Man Sues Churches Over Chimes, Claims They Led to Divorce
A Narragansett, Rhode Island man is suing the Catholic and Episcopal churches over the use of bells at the St. Thomas More Catholic Parish. He claims that the bells have disrupted his life and contributed to the divorce from his wife.
John Devaney lives directly across from the parish, which rings the bell every day at noon and 6 p.m. as well as 4:45 p.m. on Saturdays and 7:45 a.m. on Sundays. The church also uses the bell during weddings and funerals. Devaney claims that the more than 700 "claps" and "gongs" have led to a total disruption of his life, including his psychological welfare.
He wants the church to lower the volume of the now-electronic chimes and has declared that the sound violates his first and fourth amendment rights to "peaceful enjoyment of his property." Devaney also wants unspecified monetary compensation for years of disruption "these past number of years, day in, day out, day in, day out."
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"So many in the community have enjoyed hearing the bell for more than 10 years for but minutes a day," the Catholic Diocese of Providence told the Providence Journal. "The parish believes the brief ringing of the bell is reasonable and well within its rights. The parish community is saddened that a sole individual would continue personal, inappropriate attacks harassing visitors, worshippers, and staff of St. Thomas More Paris."
"As a community of faith," the Diocese added, "we will pray for peace and understanding and that all our neighbors know of our charity and concern."
This is not the first time a dispute has arisen between citizens and the church over the volume or frequency of the bells. Three years ago, the staff at the Hotel Providence approached Rev. Jonathan Huyck of the Grace Episcopal Church about the frequency of the bells. At that time, they rang every 15 minutes throughout the day, which the hotel staff argued was a bit much.
"We are very close neighbors. We love having them here," Rev. Hyuck said. He agreed to ring the bells on the half-hour instead of every 15 minutes. "Our response is to explain, 'We've been doing this for 150 years. This is part of the fabric of the neighborhood. We're sorry you don't like it.'"
