I must say I hope the monuments are outside the church, because to me that is one of the most moving aspects of the poem: the contrast between the soul going into church, for perhaps more “orthodox” devotions, while the flesh remains outside for a profounder meditation. Perhaps it is my 21st Century bias to want to push the un-Christian perspective of the poem that way, but I can’t help it—while the “I” goes with the soul into church to pray, the flesh is being schooled in deeper lessons.