Here's the Church, Here's the Steeple: Full Finger Game and Rhyme

Using your fingers to make a church with steeple and people inside is fun and easy finger play that is meant to be done while saying a beloved children's nursing rhyme. Children have enjoyed making the finger church for centuries.

1

Face your hands toward each other and lock your fingers.

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    Hold your hands about an inch apart. Your fingers should be facing upward and your palms should both be turned inward. Then, lock your fingers together. As you do so, your fingers should be facing downward. Your thumbs will be the only fingers that are not locked together.
    • The hands will create the church building, and the fingers will create the steeple and the people inside.
    • Your thumbs should remain straight and pointing upward at this stage. They will eventually create the doors of the hand church.
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2

Press your thumbs together.

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    The thumbs should fold against each other to create the door of the finger church. As you do so, press your palms together. Keep your thumbs in straight vertical alignment as you press them together. Your other fingers should still be locked together.
    • At this point, the tops of your knuckles on both hands form the roof of your finger church.
    • There should be no space between your thumbs. Now you are reading to say the first part of the rhyme: “Here is the church.”
3

Point both index fingers upward.

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    Point them toward the sky at first to create the steeple. The index fingers were initially locked together with the other fingers. Press the pads of both index fingers together, while still holding them upward. Keep your thumbs still pressed together in a vertical line with no space between them, and your other fingers should remain locked.
    • When you press the pads of your index fingers together, they should form a triangle, with a point at the top. You should say the second part of the rhyme: “Here is the steeple.”
    • Steeples have specific meaning to the church; some historians believe they symbolize Christians’ desire to lift their hearts and minds up toward heaven.
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4

Open your thumbs.

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    While still holding your index fingers together in a steeple formation, swing your thumbs apart. Remember that your thumbs are functioning as the door of the church, so opening them emulates opening the doors of the church. As you do this, keep your other fingers locked and tilt your wrists slightly upward to show the locked fingers inside your hands.
    • Your locked fingers will be lined up as if they are the people sitting inside pews inside the church.[1]
5

Wriggle your fingers.

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    They represent the people inside the church. They're revealed once you open the thumb doors. You’re ready now to say the final part of the rhyme: “Open the doors, and see all the people.” Moving your locked fingers adds a colorful touch to the “people.”
    • It’s more fun for children to wriggle their fingers to show that the people are moving inside the church.
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6

Say the last part of the rhyme.

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    Many people drop the last part of the nursery rhyme. It goes like this: “Here’s the parson going upstairs. And here he is saying his prayers.” [2] You can add the words at the end if you want. If you do, end your hands with them pressed together in prayer.
    • To do the prayer formation, press both hands together, with the thumbs pressed together and the fingers pointing toward the sky. The rhyme is thus a good way to get children to start to pray. This prayer formation is meant to represent the parson praying. If you’re secular, you can drop the last line and prayer hands and just end on the wriggling fingers inside, representing the people.
    • A parson is a member of the clergy, especially Anglican.
7

Master the rhyme.

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    Making a church with your fingers is usually accompanied with a child’s nursery rhyme. So,make sure you say the rhyme as you make the gestures.
    • The rhyme, in totality, goes, “Here is the church. Here is the steeple. Open the doors and see all the people. Here’s the parson going upstairs. And here he is saying his prayers.”[3]
    • A lot of people leave the last two lines off. It's up to you. The term parson is not familiar to many children, but they will understand this is a leader of the church.
    • Another way to end the rhyme is to say, "Close the doors, and let them pray." Open your hands almost all the way, with your pinkies touching. Say, "Open the doors, and they have all gone away!" This will surprise and thrill small children because it's as if the parishioners have vanished.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    What if I'm not religious?
    Peter C
    Peter C
    Community Answer
    This doesn't mean you can't do this rhyme. You could do the church version or the barn version. Anyone can do either version.
  • Question
    What if you aren't religious?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    You could substitute the church for a barn, if you wanted, or just eliminate the part about praying at the end.
  • Question
    Do you have to move your fingers inside the church?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    It's more fun for children to move their fingers as if the finger people are moving inside of the church, but it's up to you!
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References

  1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdIYPjak9H0
  2. ↑ http://makingmusicfun.net/htm/f_mmf_music_library_songbook/heres-the-church-rhyme
  3. ↑ https://nextchurch.net/here-is-the-church-here-is-the-steeple-re-writing-the-rhyme/
  4. ↑ http://www.rhymes.org.uk/here_is_the_church.htm

About This Article

wikiHow Staff
Co-authored by:
wikiHow Staff
wikiHow Staff Writer
This article was co-authored by wikiHow Staff. Our trained team of editors and researchers validate articles for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. This article has been viewed 196,078 times.
69 votes - 65%
Co-authors: 27
Updated: February 22, 2023
Views: 196,078
Categories: Finger and Hand Tricks
Article SummaryX

"Here's the church" is a fun rhyme with hand gestures to go with each line. First, interlock your fingers and press your thumbs together for the first line, "Here is the church." Next, unlock your index fingers and point them upwards but slightly bent to make the steeple. Keep your other fingers and thumbs together. This is the gesture for, "Here is the steeple." For the third line, move your thumbs out of the way to open the church doors and say, "Open the doors." Finally, wiggle your fingers to represent the people in the church and say, "and see all the people." For more tips, including how to learn more verses of the rhyme, read on!

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