A church bell is a bell in a church made to be heard outside the building. It can be one bell or part of a group of bells. Its main purpose is to call people to church for a worship service, but it is also rung for special events like weddings or funerals. In some Christian traditions, such as Catholicism and Lutheranism, church bells signal to people inside and outside the church that a specific part of the service (such as saying the Lord's Prayer or the consecration of Holy Communion) has begun. In certain Christian groups, church bells are rung three times a day as a call to prayer, reminding people to say the Lord's Prayer or the Angelus Domini.

The traditional European church bell, as shown in a cutaway drawing, used in churches around the world has a cup-shaped metal part that makes sound. Inside this part is a clapper that moves and hits the sides of the bell when the bell is swung. The bell is placed inside a steeple or bell tower of a church or religious building so the sound can be heard far away. These bells are either fixed in place ("hung dead") or attached to a pivoted beam (called the "headstock") so they can swing back and forth. A rope is connected to a lever or wheel on the headstock. When a bell ringer pulls the rope, the bell swings, and the clapper hits the inside, making the bell ring. Bells that are fixed in place are usually sounded by hitting the front part of the bell with a hammer or by pulling a rope that moves the clapper inside.

A church may have one bell or a group of bells that are tuned to a common musical scale. These bells can be stationary and chimed, swung through a small arc, or moved in a full circle to allow for precise control in a style called English change ringing.

Before modern communication methods, church bells were often used to gather the community for both religious and non-religious events. In some Christian traditions, ringing bells was thought to help drive away demons.

Uses and traditions

Oriental Orthodox Christians, such as Copts and Indians, use prayer books like the Agpeya and Shehimo to pray seven times a day. They face east during these prayers. In monasteries, church bells are rung to mark these prayer times.

In Christianity, some churches ring bells three times daily—at 9 a.m., noon, and 3 p.m.—to call people to pray the Lord’s Prayer. This practice was influenced by Jewish traditions found in the Old Testament, such as Psalm 55:17 and Daniel 6:10, which describe praying three times a day. Early Christians followed this example, praying the Lord’s Prayer at those times.

Many Catholic churches ring bells three times daily—at 6 a.m., noon, and 6 p.m.—to call people to pray the Angelus, a prayer honoring the Incarnation of God.

Some Protestant churches ring bells during the Lord’s Prayer, after a sermon, to help people who cannot attend join the congregation spiritually.

In many historic Christian churches, bells are rung on All Hallows’ Eve, during Candlemas, and Palm Sunday. Bells are not rung from Maundy Thursday through the Easter Vigil. The tradition of ringing bells in Christianity is similar to the Islamic practice of calling to prayer from a minaret.

Most Christian denominations use bells to signal worship, such as the start of a Mass or service.

In the United Kingdom, especially in Anglican churches, there is a tradition of change ringing, where bells are rung in patterns for about half an hour before a service. This began in the early 17th century when ringers discovered that swinging bells in a full circle allowed for more control over the timing of the bell’s sound.

In Christianity, bells are traditionally believed to drive away demons and evil spirits. Inscriptions on bells often mention this purpose, such as “the sound of this bell vanquishes tempests, repels demons, and summons men.” Some churches have many bells to make their sound louder and farther-reaching.

In England, ringing a bell to announce a death is called a death knell. The pattern of strikes depends on the person who died. For example, in Kent and Surrey, three sets of three strikes were used for men and three sets of two for women. The age of the deceased was then rung out. In small villages, this helped people identify who had died.

There were three times when bells were rung around a death: the “Passing Bell” to warn of an impending death, the “Death Knell” to announce the death, and the “Lych Bell” or “Corpse Bell” to signal the arrival of the funeral procession. Today, this is known as the Funeral toll.

In modern times, when using full-circle bells, churches may use “half-muffles” to create a mournful sound. This involves placing a leather cover on the bell’s clapper to make a loud, then muffled strike. In the United Kingdom, bells are fully muffled only at the death of a monarch. A variation occurred in 2015 when the remains of Richard III were moved to Leicester Cathedral.

The term “Sanctus bell” refers to a bell used in medieval churches. It was rung during the Sanctus and the elevation of the consecrated elements in Mass, to inform those who could not see the altar that the consecration had occurred. This practice is still used in many traditional Catholic, Lutheran, and Anglican churches.

A small hand bell or set of bells (called altar bells) may be rung before the consecration of the bread and wine and again when the consecrated elements are shown to the people. In Spain and its former colonies, Catholic churches often use “Gloria wheels” or sacring rings for this purpose.

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, bells are used in complex ways to mark different parts of worship and funerals. This tradition is especially detailed in the Russian Orthodox Church, where bells are usually stationary and sounded by pulling a rope attached to the clapper.

The noon bell ringing in Europe has historical roots in the Siege of Belgrade in 1456. Initially, bells were rung to call for prayer after a victory over the Ottomans. Later, the ringing became a way to celebrate the victory. Today, it honors John Hunyadi’s success against the Turks.

Some churches use a clock chime with a turret clock to mark the time by striking the hours and quarters. A famous pattern is the Westminster Quarters. This is done only when bells are not in motion, and the clock mechanism strikes the bells from the outside.

During World War II, church bells in Great Britain were silenced to avoid alerting enemy forces. However, Winston Churchill allowed bells to ring on Sundays, Good Friday, and Christmas Day starting in 1943. All restrictions were lifted in 1943.

In the 2021 German floods, church bells were rung to warn people of rising water. In Beyenburg, a friar rang the storm bells after other warning systems failed. Some churches in England also use bells for similar warnings.

Design and ringing technique

Christian church bells are shaped like a cup made of cast metal. They have a wide, thick edge and a clapper that hangs inside the bell from the center. These bells are usually placed high in a bell tower on top of a church so that the sound can reach the surrounding area. The bell is attached to a frame that allows it to swing. A rope is connected to a wheel or lever on this frame and hangs down to the person ringing the bell. When the ringer pulls the rope, the bell swings, causing the clapper to hit the inside of the bell and make a sound. Some bells have wheels that let them swing in a larger circle, a method used in the United Kingdom.

Bells that are not swung are called "chimed." These are either struck by a hammer outside the bell or by a rope attached to the clapper inside the bell. This method is traditional in Russia.

Blessing of bells

In some churches, bells are blessed with a special ceremony before they are hung. In the Roman Catholic Church, this ceremony is called the Baptism of Bells. This tradition began in France at least as early as the 11th century. During the ceremony, a bishop washes the bell with holy water. Then, the bishop applies "oil of the infirm" on the outside of the bell and chrism on the inside. A smoking container is placed under the bell while the bishop prays. The prayers ask that the bells, as sacred items of the Church, will drive away demons, protect people from storms, and remind the faithful to pray.

History

Before church bells were used in the Christian Church, people used other ways to call worshippers. These included playing trumpets, hitting semantrons (wooden planks), shouting, or sending a messenger. In AD 604, Pope Sabinian officially approved the use of bells. These early bells, called tintinnabula, were made from shaped metal and were not large. Larger bells were created later, during the 7th and 8th centuries, by molding metal from Campania. These bells were named "campana" and "nola" after the city in Campania. This explains why Paulinus of Nola in AD 400 is often credited with starting the use of church bells. By the early Middle Ages, church bells became common in Europe. They were often rung one at a time (called cymbalum) or in sets that made musical sounds (also called cymbalum).

Church bells were first widely used in northern Europe. These bells had a square shape and were made of sheet metal, showing influence from Celtic traditions, especially from Irish missionaries. Before church bells, Greek monasteries used flat metal plates (called semantrons) to signal services. Earlier tools, like signa and campanae, used to announce services before Irish influence, may have also been flat plates similar to the semantron. The oldest surviving group of bells in Great Britain is located in St Lawrence Church, Ipswich.

As more bells were made, they were grouped into sets called cymbala (related to both chimes and cymbals) and played with a hammer. Pictures from this time usually show sets with four to eight bells, though some had as many as 15 bells.

In literature

The sound of church bells has inspired many writers to create poems and stories. One example is a poem written by the English poet Letitia Elizabeth Landon, titled Bells. Later in her life, she wrote another poem called The Village Bells, which appeared in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book in 1839. This poem was created as an illustration to accompany a picture by J. Franklin. The poem begins with the line: "How Soft the Music of those Village Bells."

Controversies about noise

Church bells can create noise that stops people from sleeping. A 2013 study by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich found that about 2.5 to 3.5 percent of people in the Canton of Zurich wake up at least one extra time each night because of church bell noise. The study suggested that stopping church bells from ringing between midnight and 6 a.m. could reduce these awakenings by more than 99 percent. Lowering the loudness of the bells by 5 decibels could also reduce awakenings by about 75 percent.

In the Netherlands, there have been legal cases about noise from church bells affecting nearby residents. Complaints usually come from new residents or tourists who stay overnight and are not used to the noise during the day or night.

Image gallery

• Lullusglocke, made in 1038, located in the monastery of Bad Hersfeld in Hesse, Germany
• Tuba Dei bell, located in the Cathedral in Toruń, Poland, made in 1500
• Sigismund Bell, located in Kraków, Poland, made in 1520 by Hans Beham
• Pummerin bell, located in Stephansdom, Vienna
• Tsar Bell, located in Moscow, Russia, the heaviest bell in the world, weighing over 196 tons
• Belgian-made bell, located in St. Xavier's Church, Peyad, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
• Bell located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew, Dallas, Texas
• Bell located in Cologne Cathedral
• Bell located in Suomenlinna Church
• Bell for San Miguel Mission
• Bells ringing at Ipatiev Monastery in Kostroma, Russia
• A set of eight bells located in the tower of St Michael and All Angels' parish church, Blewbury, Oxfordshire
• Bell located in the Saint-Jacques church of Tournai
• Church bells of Ulm Minster, seen from above in 2019