A small Spanish town is considering fining a medieval church 16,000 euros ($17,500) because its bells are “too noisy.”
The town hall of Mostoles, southwest of Madrid, said Tuesday that following complaints from residents, town technicians measured the noise level of the chimes of Our Lady of the Assumption Church and found they were some 30 decibels above the 55 rate permitted by town regulations.
Experts say normal conversation produces 55-60 decibels while an airplane in flight produces 110-120 decibels.
Parish priest Ignacio Torres told the El Pais newspaper the bells have always been tolling in the town, and that they were usually only rung at noon and before evening Mass. He said he had no idea how the church would pay the fine if enforced.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
So the stupidity is spreading. The church has been ringing its bells for how long now? And it is just now decided they are too loud? What happened to common sense? If it is too loud don’t live near them, don’t work or place noise sensitive people or businesses near them. They were there first. Don’t like them, leave.
How about we ring them where the sun don’t shine you ignorant fools !!!
amen
Double Amen!
Sounds like the complaints of millennials (and other ignorant people) who move into a neighborhood near an airport and then complain of the noise. Or those who move into an area downwind from Rocky Flats, a nuclear bomb trigger plant of 50+ years…then will get cancer and wonder how it happened. (And the city and county governments deny any danger as they open a wildlife refuge on the same polluted grounds.)
Secular Europe at it’s worst.
Once upon a time church bells played an important role in the community as a time standard and as an alarm system. Those times have changed. The church may need to do a better job reaching out to its community. People tend to have a change of opinion when their relationship with an organization changes.
Get you hind end in church!
Grow up people, if you don’t like them don’t live next to the church.
I seem to remember hearing a long time ago that one of the reasons, in addition to calling the faithful to worship, was to scare away the evil spirits. Perhaps it is the evil spirits that are complaining that it i too noisy!
“seek not to ask for whom the bell tolls…it tolls for thee..” Earnest Hemingway
@ Leatherwings: Good!
Actually no, Leatherwings – Hemingway took his quote from the poem `No Man Is An Island Unto Himself’ 1642 by the English poet John Donne, which ends:
“Each man’s death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.”
Some day it may be the call for Muslims to prayer. Then it will be too late.
I DIDNT KNOW THAT HILLARY HAD AN OFFICE IN SPAIN, THAT WOULD SILENCE CHRISTIANS THERE ALSO.
Back in the 70s, I spent two summers in Germany and some of that time in Switzerland. One of the great joys of that time was to hear the church bells ring on Sundays. I set my portable tape recorder to capture them. Alas, after I returned home, someone stole the tape recorder with that tape in it. Taught me to make duplicates of everything!! How I wish I could hear those bells today. Too bad the residents of that Spanish town don’t understand — I mean really understand at a visceral level — their meaning.
If this were a Mosque with an Imam yodelling away every half hour would they even dare to suggest that he quieten down let alone impose a fine? Methinks probably not. Spain should cherish her Catholic roots and encourage the call to Holy Mass, not call for a persecution. Spain do not ‘ring out the bells’ on your Catholic Faith.
Wow… didn’t realize how we are getting closer to what the Bible end times….”what is good, will be looked at as bad, what is bad, will be looked at as good”… USA Liberals spreading the bad word worldwide.
Maria, you are so right!!