Bell Tower

Definition and Meaning

A bell tower (Korean jongtap, 鐘塔) is a tall tower or structure built so that church bells can be hung and rung. It may be built as part of the church building or as a freestanding structure. Church bells were originally a practical means of announcing the times of worship and prayer. A tall bell tower also served as a landmark, allowing people to locate a church from a distance. Because a cross was often placed at the top of the tower, the bell tower, together with the symbol of the cross, became one of the defining features of church buildings.

Biblical and Historical Background

The Bible does not mention church bells or bell towers directly. It does, however, contain examples of sound being used to gather people or to signal sacred occasions.

• Exodus 28:33–35 records that golden bells were to be attached to the hem of the robe of the high priest.
• Numbers 10:2 records that silver trumpets were to be made and used to call the assembly together.

These passages are not a direct basis for church bells; they are mentioned in connection with them only because they likewise involve summoning the community by sound.

The use of bells in the church is generally thought to have originated in the monasteries of the Western church in the early Middle Ages, where bells marked the hours of prayer. Bell towers later became a major element of church architecture. In the Catholic Church, a rite for the blessing of bells has been maintained. After the Reformation, Protestant churches also generally continued to use bells.

Practice in Korean Churches

From the earliest days of Protestantism in Korea, Korean churches built bell towers and rang bells to announce Lord's Day worship and early morning prayer meetings. At a time when clocks were uncommon, the church bell also told villagers the time of day. The person responsible for ringing the bell was called a jongjigi (bell ringer). The children's author Kwon Jeong-saeng is well known for having served as the bell ringer of a rural church in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province.

As urbanization advanced from the 1970s and 1980s onward, residents increasingly complained about early morning bells. As a result, many churches stopped ringing bells or replaced them with loudspeakers and electronic chimes, and later curtailed even these. Today many churches no longer ring bells but retain their bell towers as monuments or architectural ornaments. It is also common for red-lit cross towers to take over the symbolic role of the bell tower.

Practice varies by denomination:

• In denominations that emphasize liturgy (a prescribed order and form of worship), such as the Anglican Church of Korea and the Lutheran Church in Korea, the tradition of ringing bells, for example at the beginning of worship, has been comparatively well preserved.
• Most Protestant denominations, including Presbyterian, Methodist, Holiness, Baptist, and Full Gospel churches, attach no particular theological significance to bells. In these denominations, the bell tower is regarded as a means of announcing worship times and as an architectural element.