If all religion ended tomorrow, what do you think would happen to all the churches,etc.?
Mostly they would be turned into Chinese emporia methinks!
Gay nightclubs would be poetic justice.
@Imatheistically Nah. They've got a sense of humor.
A lot of churches in the U.K. have already closed and are being used for lots of things...some are private homes...divided into flats (apartments for you Americans), some are restaurants, art-galleries or other business premises.
In sweden they are being turned into condos for senior citizens.
Used for brothels, bars, porn theaters, etc.
A few years ago there was a church, named the House of the Second Coming, that closed down in a Mining town in another State here in Australia and became a well frequented 'House of Ill-Repute' knowns as the " House of Many Cummings" by all accounts it became a real 'going' concern for both the Proprietor, employees and its clients.
My wish is they'd be used for helping the less fortunate but not make them have to pray before they get a free sandwich!
I've been to some churches that have been turned into restaurants. I especially enjoy sitting at a bar that was formerly an altar....
@Jnei explains below the situation in England. The same thing is happening throughout Europe. The following is indicated in the article from the link below.
"Over the past twenty years, more than five hundred Catholic churches have closed in Germany—of those a third were demolished and the others sold for development."
The very old, ornate cathedrals sometimes even become tourist attractions in Europe. But not many churches in the USA are like that.
All of the above.
It's going to depend on the church, where it's located, and just how many
people they may have pissed off.
I think most of the ones in strip malls should become Chinese restaurants.
A new mega chain of restaurants called Alice.
Convert them into homeless shelters, community schools, medical facilities, anything useful.
Some would make good community centers, schools, or homeless shelters. Or food kitchens. Or theaters. I'd rather not see them torn down for the most part, but repurposed.
Brewery. Clearly.
Denver has a dance club that was formerly a church. Called The Church.
This is pretty much what has already happened in Britain, where Christianity is rapidly dying out. We've kept the churches though, because most of ours are medieval and very pretty; we just use them as museums and community centres and hand them back to the few remaining church-goers for a couple of hours a week.
They make cool bars, offices, housing, shelters. They are just buildings and some of them are really great looking buildings.
@sweetcharlotte We played small listening venue in Rockford Ill. a long time ago called Charlotte's Web. It was an old church. It was set up with theater seating and a full bar. It was a great place to hear a band.