CHURCH Tourism in South Africa – A Travel Odyssey is, says co-author Darryl David, the most ambitious book of the three he has written with Phillipe Menache.

Together the two men have also published 101 Country Churches of South Africa, and A Platteland Pilgrimage: 102 Country Churches of South Africa.

“This is our third book and our last,” David, a regular contributor to The Witness and founder of Booktown Richmond and the Midlands Literary Festival, says.

“It’s also our most ambitious one. To self-publish a book like this costs a lot. We have taken a leap of faith that the book is going to do well.”

And it seems to be going well as the two men have already sold over 150 copies without a stitch of publicity.

A key feature of Church Tourism in South Africa is the large number of KwaZulu-Natal churches which feature in the book.

“In the past I always felt that KZN could hold its own but instead it was the churches of the Eastern Cape and the Western Cape that stole the show,” David, who lives in Howick, said. “But in this book I’m proud to say that it is the KZN churches which make the book special.”

On the cover is St Joseph’s Church in the Sand River Valley. Motorists on the N3 may have spotted the church, between the Engen One Stop and the Tugela Plaza, but when it came to getting pictures David has to travel a much less beaten path.

“This church has haunted me for the past 10 years,” he said. “I could see it from the highway but I had no idea how to get to it. One day I just decided to stop on the N3. I climbed a fence and walked a few kilometres on a dirt path and finally found it. It was quite a walk but definitely worth it.”

St Joseph’s was built was Italian prisoners of war between 1941 and 1946, although it is believed that a church first appeared on the site in 1908.

The book also highlights the beautiful Trappist Mission churches in the province, including those at Centocow in Creighton, the Mariannhill Monastery and Reichenau.

“They were a real highlight,” says David, “Trappist Mission churches are amongst the greatest in South Africa and the most unknown. They are unique to KZN and the Eastern Cape region.

“I am delighted that we were able to make them a feature of this book… people’s jaws drop when they see images from these churches!”

The authors also broke their cardinal rule of only featuring ‘platteland’ churches to allow them to include ‘Maritzburg’s beautiful St Mary’s Catholic Church in Jabu Ndlovu Street.

Completed in 1928, the church boasts a stunning interior, complete with white arches and some of the finest stained glass in South Africa.

Also included in the book are the Lutheran Church at Braunschweig, which dates from 1892; St Michael’s United Church, a Gothic gem in Boston; St Henry’s Catholic Church in Colenso; St Peter and St Paul Church in Lüneberg, one of the oldest settlements in KZN; and Renishaw Chapel near Scottburgh.

There are, of course, plenty of other gems from around South Africa to admire in this 160-page, full colour book; and there is a section devoted to architect, Wynand Hendrik Louw, who designed around 100 churches in South Africa.

• For more information and to buy a copy of Church Tourism in South Africa – A Travel Odyssey contact philippe.menache@gmail.com or phone 083 307 4041.