Here’s a little insight into the center-pulpit church. It was a popular 17th century arrangement and can be seen in at least one place in the USA, Old Trinity in the town of Church Creek, Maryland — see http://www.oldtrinity.net where there are photos of it. (A friend once served as rector there.) By raising the preacher above the box pews this setup let him keep an eye on the card-playing, gambling and whiskey drinking among his parishioners during the extremely long sermons. Ah, we’ve come a long way…. Today she or he would have to watch people texting on their cell phones.