Pew Rents

The Rise and Fall of Pew Rents

One of the intriguing aspects of surveying the life of a community over time is to track an emerging realization that an existing practice has social justice implications.  What early on may be simply the way things are done evolves into a series of situations in which the community is faced with the question: What does the Lord require of us?

An apt example at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church is the matter of pew rents.  Pew rents were the principal source of financial support for the church during all of the 19th century.  The archives of New York Avenue contain pew rental account books from that century.  Each family paid a quarterly rental fee for a pew in the sanctuary.  Families who sat closer to the front paid more, so it was clear to everyone who were the most prominent -- if not the most joyful -- givers.  (It's almost as telling as a church down south with a bank of lights in the front of the sanctuary with a family's name beside each bulb.  Every Sunday the congregation's attendance was displayed as those who had arrived trekked up front and screwed in their light.  In that way, each let his little light shine.)

Contrast two bulletin announcements from early in the 20th Century that suggest a somewhat different consciousness.  The first is from Easter 1901: "Strangers are cordially welcomed.  Every family of this church should have its own pew.  Every regular attendant should have a stated sitting in the church.  Sittings in the gallery from $4.00 to $13.00, on the main floor from $15.00 to $150.00."  The second dates from Lent 1927: "The Board of Deacons have requested that the members of the church plan to be in their pews not later than 11 o'clock in order that it may be possible for them to seat the visitors and strangers promptly as they come to the service.  The Board of Session has authorized the announcement that on Easter Sunday no seats will be reserved after 10:45 o'clock.  The membership of our church, we are confident, will adjust ourselves to this request."

As the sanctuary became more crowded during the ministry of Peter Marshall and more and more guests had to wait outside while last minute arrivals among church members took their rented pews, the inhospitable character of the existing system became more evident.  Finally, New York Avenue dropped the pew rental system in favor of a plate offering only.