Congregation's helping hands augment artistry at church
St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Chenango Bridge is an unpretentious edifice, a barebones sort of building that suits its congregation just fine.
When an artsy altar was installed a few years ago - a wooden affair shaped like a boat with images of Jesus and the disciples carved into it- the placid waters of the congregation saw a few tumultuous waves.
They calmed again, though, and now defenders of the one-of-a-kind altar, which was made by a nun in Windsor, would never opt for a merely geometric replacement, says Pastor Mark Giroux.
The 50-plus-year-old church has seen other changes, too, and each of those renovations has also been touched by hands of love. The ample balcony and other professional work was tenderly finished by congregants, he explains.
Such are the people of St. Mark's.
The windows of the church are noteworthy only in their plainness - or at least that was true until last year.
Costs to make and install stained-glass windows would run to the tens of thousands, and quite possibly more. Thinking aloud, Pastor Mark had said to a few in the church, "Maybe we could make them ourselves."
With no more prompting than that, over the ensuing months a handful of church members became stained-glass artisans of high caliber.
http://www.pressconnects.com/article/20090121/COLUMNISTS01/901210349/1005/OPINION
You can see all of the Good Stuff posts by clicking on Good Stuff in the labels below.
No comments:
Post a Comment