No. Xxxii. Bamble church. At a short distance from brekke, is bamble, which gives name to a district. The church is a small edifice, whitewashed and covered on the top with brown glazed tiles. It is a hoved kirker, meaning in norsk, a superior, having annexed to it several smaller or subordinate kirkers. It is supposed to be one of the most ancient churches in norway, an opinion which its general appearance and early architecture amply confirms. The old pierced iron vane on the steeple, is nearly destroyed by corrosion, and hangs half off its original position. Adjoining the church is a neat parsonage house; the burial ground is well secured by a stone wall, with entrance gates and iron traps, to protect the remains there deposited, from the nocturnal intrusion of bears and wolves. The edifice stands on an interesting spot, not far from the high road to brevig, surrounded by rocks and solemn groves, which a fanciful mmd would call druidical, and which seem beautifully formed by nature, to produce feelings of contemplation and devotion. In truth, as this is a church of which it may be said that its high purpose is zealously kept in view, it forms an object of no mean interest, and a source of no small gratification in this part of norway; for it cannot be disguised, that what has been already advanced in reference to the baneful influence exercised by the seaport towns, over the moral and physical habits of the other branches of the community, is but too applicable in a religious sense also; many of the churches in the maritime districts literally deserted, and what renders the circumstance peculiarly deplorable, is that it may in no small degree be attributed to the clergy, many of whom appear wholly unable to detach themselves from pursuits, in no manner compatible with the nature of their high functions. It is singularly painful to rank among those pursuits, the noble art of making money, and the still nobler science of expending it for the exclusive benefit of the possessor, with the reservation perhaps, of some portion for public purposes of at best a frivolous kind. Thus the clergy of the seaport towns, will be found to comprise some of the most enterprising ship owners, manufacturers, booksellers, and managers of theatrical and musical entertainments. A joyless fellow, as he has been called, of the name of hans hauge, may therefore not without reason be supposed to have derived no inconsiderable aid in the propagation of methodism from the characters and pursuits of clergymen, who preferred the good things, and the fleeting honours of this life, to more substantial and glorious considerations. Fortunately, however, for their temporal welfare, hans hauge having been proved beyond doubt to be an impostor, was treated accordingly; and it is to be hoped that his deluded followers will return to the churches, to be instructed and guided by men, whose conduct shall afford no parallel to this notorious case. While i indulge this hope, i cannot however refrain from expressing the wish, that the sentence of the law on the individual in question, had been accompanied by those restraints under which their clergymen labour, in regard to secular avocations. Beyond the pestilential sphere of the seaport towns, the norwegian clergy will be found to possess the strongest claims to honourable notice. Date: 1800. Bamble Church (JW Edy plate 32)
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