In conjunction with the Saskatchewan Churches exhibit, the Humboldt & District Museum has organized a “doors open” event for anyone who wants to see the interior of churches in Humboldt and the region, which will take place August 9. This allows people to see some buildings that they may not ordinarily get to see.
“The (churches) exhibit focuses largely on the exterior of churches and the architecture and that sort of thing, which is very interesting and we have some lovely photos, but it’s always nice to go in and see the inside of churches,” said Jean Price, program co-ordinator at the Humboldt & District Museum. “Humboldt has some beautiful contemporary churches, and also some pretty significant historical churches in the area, so we wanted to try to get people access to those.”
She said most churches were agreeable to participating and will have a volunteer available to answer any questions people may have.
“The churches were mostly very keen to have people come in and see. I think it breaks down a lot of barriers about what this church is and what that church is,” she said.
The museum has held doors open events before with historic buildings but this is the first one to feature churches. Since it’s in conjunction with the exhibit, a similar event probably won’t be held in subsequent years. However, if it goes well, the museum may organize more themed events similar to this one.
“We’re hoping that people take the opportunity to explore some of these buildings that might not be that accessible to them, particularly if they’re not members of that congregation,” Price said. “It’s always a bit awkward to say, ‘I’m just here to have a look around’ so that gives you the opportunity without the awkwardness, and also to appreciate the spectacular architecture.”
She said that churches often have interesting art and layouts and added that in some cases the churches have been converted from a building with a different purpose, so it’s interesting to see what people do with the spaces that are available to them.
The event will run from 1 to 4:30 p.m. on that day. The churches involved are:
St. Peter’s Church
St. Peter’s Abbey
Marysburg Assumption Church
St. Scholastica
Brithdir United
Westminster United and Seventh Day Adventist
St. Augustine Roman Catholic
St. John’s Lutheran
St. Andrew’s Anglican
Humboldt Alliance
Living World Church International
Kingdon Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses
All Saints Ukrainian Catholic
Humboldt Bible Church
