Eglise Notre-Dame de Revel - Interior - Pulpit

Pulpit of Blenduk Church, Semarang, 2014-06-23

A pulpit is a raised stand for

preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as ...

s in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accessed by steps, with sides coming to about waist height. From the

late medieval period The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...

onwards, pulpits have often had a canopy known as the sounding board, ''tester'' or ''abat-voix'' above and sometimes also behind the speaker, normally in wood. Though sometimes highly decorated, this is not purely decorative, but can have a useful acoustic effect in projecting the preacher's voice to the

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: * Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administr ...

below. Most pulpits have one or more book-stands for the preacher to rest his or her bible, notes or texts upon. The pulpit is generally reserved for

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. This is mandated in the regulations of the Catholic Church, and several others (though not always strictly observed). Even in Welsh

Nonconformism Nonconformity or nonconformism may refer to: Culture and society * Insubordination, the act of willfully disobeying an order of one's superior *Dissent, a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or entity ** ...

, this was felt appropriate, and in some chapels a second pulpit was built opposite the main one for lay exhortations, testimonies and other speeches.Francis, 19 Many churches have a second, smaller stand called the

lectern A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon. A lectern is usually attached to a stand or affixed to some other form of support. ...

located in the

Epistle side In the liturgical traditions of Western Christianity, the Epistle side is the term used to designate the side of a church on which the Epistle is read during a church service. It is the right-hand side of the chancel as viewed by the congregation ...

, which can be used by lay persons, and is often used for other

Scripture lesson A lection, also called the lesson, is a reading from scripture in liturgy. In many Christian denominations, the readings of the day are appointed in the lectionary. History The custom of reading the books of Moses in the synagogues on Sabbath ...

s and ordinary announcements. The traditional Catholic location of the pulpit to the left side of the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

has been generally retained by

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

s and many Anglicans, while in

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

and

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

churches the pulpit is located in the centre behind the communion table. Many modern Roman Catholic churches have an ambo that functions as both a pulpit and lectern. Equivalent platforms for speakers are the bema (bima, bimah) of

ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of Classical Antiquity, classical antiquity ( AD 600), th ...

and Jewish synagogues, and the minbar of Islamic mosques. ''From the pulpit'' is often used

synecdochically Synecdoche ( ) is a type of metonymy: it is a figure of speech in which a term for a part of something is used to refer to the whole (''pars pro toto''), or vice versa (''totum pro parte''). The term comes from Greek language, Greek . Example ...

for something which is said with official church authority.

Location of pulpit and lectern

In many Reformed and Evangelical Protestant denominations, the pulpit is at the centre of the front of the church, while in the Catholic, Lutheran, and Anglican traditions the pulpit is placed to one side and the altar or communion table is in the centre. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Often, the one on the left (as viewed by the congregation) is called the pulpit. Since the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

lesson is often read from the pulpit, the pulpit side of the church is sometimes called the ''gospel side''. In both Catholic and Protestant churches the pulpit may be located closer to the main congregation in the

, either on the nave side of the crossing, or at the side of the nave some way down. This is especially the case in large churches, to ensure the preacher can be heard by all the congregation. Fixed seating for the congregation came relatively late in the history of church architecture, so the preacher being behind some of the congregation was less of an issue than later. Fixed seating facing forward in the nave and modern electric amplification has tended to reduce the use of pulpits in the middle of the nave. Outdoor pulpits, usually attached to the exterior of the church, or at a

preaching cross A preaching cross is a Christian cross sometimes surmounting a pulpit, which is erected outdoors to designate a preaching place. In Britain and Ireland, many free-standing upright crosses – or high crosses – were erected. Some of these c ...

, are also found in several denominations. If attached to the outside wall of a church, these may be entered from a doorway in the wall, or by steps outside. The other speaker's stand, usually on the right (as viewed by the congregation), is known as the

. The word ''lectern'' comes from the Latin word "lectus" past participle of legere, meaning "to read", because the lectern primarily functions as a reading stand. It is typically used by lay people to read the scripture lessons (except for the Gospel lesson), to lead the congregation in prayer, and to make announcements. Because the epistle lesson is usually read from the lectern, the lectern side of the church is sometimes called the ''epistle side''. In other churches, the lectern, from which the Epistle is read, is located to the congregation's left and the pulpit, from which the sermon is delivered, is located on the right (the Gospel being read from either the centre of the chancel or in front of the altar). Though unusual, movable pulpits with wheels were also found in English churches. They were either wheeled into place for each service where they would be used or, as at the hospital church in Shrewsbury, rotated to different positions in the church quarterly in the year, to allow all parts of the congregation a chance to have the best sound.Francis, 18 A portable outside pulpit of wood and canvas was used by John Wesley, and a 19th-century Anglican vicar devised a folding iron pulpit for using outdoors.

Origins

The Ancient Greek '' bema'' () means both 'platform' and 'step', and was used for a variety of secular raised speaking platforms in ancient

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, and from those times to today for the central raised platform in Jewish synagogues. Modern synagogue bimahs are often similar in form to centrally-placed pulpits in Evangelical churches. The use of a bema carried over from Judaism into early Christian church architecture. It was originally a raised platform, often large, with a lectern and seats for the clergy, from which

lessons A lesson or class is a structured period of time where learning is intended to occur. It involves one or more students (also called pupils or learners in some circumstances) being taught by a teacher or instructor. A lesson may be either one ...

from the

Scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual pra ...

s were read and the sermon was delivered. In

Western Christianity Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity ( Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholic ...

the bema developed over time into the sanctuary and

(or presbytery). The next development was the ''ambo'', from a Greek word meaning an elevation. This was originally a raised platform from which the Epistle and

would be read, and was an option to be used as a preacher's platform for

homilies A homily (from Greek ὁμιλία, ''homilía'') is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture, giving the "public explanation of a sacred doctrine" or text. The works of Origen and John Chrysostom (known as Paschal Homily) are considered ex ...

, though there were others. Saint

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ...

(died 407) is recorded as preaching from the ambo, but this was probably uncommon at this date. In cathedrals early bishops seem often to have preached from their chair in the apse, echoing the position of magistrates in the secular basilicas whose general form most large early churches adopted. Often there were two ambos, one to each side, one used more as a platform on which the choir sang; sometimes the gospel was read, chanted or sung from one side and the epistle from the other. The location of the ambo within the church varied, with about the same range of places as modern pulpits. In ancient Syrian churches it was often placed in the centre of the nave (on both axes). Gradually the ambo came to resemble the modern pulpit in both form and function, though early examples in large churches are often large enough to accommodate several people. The steps up to the pulpit almost invariably approach it from the side or behind, and are often curved. The typical design of the Islamic minbar, where a straight flight of steps leads to the front of the pulpit, is very different. The

Ambon of Henry II The Ambon of Henry II (German: ''Ambo Heinrichs II.''), commonly known as Henry's Ambon (''Heinrichsambo'') or Henry's Pulpit (''Heinrichskanzel'') is an ambon in the shape of a pulpit built by Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor in the Palatine chapel ...

, an Imperial gift of 1014 to Aachen Cathedral, was originally installed centrally, but later moved to the side. It is richly decorated with sheets of gold, ivory, and gems, probably emulating

Justinian Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...

's lost pulpit of

Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia ( 'Holy Wisdom'; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque ( tr, Ayasofya-i Kebir Cami-i Şerifi), is a mosque and major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The cathedral was originally built as a Greek Ortho ...

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, of which a description by

Paul the Silentiary Paul the Silentiary, also known as Paulus Silentiarius ( el, , died AD 575–580), was a Greek Byzantine poet and courtier to the emperor Justinian at Constantinople. Life What little we know of Paul's life comes largely from the contemporary ...

survives. In churches where there is only one speaker's stand at the front of the church, it serves the functions of both lectern and pulpit and may be called the ambo, which is still the official Catholic term for the place the gospel is read from.

Catholicism

Basilica of Saint Clotilde Pulpit, Paris, France - Diliff

Preaching had always been important in Catholicism, but received a particular revival in the late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

with the two preaching orders of

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ...

s, the

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

and Dominicans, the former tending to an emotional and populist style and the latter more intellectual. Some preaching was done outdoors by touring preachers, but the orders, especially in Italy, soon began constructing large churches designed to hold congregations who came to hear star preachers. These featured large raised pulpits, typically some way down the nave, and sometimes in pairs on either side of the nave. These were both used for various purposes, whether different readings in services, accommodating singers or musicians at times, or for

disputation In the scholastic system of education of the Middle Ages, disputations (in Latin: ''disputationes'', singular: ''disputatio'') offered a formalized method of debate designed to uncover and establish truths in theology and in sciences. Fixed ru ...

s between two speakers across the nave. Accordingly, they often have a larger platform area than later pulpits. For example, the St. Antony's Church, Ollur, pulpit is one of the tallest and largest relief sculptured wooden pulpit in India. In Western Catholic Churches, the stand used for readings and

is formally called the ambo. Despite its name, this structure usually more closely resembles a lectern than the

ambon Ambon may refer to: Places * Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia ** Ambon, Maluku, a city on Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku province ** Governorate of Ambon, a colony of the Dutch East India Company from 1605 to 1796 * Ambon, Morbihan, a c ...

of the

Eastern Catholic Churches The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous ('' sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...

. The readings are typically read from an ambo in the

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

, and depending on the arrangement of the church, the homily may be delivered from a raised pulpit where there is one. The

General Instruction of the Roman Missal The ''General Instruction of the Roman Missal'' (GIRM)—in the Latin original, ''Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani'' (IGMR)—is the detailed document governing the celebration of Mass of the Roman Rite in what since 1969 is its normal form. ...

(GIRM) specifies:

Protestantism

It is central to

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

belief that the clergy should preach sermons on Biblical passages to the congregation. To achieve this, some existing churches were adapted to place the clergyman in a position audible to all, which in larger churches usually places this in a visible location, and raised up. This had long been the practice in larger Catholic churches and many smaller ones, but was now made universal. In smaller churches the pulpit remained in the traditional east end of the church, where altars were usually located, but was often raised higher than before. In

churches, the pulpit is considered one of the most important pieces of furniture in the church. In certain Presbyterian, Anglican and Methodist churches designed with a pulpit-centered chancel, the pulpit is located centrally in relation to the congregation and raised, with the communion table being in front of it. In such churches it may be where the minister stands for most of the service. In the eighteenth century, double-decker and triple-decker pulpits were often introduced in English-speaking countries. The three levels of lecterns were intended to show the relative importance of the readings delivered there. The bottom tier was for the

parish clerk A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

, the middle was the reading desk for the minister, and the top tier was reserved for the delivery of the sermon. A good example of a three-decker pulpit is found in St Andrew's Church, Slaidburn, Lancashire. America's only surviving three-decker pulpit on the centerline of the church is at

Trinity Church, Newport, Rhode Island Trinity Church, on Queen Anne Square in Newport, Rhode Island, is a historic parish church in the Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island. Founded in 1698, it is the oldest Episcopal parish in the state. In the mid 18th century, the church was home to ...

. In Lutheran churches, as well as many Anglican and Methodist churches designed with a divided chancel, the pulpit is located on the

Gospel side Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

of the chancel (from which the Gospel is read and the sermon is delivered) while a

is located on the

of the sanctuary, with the latter being used by readers to vocalize the other

s. In many

Evangelical Christian Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

churches, the pulpit stands squarely in the centre of the platform, and is generally the largest piece of church furniture. This is to symbolise the proclamation of the Word of God as the central focus of the weekly

service of worship A church service (or a service of worship) is a formalized period of Christian communal worship, often held in a church building. It often but not exclusively occurs on Sunday, or Saturday in the case of those churches practicing seventh-day Sa ...

. In more contemporary evangelical churches, the pulpit may be much smaller, if used at all, and may be carried out after the end of the song service. Often placed in the centre of the platform as well, the item of furniture may be used by both lay and ordained members, in effect doubling as a

. In the 1600s and 1700s, particularly in

churches in Germany and Scandinavia, the

pulpit altar A pulpit altar or pulpit-altar is an altar in a church that is built together with a pulpit that is designed as an extension above the altar, so the pulpit, altar, and altarpiece form one unit. This type of altar is typical in a Baroque style church ...

became a popular design in churches, combining the pulpit and the altar.

Presbyterian Protestant churches

Traditional

Churches in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

and elsewhere often had a central pulpit, that is, the pulpit was located in the centre of the chancel in the position where most churches have the communion table or altar. The table could be situated in front of the pulpit or to the side, and sometimes was not in the chancel area at all. This declares the Bible to be the foundation of the faith. Furthermore, the "Centrality of the Word" implies that the reading and preaching of the Bible is the centrepiece of a service of worship, and thus takes priority over the sacraments. The central pulpit is intended to give visual representation of this idea. Since the late 19th century, the fashion in the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

and most other Presbyterian denominations has been for a return to the pre-

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

layout. Thus many buildings which once had a central pulpit now have a pulpit to the side. See for example

Skene Parish Church Skene Parish Church is a congregation of the Church of Scotland in Skene, part of the Presbytery of Gordon. The parish has two places of worship, Skene Church in Kirkton of Skene and Trinity Church in Westhill. The current minister is Rev. Stel ...

or Old West Church, Boston, Massachusetts. This Presbyterian tradition is historically distinct from the tradition of the

in Eastern Christianity.

Eastern Christianity

In modern Eastern Christianity the area directly in front of the Beautiful Gates of the iconostasis from which the Gospel is typically read is called the

, and the entire low elevation above the level of the

in front of the iconostasis is called the

soleas The soleas (( el, σολέα, other form σολέας) = lat, solea meaning (“bottom, base”, as used in "sole of a shoe", cf. also the "sole" from the resemblance of fish to a flat shoe. Of uncertain origin)) is an extension of the sanctuary ...

. In larger churches, the ambo might be distinguished by three curved steps by which one may reach it from the nave. In addition many Orthodox churches, especially Greek-speaking churches, have pulpits for preaching from, which are similar to those in

. In Eastern Orthodox Church

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

s there is usually a low platform in the center of the nave called the ''episcopal ambo'' where the

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

is vested prior to the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of ...

and where he is enthroned until the

Little Entrance In Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches, an entrance is a procession during which the clergy enter into the sanctuary through the Holy Doors. The origin of these entrances goes back to the early church, when the liturgical books and s ...

. If the bishop is serving in a simple parish church, an episcopal ambo is set temporarily in place. There are huge intricately carved wooden pulpits, some of the biggest in India and the world, in the Syrian churches of Kerala, India In addition to the ambo, many major churches in Greece and

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

also have a raised pulpit on the left side of the nave, usually attached to a column and raised several feet high. This is reached by a narrow flight of stairs. It is considered an architectural element that is symmetrical to the bishop's throne, which is located in an equivalent position on the right. Pulpit and throne are usually similar in construction, usually made of either sculpted stone or sculpted wood. This pulpit was used mostly for sermons and in order to improve audibility, before the advent of modern public address systems in churches. Nowadays it is used rarely. Tradition dictates that it be used for the reading of the "12 Passion Gospels" during the Matins of Holy Friday, served late in the evening of

Maundy Thursday Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday (also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, among other names) is the day during Holy Week that commemorates the Washing of the ...

. This is done to signify that the Passion of Christ is being "broadcast" for all to know. In the same spirit, a phonetic transcription of the relevant Gospel passages is provided in several common languages (e.g. English, French, Russian, Arabic etc.), so that they may be read from this pulpit at the same time.

Decoration

The exterior of a wood or stone pulpit may be decorated, especially with carved

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

s, and in the centuries after the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

these were sometimes, especially in Lutheran churches, one of the few areas of the church left with figurative decoration such as scenes from the Life of Christ. Pulpit reliefs were especially important at the start of the Italian Renaissance, including those from the Pisa Baptistry (1260) and Siena Cathedral Pulpit (1265–68) by

Nicola Pisano Nicola Pisano (also called ''Niccolò Pisano'', ''Nicola de Apulia'' or ''Nicola Pisanus''; c. 1220/1225 – c. 1284) was an Italian sculptor whose work is noted for its classical Roman sculptural style. Pisano is sometimes considered to be the ...

, the Pulpit of Sant' Andrea, Pistoia by Giovanni Pisano (1301), and those by

Donatello Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi ( – 13 December 1466), better known as Donatello ( ), was a Florentine sculptor of the Renaissance period. Born in Florence, he studied classical sculpture and used this to develop a complete Renaissance s ...

Elements of decoration shared between Catholic and Protestant denominations are the flowers that may be placed in front of the pulpit, and the

antependium An ''antependium'' (from Latin ''ante-'' and ''pendēre'' "to hang before"; pl: ''antependia''), also known as a ''parament'' or ''hanging'', or, when speaking specifically of the hanging for the altar, an altar frontal (Latin: ''pallium altaris ...

or "pulpit fall", a piece of cloth that covers the top of the book-stand in the pulpit and hangs down a short way at the front. It is often of a rich material and decorated with Christian symbols. Flags and banners used by church-related organizations may also stand on the floor around the pulpit. In the Reformed tradition, though avoiding figurative art, pulpits were increasingly important as a focus for the church, with the sanctuary now comparatively bare and de-emphasized, and were often larger and more elaborately decorated than in medieval churches.Mountford, 36 The bookstand of the pulpit (usually in medieval churches) or lectern (common in Anglican churches) may be formed in the shape of an eagle. The eagle symbolizes the gospels, and shows where these were read from at the time the eagle was placed there. When pulpits like those by the Pisani with eagles in stone on them were built the gospel reading was done from the pulpit. The spread of the sounding board offered artists decorating Catholic Baroque churches a space for spectacular features of various types on top of it. An artistic conceit largely confined to the 18th century

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

churches of South Germany was to shape the body of the pulpit as a ship, to utilize the old metaphor of the church as a ship. This allowed for fantastical plaster or wood decoration of sails and rigging manned by angels above, and apostles hauling in nets below.

Gallery

Outdoor pulpits

SaintLoEgliseND 01.jpg, External gothic pulpit in

Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.

, France Wien - Stephansdom, Capistrankanzel (1).JPG, Outdoor pulpit of

Giovanni da Capistrano John of Capistrano ('' Italian'': San Giovanni da Capestrano, '' Hungarian'': Kapisztrán János, '' Polish'': Jan Kapistran, '' Croatian'': Ivan Kapistran) (24 June 1386 – 23 October 1456) was a Franciscan friar and Catholic priest from the ...

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

St James Church, Piccadilly - Pulpit - geograph.org.uk - 834504.jpg,

St James's Church, Piccadilly St James's Church, Piccadilly, also known as St James's Church, Westminster, and St James-in-the-Fields, is an Anglican church on Piccadilly in the centre of London, United Kingdom. The church was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren. Th ...

, in the centre of London, 1680s Scotch from chapel.JPG, Open-air pulpit in the forecourt of the

Chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

Scotch College, Melbourne (For God, for Country, and for Learning) , established = , type = Independent, day and boarding , gender = Boys , denomination = Presbyterian , slogan = , ...

Outdoor pulpit.jpg, Fr. Coughlin's outdoor pulpit at the Shrine of the Little Flower in

Royal Oak, Michigan Royal Oak is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. An inner-ring suburb of Detroit, Royal Oak is about north of Detroit's city limits. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 57,236. Royal Oak is located along t ...

. 19-22-122-museum.jpg, John Wesley's Traveling Pulpit at the World Methodist Museum, Lake Junaluska, NC

Modern pulpits

File:XianFlag.jpg, A modern pulpit on the

of a Presbyterian Church in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

File:Jakobskirken Roskilde Denmark pulpit.jpg, A modern pulpit in Jakobskirken, Roskilde,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

. File:Advent Wreath on Christmas Eve (Broadway United Methodist Church).jpg, A pulpit in the

of a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

church in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Older pulpits

File:AachenerDomKanzel.jpg,

(1014), Aachen Cathedral File:Pulpit Parma Cathedral.jpg, Baroque pulpit of 1613 carved in wood by Paolo Froni

Parma Cathedral Parma Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Parma; Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Parma, Emilia-Romagna (Italy), dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Parma. ...

File:Santa Maria in Valle Porclaneta - Ambon.jpg, Italian pulpit of 1150 or older File:Chaire église Saint-Étienne, Château-Renard -1.JPG, Gothic wood, France File:Bergatreute Pfarrkirche Kanzel 2.jpg, Late Baroque polychromed wood in a South German pilgrimage church File:Abbey Irsee 119.JPG, Pulpit in

Irsee Abbey Irsee Abbey, also the Imperial Abbey of Irsee (german: Reichsabtei Irsee), was a Benedictine abbey located at Irsee near Kaufbeuren in Bavaria. The self-ruling imperial abbey was secularized in the course of the German mediatization of 1802–1803 ...

, Bavaria in the shape of a ship's prow File:Pulpit.JPG, A late 18th century pulpit in a small

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

church in

Spielfeld Spielfeld ( Slovene: ''Špilje'') is a former municipality in the district of Leibnitz in Austrian state of Styria. Since the 2015 Styria municipal structural reform, it is part of the municipality Straß in Steiermark. It was an Austria-Sloveni ...

, Styria,

. File:Enanger Pulpit.jpg, Enånger old church in Sweden File:Kanzel Weissenregen.JPG, boat-shaped German

pulpit File:Santa Fiora sante Flora e Lucilla 006.JPG,

Terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

Pieve delle Sante Flora e Lucilla in Santa Fiora,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

File:Pistoia chiesa san bartolomeo in pantano 005.JPG, Stone pulpit at Chiesa Bartolomeo in Pantano Pistoia Italy File:St John the Baptist church pulpit.JPG, Pulpit at St. John the Baptist Cathedral,

Yaroslavl Yaroslavl ( rus, Ярослáвль, p=jɪrɐˈsɫavlʲ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluenc ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

(17th century) File:Worcester cathedral 019.JPG, Stone pulpit at

Worcester cathedral Worcester Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, in Worcestershire, England, situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Bles ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

File:Tallinn-Puhavaimu-indre-prædikestol1.jpg, Wooden pulpit at the Church of the Holy Ghost in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju '' ...

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

File:Porvoo Cathedral inside.jpg, Pulpit at the

Porvoo Cathedral Porvoo Cathedral ( fi, Porvoon tuomiokirkko; sv, Borgå domkyrka) is a cathedral of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland in Porvoo, Finland. It was built in the 15th century, although the oldest parts date from the 13th century. It is th ...

Porvoo Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieval to ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

File:Belgium-6664 - Oak Pulpit (13967902729).jpg, Many of the most elaborate Catholic pulpits are from Baroque

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

File:Pulpit at St Anne's Church in Kraków.jpg, Baroque Church of St. Anne in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

File:Preekstoel in de Sint Lambertus kerk Buren.JPG, A Calvinist 17th century pulpit of the

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

Dutch Reformed The Dutch Reformed Church (, abbreviated NHK) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the original denomination of the Dutch Royal Family and ...

church in

Buren, the Netherlands Buren () is a town and municipality in the Betuwe region of the Netherlands. Buren has 27,168 inhabitants as of 1 January 2022. Geography Buren is located in Gelderland, a province of the Netherlands. It is part of the landscape of Betuwe, a ve ...

. File:Greifensee ZH - Gallus-Kapelle IMG 2432.jpg, '' Gallus chapel'' in Greifensee ZH, Switzerland File:Chaire Cathédrale d'Amiens 110608 01.jpg, Baroque pulpit in the

Amiens Cathedral , image = 0 Amiens - Cathédrale Notre-Dame (1).JPG , imagesize = 200px , img capt = Amiens Cathedral , pushpin map = France , pushpin label position = below , coordinates = , country ...

, France File:Collegiale-Thann-p1010102.jpg, Saint-Thiébaut Church, Thann, France File:Monasterio de Santa María de Huerta, Santa María de Huerta Soria, España, 2015-12-28, DD 28-30 HDR.JPG,

Monastery of Santa María de Huerta The Monastery of Santa María de Huerta (Spanish: ''Monasterio de Santa María de Huerta'') is a Cistercian monastery located in Santa María de Huerta, a town of the Spanish Province of Soria, within the autonomous community of Castile and León ...

, Spain File:Rayonvert 2009.jpg,

Strasbourg Cathedral Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, or ''Cathédrale de Strasbourg'', german: Liebfrauenmünster zu Straßburg or ''Straßburger Münster''), also known as Strasbourg ...

, France File:Pulpit Old Ship Church.jpg,

Old Ship Church The Old Ship Church (also known as the Old Ship Meetinghouse) is a Puritan Church (building), church built in 1681 in Hingham, Massachusetts, Hingham, Massachusetts. It is the only surviving 17th-century Puritan Meeting house, meetinghouse in A ...

Hingham, Massachusetts Hingham ( ) is a town in metropolitan Greater Boston on the South Shore (Massachusetts), South Shore of the U.S. state of Massachusetts in northern Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Plymouth County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, t ...

File:Stiftskirche Niederhaslach Kanzel.jpg, Stone with wooden top in the Collégiale Saint-Florent, Niederhaslach, France File:Wineglasspulpit.jpg, Gothic-revival "wine glass" pulpit and sounding board from 1872 in St. Matthew's German Evangelical Lutheran Church, Charleston, South Carolina File:Westminster Cathedral pulpit 001.jpg, Neo-Byzantine in the Catholic

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral is the mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It is the largest Catholic church in the UK and the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster. The site on which the cathedral stands in the City o ...

File:Interior of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Serbin, TX.jpg, Pulpit at balcony level, St. Peter Lutheran,

Serbin, Texas Serbin is an unincorporated community in southwestern Lee County, Texas, United States. Located about east of Austin, it was originally established as Low Pin Oak Settlement by Sorbian (Wendish) immigrants to Texas in the mid-1850s. The communit ...

File:St Helen, Great St Helens, London EC3 - Pulpit - geograph.org.uk - 1089605.jpg, The Jacobean pulpit of St Helen's, Bishopsgate, which is now located perpendicular to the communion table

Notes

References

*Francis, Keith A., Gibson, William, et al., ''The Oxford Handbook of the British Sermon 1689–1901'', 2012 OUP, , 9780199583591
google books
*Milson, David William, ''Art and Architecture of the Synagogue in Late Antique Palestine: In The Shadow of the Church'', 2006, BRILL, , 9789047418719
google books
*Mountford, Roxanne, ''The Gendered Pulpit'', 2003, Southern Illinois University Press, , 9780809388400
google books
*Ryan, G. Thomas, ''The Sacristy Manual'', 2011, Liturgy Training Publications, , 9781616710422
google books
*Menachery, George, The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India, Vols. I (1982) Trichur, II (1973) Trichur, III (2009) Ollur, for many photographs and articles. *Menachery, George, The Indian Church History Classics, Vol. I, "The Nazranies", South Asia Research Assistance Services (SARAS), Ollur, 1998 for many photos and descriptions. {{Authority control Church architecture Christian religious objects Christian religious furniture *