Bath Abbey

This is a follow-up post to the 'stone' entry the other day. It's another photo taken during the recent trip to Bath. Posted because cathedrals are possibly my favourite buildings in the whole world. Proper gothic cathedrals, none of your classical tat. And a cathedral built with Bath stone, well, that just ticks all my boxes.

I don't think Bath Abbey is technically a cathedral - presumably the bishop's seat is at Wells Cathedral in the same diocese (an even more beautiful building). Regardless, it's stunning. I'm not remotely religious, I call myself an agnostic but when I'm brutally honest with myself I own up to being an atheist. Despite this, I get a lot from religious art, and in particular religious architecture and music. I suppose it feeds the spirit. I dunno, all I know is that I find it sustaining. For all the misery that organised (and disorganised) religion has brought to the world, it has also brought us choral evensong and cathedrals (and mosques and mandirs and mandalas and sufis and qawwali). While I don't for a minute buy into the meaning of the words being sung, nevertheless when I participate in the ritual I feel I'm contributing to the highest expression of human culture. I personally see no contradiction in this.

I'm away on holiday now for ten days, with no idea whether I'll have net access. So this may be the last post for a couple of weeks.

Details: Nikon D70, 18-200mm lens @ 18mm, f/9, 1/5s (with VR), ISO 200. 19 July 2006, Bath, Avon.