Creation in Stained Glass

 

There are stained glass windows that are astonishing in their age, their creativity, and their beauty. They are figuratively windows into the sacred and in centuries past they told the biblical story to illiterate Christians. 

Then there are the vast majority of these glass storybooks which are honestly mundane and unoriginal. There is a United Church north of Belleville with two depictions of the "behold I stand at the door and knock" Jesus across the sanctuary from each other, a true head-scratcher. Were these gifts from competing prominent families in the congregation? Were those in leadership at the time afraid to say no to the obvious repetition? 

So many stained glass windows are images of Jesus, understandably, as Good Shepherd and other familiar gospel metaphors. Someone new to the faith might be surprised to discover that Jesus was a white guy with Anglo Saxon features rather than a Middle Eastern peasant. 

Rarely -- almost never? -- are we offered explicit scenes from the natural world or Creation as more than a vague backdrop, even though our Trinitarian faith upholds God as Creator. The double- lancet window seen above is a rare exception and it's yours for $2 million USD. In 1899 this Tiffany window was installed in the Second Congregational Church of Winsted in Connecticut in memory of a wealthy couple. The congregation will auction off the colorful artwork featuring a stunning waterfall and sunset because they need the money to continue their ministry and mission. 

According to the Smithsonian Magazine: 

One side of the window features a waterfall flowing down brown rocks, while the other shows lilies, irises and other lush green plants. The background depicts an orange sunset fading into a moody blue sky behind a strip of purple mountains. A circular top section features a bejeweled gold crown. The words “John Boyd 1799-1881” and “Emily W. Boyd 1805-1842” appear beneath the panels.

It seems to me that this is a significant loss for this community of faith, but we live in demanding times for churches. It's probably wiser to sell now than wait until the congregation ages out and the church closes but I wonder if this was a contentious decision. And there are two other Tiffany windows in the sanctuary. 

During Earth Month we can be mindful of the ways our congregations acknowledge and celebrate Creation visually as we can also do during Creation Time in the Fall.