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The original church is rich in sacred art and its many meanings. For example, consider the crucifix over the altar. Christ Crucified, shown robed as our great Priest, Prophet and King! He is suspended by 'chains of love' - His desire to save souls even at the price of His own precious Blood.
The circular stained glass window in the background is both Marian and Eucharistic. This is fitting, since Jesus comes to us through His mother Mary. His sacrifice on the Cross and the sacrament of Holy Communion - the Eucharist - is a the unbloody representation of His death at Calvary. You'll recieve additional details of this beautiful stained glass window and the statues on and near the altar in upcoming pages.
The tabernacle is flanked by St. Thomas More to our left, and St. John Fisher on our right. The suspended red candle holder reminds visitors that our Lord is truly present in the consecrated host(s) in the Tabernacle. The frontal for the altar and many of the vestments for the priest and deacon were made by a parishoner.
Now, let us move closer to the Tabernacle.
"Ecce Agnus Dei!" "Behold the Lamb of God!" The words remind us of St. John the Baptist (Jn 1:29) as he proclaimed the approach of Jesus. This reminds us again of the Real Presence in the Tabernacle. Christ commanded His Apostles to repeat His sacred action at the Last Supper (Mt. 26:26). St. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 5:7 that Jesus is "the paschal lamb who has been sacrificed." St. Paul also made it clear that this was no symbol, in his teaching at 1 Corinthians 11:23-29. Imagine - what would you do if you meet the Lord of all Creation? How would you respond if God suddenly appeared before you? Perhaps you'd kneel, or bow profoundly. This is the reason why for centuries Catholics have knelt or genuflected before a Tabernacle, when the Blessed Sacrament is made available for Eucharistic Adoration or before receiving Holy Communion.
To the right of the altar, one found the Shrine to St. Jude.
The Shrine of St. Jude. Many parishoners have had a special relationship to the Apostle, St. Jude, whose intercession is known for bringing spiritual and temporal relief to those with nearly hopeless situations. Just as you might ask a friend for prayer, so too, we can ask our heavenly friends - the saints - for joining us in prayer to the Almighty. Scripture reminds us that the "prayers of the righteous availeth much." (Jas. 5:16). Revelation 5:8 tells us that the angels offer the prayers of the holy ones - the saints - to God. Hebrews 13:7 tells the faithful to remember their leaders and to consider and immitate their lives. Just as God commanded the creation of the Ark of the Covenant bear the figure of two angels (Ex. 25:18-19) as a reminder of the sacred, so too statues of the saints, stations of the Cross and other religious symbols help us to remember and call on our Savior or the righteous saints who have gone before us. The saints - men, women and children like us - have already won the heavenly crown of glory promised us by the Lord Jesus Christ. Their examples inpsire us! The saints give us hope!
So it is fitting that the glass candleholders in front of this shrine are green - the color of hope. Candles were found in the Temple and in synagogues
in ancient Israel. Their smoke - rising to the heavens - 'carries' the prayers symobolically, just as the book of Revelation tell us that incense is burned (Rev. 8:3,4) before the heavenly throne of God. It is interesting to note that Daniel and Joshua both fell before God's holy angels without condemnation (Jos. 5:14; Dan 8:17). To honor His angels and saints is but one of many ways of honoring the One Who alone made their goodness and very existence possible! So such honor is vastly different than the worship of statues or creatures which Scripture forbids. Just as honoring the representatives of a king or president is expected, so too Scripture indicates that honoring God's holy representatives to humanity is good.
Also visible in the St. Jude Shrine photo, is a picture of St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton. A relic of hers is kept at Our Lady of Walsingham. Even before the time of Christ, relics starting in the Old Testament were sometimes known to be the means that God used to perform miracles or cures. Some examples of the miracles associated with 1st and 2nd class relics of a prophet or saints in Scripture include 2 Kings 13:20-21; Acts 5:15-16 and Acts 19:11-12. The modest but moving image and prayers to the Infant Jesus of Prague are to the left of the statue of St. Jude.
A closer look at the statue of St. Jude is very revealing. Notice that St. Jude's hand is gracefully touching the picture of the Lord Jesus that hangs over his heart. We - the baptized through the grace of the Sacraments - become tabernacles of the Lord! This grace within us is to be protected and loved, just as St. Jude lovingly touches the Lord over his heart. The face of Jesus is held by a chain over the shoulders of St. Jude, a reminder that our Lord tells us to yoke ourselves to Him. St. Jude is holding a staff - he was a missionary that brought the Word of God to others. We are all called to bring Jesus - to make the Lord evident to others. As St. Francis of Assisi taught, we are to witness to Jesus through our lives, and if necessary, we should use words as well. :-)
The halo around St. Jude's head is an ancient symbol of holiness. Note that it is golden. This reminds us that our true and lasting treasure is in heaven! It is the holy, those purified by the Blood of the Lamb, that are eternally rewarded.
Over St. Jude's head, you can see the flame - the fire of the Holy Spirit that is so necessary in our lives if we too are to be holy!
In any of these photos, or in your next visit to a church - stop, look and listen. Ponder the Cross. Pray to hear what the Lord might be saying to you through a Station of the Cross, a picture or statue of His blessed Mother, an angel or saint. What do you see in their eyes? Do you see a look of humility? Are their feet bare or in sandals? Every statue or photo can have an amazing richness of messages. This is why, for centuries, the Church used sacred art to teach the people - especially before reading became common. Today, when the graphic arts have become powerful means of influencing people, isn't it fitting that we look to spiritual art to inspire us to lead lives pleasing to God?
To the left of our view of the altar area one found the indoor Shrine to our Lady of Walsingham.
Our Lady of Walsingham is the patron saint for this wonderful parish church. You can learn more about the history of Our Lady of Walsingham from the link that will follow. But let us take a moment first and contemplate what we see in this statue...
...notice that Our Lady is holding Jesus. She is presenting Him to us, much like a monstrance holds up the Sacred Host for all to see and worship. Our Lady's right hand is gracefully pointing towards the Lord Jesus. She is wearing an Anglo-Saxon crown, a reminder that the original shrine of our Lady of Walsingham in England dates back to a period about 1,000 years ago when all Christendom had but one Universal Church. Our Lady is seated on a royal throne. In ancient Israel, the queen was the mother of the king, be it David or any of the ancient kings. Mary - Scripture tells us - was from the David line, and of course Jesus is the 'son of David' par excellence! She is the Mother of our King - Jesus Christ!
Ave Maria! We can't possible honor Mary as much as God has already! The Ark that held the Covenant was made of pure gold. The Ark was flanked by angels. Inside with the tablets of the Covenant was the priestly rod of Moses, manna and the Word. God the Father placed the Word made flesh into the Virgin Mary's womb. She had this announced by an angel - she would be the mother of Jesus - "Yahweh Saves!" He is our new Manna in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. He is our eternal High Priest! All this is possible because of Mary's yes to God. In anticipation of her great office, God preserved her from sin - making her pure 'gold' in spiritual terms! Just as the Ark was held on poles - not to be touched by man - so the new Ark of the Covenant, Mary, would be ever-virgin - never to be "touched" by man. Hail holy Queen! Mother of our Savior!
Please visit again soon - many more photo pages to come! Or why not visit Our Lady of Walsingham's website...and get directions and times for your own spiritual pilgrimage to this holy place?
You can return to the entrance for our cyber-tour of Our Lady of Walsingham Catholic Church here, and visit the parish in transition or the new church pages.
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The entire ABC's of Faith web site and its contents, as well as all original graphics, are copyrighted by L.A.K., FSC & BTNA Consulting. © 1998 by BTNA Consulting, FSC & L.A.K. All Rights Reserved. Contact us for any requests! This page built on 11/01/05 A.D. Last updated on 03/28/06 A.D.
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