Van Gogh in

Oudezijds Chapel

Vincent van Gogh attended services in the Oudezijds chapel multiple times. On 15 July 1877, he heard his Uncle Stricker preach at the 10 a.m. service. It was poorly attended and Vincent was surrounded mainly by orphans. He reported that the sermon was:

“a warning not to become too attached to outward forms and ceremonies without truly sincere religious feeling of the heart, as opposed to a life without belief in the things that are higher than those in this life.” Read the complete letter

Vincent considered the little neighbourhood around the church with its narrow streets such as the Zeedijk and Teertuinen, a “very nice part of the city” that reminded him of central London.