Priest rails against ‘selfie-centred’ church tourists
A SENIOR priest at England’s most visited parish church has condemned “disrespectful” tourists who enter just to take selfies.
Worshippers have found themselves surrounded by groups of foreign visitors posing for photos yards from where they are praying.
Officials have been forced to step in to try to prevent selfie-snapping tourists encroaching on people’s sacred space. More than 400,000 holidaymakers from all over the world visit The University Church of St Mary the Virgin in Oxford every year.
But in a recent newsletter, the Rev Charlotte Bannisterparker, associate priest, said the historic church had seen a surge in the number of selfie-obsessed tourists.
Ms Bannister-parker – daughter of Sir Roger Bannister, the first person to run a mile in under four minutes – urged tourists to challenge the mentality that “if you don’t take a photo it did not happen”.
She wrote: “I am not usually a grumpy person but I have been overwhelmed by the numbers of tourists coming through the church and the fact that so many of them seem unaware that this is a sacred space.
“Not only is the whole experience of visiting St Mary’s so often seen through a camera lens but also some visitors seem completely unaware of the difference between this space as ‘the House of God’ and, say, that of the Sheldonian [theatre].”
Graham Campbell, an Australian tourist visiting with his wife Monica, said: “It’s quite right that tourists inside the church should show respect to people who are worshipping.”
The Rev Dr William Lamb, the vicar, stressed that the church welcomed everyone. He suggested that some areas of the building could be reserved for private prayer while staff could liaise with tour guides to limit group numbers. He added: “Many cathedrals do this and we know that many visitors appreciate and value such an invitation.”