Skip to main content.
« Previous entry: Cartoon: Sermon illustrations | Main page | Next entry: How social media connects us all »

September 8th, 2011

Cartoon: Differing heights

differing heights

See the larger version of this cartoon here: Differing heights.

I, being towards the taller end of thingst, often feel awkward when I find myself in a central seat near the front in church (well, in truth I often feel awkward in any seat, but that is another story). This is because I’m certain I’m blocking those behind me from seeing the clip art on the overhead powerpoint. This cartoon is my attempt to provide solutions to this problem.

How about you? Are you among the blockers or the blocked? What solutions do you have to the problem? Please feel free to make any comments on this issue, one of the most pressing for today’s church. In preparation for the debate I have categorised this post under ‘in-depth analysis’.

I should mention that this, along with the other cartoons I’ve posted this week, is taken from the Canterbury Press book ‘The exciting world of churchgoing‘, now available with 10 (ten) % (percent) off.

15 Comments »



Share this on Facebook:

If you enjoyed this post you might also enjoy these (possibly) related articles:

If you liked this post why not send it to someone else by e-mail? Click here to do so.

This is a single post on the Cartoon Blog by Dave posted on Thursday, September 8th, 2011 at 7:30 pm. Click here to read all of the latest posts. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

Other things technologically advanced people may like to do: trackback from another site, follow responses via the comments feed, bookmark on del.icio.us or digg.

15 Responses to “Cartoon: Differing heights”


  1. JennyAnn says:

    _clearly_ the solution is careful height ordering, just as used to happen in school photographs. None of this willy nilly ‘sit where you want’ malarky – we need order!

    Tall people at the back, short at the front.

    September 8th, 2011 at 7:38 pm
  2. Sandie says:

    Thank you so much for addressing this serious problem. My husband and I are both petite Anglicans and often find our view of the hymn board blocked by taller worshippers. Our church has responded by arranging for the sidespersons to measure each person as they arrive, directing them to the correct pew in order of height. However we also suffer from having to look up at tall clergy, particularly Bishops, and will investigate your pit solution for the future.

    September 8th, 2011 at 7:42 pm
  3. Dave says:

    JennyAnn – I quite like the sound of this approach. It would be good for meeting new people, though I’d always be meeting slightly taller than average people. Also the policy could seem strange to, for instance, a taller newcomer invited to church on a date with a shorter regular.

    Sandie – Do you find you need a view of the hymn board during the whole service? Perhaps the hymn boards could be hauled up to a great height. I can see the problems associated with needing to look up to clergy.

    September 8th, 2011 at 8:49 pm
  4. Sarah B says:

    I think you’ll need some mirror contraption for the first solution otherwise the person in front won’t know how far to lean? But it would then have the benefit of allowing eye contact between shorter and taller people thus eliminating your concern about only meeting people of a similar height.

    September 8th, 2011 at 9:35 pm
  5. Phill says:

    The way some churches seem to solve this problem is by having an enormous screen so you can see every detail of the speaker’s face (or worship leader’s face etc) in minute detail. It’s not a pretty sight.

    I would recommend we move to an amphitheatre system, although I would not recommend the use of lions and swords at such events. Such things may discomfort some older members of the congregation.

    September 8th, 2011 at 10:12 pm
  6. claire says:

    I am 5 feet 1 inch tall; my partner is 6 foot 10. The solution: attend a really miserable church where the attendance is so poor that you have a choice of over 100 seats. We find this works well.

    September 8th, 2011 at 10:18 pm
  7. Peter Kirk says:

    As a taller man I have worked out exactly which seats in my church I can stand in without blocking anyone’s view – at the back, at the side, in front of pillars etc. When I am feeling charitable enough I find one of those to sit in.

    Or else I sit in front of an empty seat, giving someone else a chance to choose to sit behind me. That’s quite popular as lots of people want to be able to look round the church during sung worship or snooze during the sermon without being spotted from the front.

    September 8th, 2011 at 10:27 pm
  8. Brian says:

    Back to the future: use a pulpit for preaching (lifting up not only the gospel, but the preacher as well). Use hymn books for singing (with the musical notes included) and prayer books/service booklets for shared speaking. Use speaking and LISTENING to otherwise coney information (like notices and hymn numbers).
    There’s a fetish with seeing ‘cos we are forgetting how to listen. One should be able to enjoy a church service while sitting behind a pillar.

    September 9th, 2011 at 1:19 am
  9. Liz from the sewing room says:

    Phill, our church does indeed have an amphitheatre sort of arrangement, sanctuary is the shape of a 1/4 circle, with lectern, font, table etc at the pointy bit and pews arranged in sloping rows.

    Brian – listening is an issue, everyone can see in above arrangment, but people with hearing aids complain they cant here the preacher. This is because the seats they insist on sitting in each week are actually in a bad spot for the loop system though.

    September 9th, 2011 at 12:31 pm
  10. chris clark says:

    What’s powerpoint :-)

    September 9th, 2011 at 1:16 pm
  11. Margaret says:

    My husband is 11 inches taller than me so under some of these proposals we’d never sit together. Like Peter he always picks his seat for least inconvenience to others which usually means I’m stuck somewhere next to him where I cannot see very well! Ho Hum, at least we’ll all get a good view in heaven.

    September 9th, 2011 at 1:17 pm
  12. Maddy says:

    Economically speaking, I can foresee a rush to buy up old cinemas for consecration.

    September 9th, 2011 at 5:33 pm
  13. Ash says:

    Seems to me our forebears may have been on to something when they installed high-up pulpits and gave everyone their own hymn book and bible…

    September 10th, 2011 at 2:08 pm
  14. Dominic says:

    May I suggest in this technological age taking a web cam and laptop to enable shorter folk to be able to see.
    Maybe placing the webcam atop the Church Wardens Stave small folk should get a clear view of all goings on, they can also play back any accidental hiccups in the running of the service for later amusement.

    September 11th, 2011 at 8:05 pm
  15. Pete says:

    I am slightly taller than average. I worry that those in the pews behind me are using me to hide from the Rector’s gaze. Is this why I get volunteered for so many things?

    September 13th, 2011 at 4:38 pm