Any one of these bizarrely named churches could be in your hometown though they appear to hale from an altered state… pray we do not “altar” them further.

Prayer House Rock

Elvis may have left the building but he left a half-eaten peanut butter, banana and bacon sandwich on the collection plate. Welcome to the 24-hour Church of Elvis, a Portlandia attraction that isn’t really a church and has no known affiliation with The King’s estate. On the other hand, the eclectic storefront at 408 NW Couch is the self-stated “Worlds first 24-hour coin-operated Art Gallery” so at least it’s a profitable enterprise… like most churches. (images via brx0 and Steve Schroeder)

Let the Spirit Move You

Here’s the Palm Bible Church in Soweto, South Africa, whose sign out front bears the perplexing slogan “The Move of God”. Somehow we doubt that refers to Sunday being a popular moving day but hey, we’ve been wrong before. Let’s move on. (image via Paul Birnie)

Sin In Stranger

“Sin will find you out”? Hoo boy, that ship sailed a LONG time ago! Perhaps a better – or at least, more enticing – slogan might read “Salvation lies within”. We get it, though: neon signs don’t come cheap and like The Godfather says, fear can be a potent motivator. (image via Sam Lavy)

Pews ‘R Us

When they say “Find It Here”, they don’t mean sin… OK, depends on what type of used furniture you’re buying and what purpose it’s to be used for. Wait, you may be asking, what does used furniture have to do with a church? We can only shrug our shoulders and refer you to “Bill”… if you can find him. (image via Julia TortoiseHugger)

Fertile Pastors

The New Dimensions Worship Center might be “A Place of New Beginnings” but if their sign’s any indication, it’s also the scene of many happy endings. Gotta give ’em credit, though: while other churches advise that laying in bed on Sunday morning shouting “OH GOD!” doesn’t constitute going to church, New Dimensions replies “Why not both?” (image via David Smith)

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Non Saints 10 More Bizarrely Named Churches

Bizarrely-named churches tend to stand out but someone must’ve got into the sacramental wine before tagging titles on these 10 hilarious houses of worship.

Foursquare Deal

Go ahead and snicker, Millennials, but the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel (aka The Foursquare Church) was founded in 1923 by Aimee Semple McPherson. Using “Blazing Saddles Logic”, the church can sue the Foursquare City Guide app which dates back to only 2008. Oh, and hopefully they’ll use a font other than Comic Sans when filing their legal briefs. Seriously guys, Comic Sans?? Flickr members Manne and Nick Richards snapped the Peckham, London, UK location of the evangelical Pentecostal Christian denomination in 2010 and 2015, respectively.

Wilsonburned

Have you seen this God? Because he is freakin’ AWESOME! He also looks alarmingly – five-alarmingly, even – like “Wilson” from the movie Cast Away. Now we know what happened to Tom Hanks’ voiceless volleyball pal after drifting away from that flimsy raft: he washed up in Buffalo, NY and became revered by the dumbfounded natives for his supernatural snow-melting power. Flickr member Jamie (jbcurio) snapped the Praise Tabernacle church’s admittedly awesome signboard in March of 2008.

Immaculate Perfection

A Perfect Church for an imperfect world… and a thumb in the eye to all those other churches that obviously must be flawed in one way or another. Flickr member genebrooks snapped the red brick “religious center” located on McDaniel St SW in Atlanta, GA on March 7 of 2016.

Be Fruitful

Give genebrooks credit, he’s got a knack for spotting weird churches – or in this case their van, parked somewhere in South Korea. We can’t imagine what a typical service at the “Church of Fruits” must be like but we assume their communion wafers offer parishioners sweet salvation with added Vitamin JC.

Fake Pews

We’ve got a reality show president so why not a church where the only thing scripted is… the scripture. Welcome to the 1st Keep It Real Fellowship Church, located in Little Rock, AR. We imagine Sunday sermons exhort penitents to keep the faith first, and ask questions like “If God is all-powerful, can He make a rock so heavy He Himself can’t lift it?” later. Flickr member LRD615 snapped the very real, as in “you can’t make this stuff up” real, church in March of 2007.

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Impreached 10 Bizarrely Named Churches Chapels

Brand power can go a long way in business but as these 10 unfortunately-named shops and stores so sorrowfully illustrate, it can also go the wrong way.

To paraphrase RUSH, if a store chooses not to decide on a name, it still has made a choice… not a good choice, mind you, but a choice all the same. We can only assume the owners of the No Name II Variety Store in Philly’s Kensington district figured they’d let Pepsi do their sales-talking for them. We’d also like to know if the original “No Name Variety Store” owners are miffed their nifty name was nicked. Flickr members benjamin scott and non-euclidean photography (Molly Des Jardin) captured the semi-anonymous sign in 2013 and 2015, respectively.

Resident Dump

Does reverse psychology really work? You’d have to ask the owner of DUMP, an army-navy surplus clothing store in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Flickr member Barry Lancaster (Derpy McDerpface) snapped the military-themed (an “ammo dump” reference, perhaps?)  store signage in late 2006. One would imagine the RAF would shine the ol’ frosted monocle on this “interesting” use of their tricolor roundel.

Don’t Happy, Be Worry

This candy shop in Barcelona indelicately toes the line between Cute and Offensive. The latter would resonate more with those who have lost someone to the ongoing Opioid Crisis and/or unsuccessful dieters who “self-medicate” emotional stress with colorful sweets. Flickr member Lauren Jankowski couldn’t resist capturing this “wonderfully bizarre” store sign while tripping, er, on a trip overseas back in the summer of 2011.

Kinky Boots

Kudos to Flickr member Eric Allix Rogers (reallyboring) for being in the right place at the right time: shortly before this exotic (if not erotic) footwear shop shouted out its safe word and slammed the doors for good back in 2008. Located in Chicago’s West Side, the store may have confused customers who were looking for shoes, not kicks.

Say Yes to Distress

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride… but sometimes a Bridezilla? Give the owners of this west-end Toronto bridal studio their due for coming up with an attention-grabbing store name. That said, we can see how this sign could trigger bridesmaids who actually ARE jealous on their rival’s Big Day. Good thing that sort of stuff never happens in real life, right? RIGHT?? Flickr member Can Pac Swire snapped the snippy shop in August of 2013.

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Signs Friction 10 Unfortunately Named Businesses

The Bog Standard Toilet Seat Roll Holder may be the sanitation solution nobody asked for but British designer Henry Franks really doesn’t give a crap.

“Bog Standard” is an oak wood toilet seat with a TP roll holder deliberately and seamlessly integrated into the front of the seat. Now this is where most folks would insert the classic, crying-anime-girl “why would you do that??” meme but bear with us: there’s a method behind (pun unintended) Franks’ madness.

“This was part of a research project into how the mechanics of humor can be used to improve everyday objects,” explains Franks (above), a 29-year-old Oxford-based product designer. “By placing the loo roll at the front, it becomes a clean handle for people to pick the seat up with and is arguably where you want the loo roll in the first place,” he adds. Yeah, we’re guessing more than a few of those people WOULD argue that point – some might even impugn the designer as some sort of lavatory loo- er, lu-natic.

“Franks’ Folly”, if you will, makes the age-old tiff between those who mount their toilet paper rolls over-hanging or under-slung seem almost inconsequential… which it most assuredly is NOT! Whew, gotta take a deep breath – funny how the little things in life too often get blown way out of proportion.

But we digress, and Franks has more to say: “Making people talk about an event by designing an experience using a humorous product hopefully brings awareness of how mundane or everyday products could be enhanced,” he opines, “and if nothing else hopefully brings a smile to the user.”

Indeed, perhaps the designer’s hands-on exploration into “toilet humor” is just what’s needed to put this truly existential (if not excremental) question in perspective. Then again, one look at Franks’ front-mounted roll holder and it’s obvious that this novel placement demands the roll feed out over, not under. At least now we know where his loyalties lie.

As far as forcing the toilet roll to act as the toilet seat’s handle, we fear Franks may be stretching the point a tad. Not that the concept of a front-mounted handle isn’t appealing (though still problematic for sanitary considerations), but do you really want to use toilet paper that’s been “handled” by the previous user? No, no you do not.

Maybe we’re over-analyzing Franks’ innovative exercise in bathroom tissue mechanics – he did state his prime focus was on the mechanics of humor, after all. As well, one does not simply build a better mousetrap… and the humble toilet roll we know and love is darned near unimprovable unless designers strike out in unusual and unexpected directions.

Think you could live with a toilet roll holder mounted on the front of the seat? Are you aching to ask unsuspecting friends, family and neighbors to pop in for a poop? Then we’ve got some good news for you: the Bog Standard Toilet Seat Roll Holder could be yours! Contact Henry Franks online via his website for more information. (via Designboom, Designrulz, and Tuvie)

Green space, installation art and public amenity are all distorted into something fresh and provocative with this strange creation, crashing together at the intersection of amusement and apocalypse.

Developed as part of the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show in London by The Edible Bus Stop, a landscape firm that clearly has a sense of humor, the resulting scene is bit hard to parse at a glance.

A totaled car (presumably misled by the lines), smashed phone booth and colorful graffiti help set the stage, but it’s the yellow lines that rise up from the ground and take physical form that really lend the whole work an edge of comic surrealism. A smattering of green growing up through the pavement helps, too.

The temporary exhibition was titled Riot of Color conceived of as “a post apocalyptic interpretation of the after effects of the 2011 London riots.” The dark inspiration is evident, but perhaps overshadowed a bit by absurdity. (via Colossal)