Meeting house

Terminology

Nonconformist Protestant denominations distinguish between a church, which is a body of people who believe in Christ, and a meeting house or chapel, which is a building where the church meets.

In early Methodism, meeting houses were typically called "preaching houses" (to distinguish them from church houses, which hosted itinerant preachers).

The meeting house in England

In England, where it originated, a meeting house is distinguished from a church or cathedral by being a place of worship for dissenters or nonconformists.

Meeting houses in America

The colonial meeting house in America was typically the first public building built as new villages sprang up. A meeting-house had a dual purpose as a place of worship and for public discourse, but sometimes only for "...the service of God." As the towns grew and the separation of church and state in the United States matured, the buildings that were used as the seat of local government were called town-houses or town-halls. Most communities in modern New England still have active meetinghouses, which are popular points of assembly for town meeting days and other events.[[File:PewsOldShip.jpeg|thumb|right|[[Box pew|Sheep-pen pews]], [[Old Ship Church|Old Ship Meeting house]], [[Hingham, Massachusetts]], ca. 1880]]

The nonconformist meeting houses generally do not have steeples, with the term "steeplehouses" referring to traditional or establishment religious buildings. Christian denominations or religions with Christian roots that use the term "meeting house" to refer to the building in which they hold their worship include:

• Anabaptist congregations
  • Amish congregations
  • Mennonite congregations
• Congregational churches with their congregation-based system of church governance. They also use the term "mouth-houses" to emphasize their use as a place for discourse and discussion.
• Christadelphians
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints uses the term "Meetinghouse" for the building where congregations meet for weekly worship services, recreational events, and social gatherings. A meetinghouse differs from an LDS temple, which is reserved for special forms of worship.
• A provisional movement
• Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), see Friends meeting houses
• Spiritual Christians from Russia
• Some Unitarian congregations, although some prefer the term "chapel" or "church".
• Some Unitarian Universalist congregations
• The Unification Church

References

Sources

• Congdon, Herbert Wheaton. Old Vermont Houses 1763–1850. William L. Bauhan: 1940, 1973. .

• Duffy, John J., et al. Vermont: An Illustrated History. American Historical Press: 2000. .

References

1. [http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meeting%20house "Meeting house"] in [[Merriam-Webster Dictionary]]
2. [[Oxford English Dictionary]] Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press, 2009
3. (August 2016). "Nonconformist Places of Worship: Introductions to Heritage Assets". [[Historic England]].
4. (1996). "Welsh Chapels". National Museum Wales.
5. (January 2006). "Legalizing Methodism: John Wesley's Deed of Declaration and the Language of the Law". Methodist History.
6. Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) © Oxford University Press 2009
7. Sweeney, Kevin M.. "Meetinghouses, Town Houses, And Churches: Changing Perceptions Of Sacred And Secular Space In Southern New England, 1720–1850." ''Winterthur Portfolio'' 28.1 (1993): 59. 1. Print. {{JSTOR. 1181498
8. Sewall, J. B. "[https://www.gutenberg.org/files/13632/13632-h/13632-h.htm The New England Town-house]", ''The Bay State Monthly'', Vol 1, No 5. 1884. 284–290. Print. Accessed 12/6/2013
9. Whitney, William D. (ed.) ''The Century Dictionary'' vol. 8. 1895. 6407. Print. Town-house may also mean a jail, poor-house, or house not in the countryside. See [[Century Dictionary]]
10. (2005). "Quaker Spirituality: Selected Writings". HarperCollins.
11. Hamilton, C. Mark. (1992). "[[Encyclopedia of Mormonism]]". [[Macmillan Publishing]].
12. Seymour, Nicole. (March 2006). "Standardized Meetinghouses Give a Place for More Members to Meet and Worship". [[Ensign (LDS magazine).
13. (15 November 2007). "Of Chapels and Temples: Explaining Mormon Worship Services". [[LDS Church]].
14. (17 September 2012). "Topics and Background: Templaes". LDS Church.