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21/06/2007, 11:11 AM Ringadingdong Joined on 21/06/2007 Posts 2 To Ring or Not to Ring that is the question?  I am 28 and have been Church Bell ringing for nearly 19 years, i ring regularly for Eggbuckland in Plymouth and we enter ringing competitions throughout the year, and i believe there may even be an article or a picture about us in July's edition of Devon life.  We recently won the Devon Association of Ringers Major 6 Bell Final at Blackawton which was the 17th time we have won the Ross Shield. We go on many tours in the year to places such as the Cotswolds and Herefordshire, in the past we have been to Southern Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland, we ring what we call Traditional Call Changes and it is enjoyed where ever we go, but although to many it is part of Country life, many others feel that it is intrusive and real "NOISE" is this due to a lack of understanding or due to the influx of people from outside the county into our villages? or is it both?  Do people that buy property in our villages not think that in the village church their are bells? We have a real tradition in Devon that needs to be kept alive or else it will die, communities up and down Devon should maybe be more understanding of people who ring bells and yes you could say visa versa! I went to a meeting only last night at Berry Pomeroy, this was a meeting to to see if the Parish still wanted to the Bells to be rung, the Bells however need alot of work and it will cost in the region of £42,000 to complete the work, they have already raised £20,000 so villages and communities in places do want the bells still, but there are plenty of places that do not, do we want our tradition to die? the church is like the traditional village pub it has been here for years i hope the bells in your village keep ringing.        Report

21/06/2007, 11:50 AM Janet Simons Joined on 21/06/2007 Posts 1 Re: To Ring or Not to Ring that is the question? Hello Ringadingdong! Both my daughters learned bellringing at our local church in South Devon from a young age and loved it.  We moved from outside the area about 13 years ago and moved to a village specifically so that we could enjoy village life.  We love to hear the bells ringing our and to all those who find it noisy, please stop for a moment and think what you are saying.  Do you really believe that?  We are surrounded by so much stressful noise in our lives that we hardly know what silence is.  A clean, clear, joyful sound like church bells is a positive sound, bringing with it the soul of the whole lifestyle choice we thought we were getting when we chose to move to the country.  Have we forgotten why we wanted to move from the city and enjoy a more traditional, wholesome lifestyle?  Leave your mobile phones and electronic equipment behind and try to tune into the true sounds of country and village life, of which bellringing is an important part.  Who knows, you might grow to love it!     Report

21/06/2007, 12:19 PM Ringadingdong Joined on 21/06/2007 Posts 2 Re: To Ring or Not to Ring that is the question? Hello Janet,   Thank you for posting a reply, i hope others do, i wanted to gauge peoples opionion to see what their feelings are, i am not a church goer in the sense of going to Sunday Service but this subject is very close to my heart, i just feel that in some places people do want to bring an end to our traditions. I hope your children still ring, i for one have met so many friends through ringing and just feel that it ringing is part of the country way of life and i really hope it stays that way.   i'm hoping that there will be more articles in Devon Life magazine regarding Bellringing and the people who do it, at the end of the day, that is what Devon Life is about isn't it?     Report

25/06/2007, 3:07 PM databyte Joined on 19/12/2006 Posts 4 Re: To Ring or Not to Ring that is the question? Hi. What a delight church bells are! It isn't just a 'country' issue. I live in St Marychurch in Torquay and we have a very active bell ringing group (if thats the correct term). People who don't appreciate the bells shouldn't move close to a church. Afterall the bells were there first. The same applies to those outsiders who move to a village then try and get yellow lines and street lights installed. If they want those kind of things they should stay put in suburbia! Our traditions are what makes us British and those who want to supress them should move abroad!    Report

12/07/2007, 8:53 AM pookie Joined on 12/07/2007 Posts 1 Re: To Ring or Not to Ring that is the question? As a three or four-year-old child staying with my grandparents at the edge of the New Forest, hearing the church bells on Sunday was one of my earliest memories, and whenever I hear them I'm always transported back. My grandad died when I was only seven, but the sound of church bells can instantly create a picture of him in my head. So keep the bells ringing is what I say.    Report

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