more permanent structures. Many rural churches now have a picnic pavilion [link] which consists of a concrete pad, unenclosed pole or timber frame, and a sheet metal roof. Though most often used for church picnics, the pavilions are sometimes still used in the fashion of the brush arbors for outdoor services during the summer months.
The final ritual complex that involves the land is the important practice of burial. As frontier communities became more settled and began to coalesce around the centering institution of a church, churchyard burials began to supplement and eventually replaced most domestic or houseyard burials. In older churches the cemetery might have started some way distant from the church, but over time might have come to fill most of the churchyard. Most rural church cemeteries are less than an acre in size, but a few churches can be found with very large cemeteries. Cemeteries, next to the church itself, are the most visually prominent way that churches occupy the land around them.
The recent decades have seen the addition of recreation provisions to the site elements of rural churches. If the church is in an area where church-league softball is prominent, the church may construct its own softball diamond on church grounds. Other recreational land uses of churches include campsites and permanent picnic areas.
Other forms of church-related land use must note the creation of parking lots and the occasional creation of figurative or devotional gardens around the church. In Winchester, much of the available weekday parking contiguous to the prime business district consists of the parking lots of the Cumberland Presbyterian, Episcopal, First Baptist, and United Methodist churches.