My Top 5 Churches in Charleston

Here in Charleston God seems to be everywhere, that is a kind of an odd statement, but it is true with all of the churches. Also, it sure is nice for everyone to know that they can find a community in Charleston representing their faith.

In the last few weeks, we already learned a lot about Charleston’s history and its graveyards. This week´s excursion let us to ten houses of  prayer in Charleston´s historic district- at nighttime! And here you can find out which one I liked the best!

Second Presbyterian Church

Number 5:

Let´s start off with my pick number five,the Second Presbyterian Church on 342 Meeting St. It was founded in 1809 and built in the Classic Revival style with brick and stucco applied.

The faith represented by the church is the reformed and biblical Christian faith.
It is interesting to know that Presbyterians call their house of prayer Meeting House, which gives the road Meeting Street its name as well. What I found especially pretty was park Wragg Square leading up to the bright white church.
The graveyard is also right next to the church and is kept in good condition.

St. Michael´s Church

Number 4:

The next church I chose to put on my list at  number four is St. Michael´s (Episcopal) Church on 80 Meeting St.
It looks like a bigger, more elaborated version of the Presbyterian church and thereby is more fascinating to me (not that there cannot be beauty in simplistic things!).
This church was finished in 1761 but the oldest predecessor was already built in the 1680s. It represents the Christian Faith and its belief in Trinity. It was built a type of architecture that follows the tradition of Sir Christopher Wren.
Especially pretty for me is the tall steeple which was enlightened at night (it actually sank eight inches as a result of the earthquake in 1886). 

The walled-in churchyard is right next to the building.

Huguenot Church

Number 3:

The church I placed in the middle as my number three is the (French) Huguenot Church on 136 Church St. As the name already reveals, it represents the French Protestant (Huguenot) beliefs as a Christian community.
The Huguenot church was finished building in 1845 after the previous church got destroyed in 1769 to stop the spread of a fire. The unique style of the church is called Gothic Revival and stands out quite a bit.
The graveyard right next to it is in good shape as well and many different kinds of tombstones can be found there. 

Circular Congregational Church

Number 2:

The Circular Congregational Church on 53 Meeting St. is almost my favorite, standing out with its brick walls. The church represents the Christian faith with freedom interpreting the bible.
Its original hall was built in 1804 but burned in 1861. Bricks from this "Old Circular" then were used to build the present sanctuary, completed in 1892. The style the church was built in is Greek Revival and Romanesque. But not just the bricks, also the historic graveyard is special. It is one of the oldest graveyards in Charleston and has beautiful slate stone tombstones.

Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim
Synagogue

Number 1:

The house of prayer I like the best is the Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim Synagogue on 90 Hasell St. It is a Jewish holy house and thereby already stands out for me because of the faith it represents. The building of the first synagogue in this place got destroyed in the great Charleston fire of 1838 as well. Afterward, it got replaced in 1840 by the structure in use today. Is was built in the style of Greek Revival architecture and looks more simplistic to me. It seems almost kind of hidden, but the fact that it is built to face Jerusalem makes it more special. 
It is also nice to know that Jewish people were welcome here in Charleston already in the early days. In the end, the meaning behind this building makes me place it as my number one.