The Stained Glass Windows of Sacred Heart Church

The Virginal Conception

1.  The Virginal Conception

The first window depicting the great wonder that God allowed to happen to Mary, the Virgin whom He destined to be the Mother of His Son, Jesus. We behold our Blessed Mother as the central figure in blue with the Angel Gabriel, who brought her the Divine Message. The Holy Spirit pictured, rejoices in this humble handmaid of the Lord, who above all creatures on earth most perfectly reflects the image of the Triune God. From this scene, we learn to bow our heads in submission to the will of God, following the example of Mary, even when we cannot understand what the Lord is asking of us.

The Birth of Jesus

2.  THE BIRTH OF JESUS

In the second window we see the fruit of Mary's womb, Jesus. Mary and Joseph kneel by His side trying to penetrate this mystery of mysteries - the Word made Flesh. In the Nativity we see the Divine Child in His manger of straw, with His very own Mother, Mary, and His foster father, Saint Joseph. Above the holy three, a star appears announcing the glad tidings that "He who was the expected of nations has come." The stable, which houses the Son of God, is kept warm only by the breathing of the cow and the donkey. From this window on the Nativity, we can recall the poverty of spirit that the Lord asks of us.

The Shepherds

3. THE SHEPHERDS

The shepherds portrayed in this window are the ones to whom the Lamb of God first manifested Himself. Angels sang their "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (Glory to God in the highest) on that first Christmas night. May our lives be a continuous song of praise to the new born King. Let us give thanks for our priests, who give birth to Christ at holy Mass each time they say the words, "this is my body - this is my blood."

The Holy Family

4. THE HOLY FAMILY

In this window Jesus, Mary, and Joseph - the Holy Family - hold out to us the virtues of an ideal family unit of a father, mother, and children, as well of a parish family with love, obedience, and mutual respect for each other. In addition, Jesus, God of Heaven and Earth, and His Blessed Mother, purity itself, render to Saint Joseph perfect subjection in all things.

The Sacraments

5. THE SACRAMENTS

The life-giving soul of the Church is the grace of the Sacraments, the inheritance of every baptized Catholic. Every member of Sacred Heart Parish who has been united in wedlock has received as from the hands of Christ himself, through His ordained Priests or Deacons, the Nuptial Blessing. Our Blessed Mother, shown in this picture, shows her consideration of others by asking her Divine Son to perform His first public miracle at Cana of Galilee. She knows that her Son Christ will change water into wine at her request. We can see Him blessing the water, changing it into wine, as the young servant boy fills the water jugs to overflowing. In being present at the marriage feast, Christ and His Blessed Mother show their high regard for this sacrament. From it we can remember the words of the marriage vows, “until death do us part.”

The Four Evangelists

6.THE FOUR EVANGELISTS

The four Evangelists, writers of the Gospels of the New Testament, are shown in this window. Each Evangelist and Gospel they wrote is associated with a certain symbol: Saint Matthew, a man, because he begins his account with the family tree to Christ as a man; Saint Mark, a lion, for his first chapter introduces Saint John the Baptist in the desert; Saint Luke, an ox, for his Gospel opens with the story of Zachariah offering sacrifice in the Temple; Saint John, an eagle, because his Gospel speeds straight to the Son. To these four Evangelists, who gave us such explicit and detailed accounts of our Savior's life, we should be grateful. For it is only in reading the Gospels that we can really come to know Christ, and learn to love Him as a result of this knowledge.

Our Lord with Martha and Mary

7. OUR LORD WITH MARTHA AND MARY

In this sketching, our Blessed Lord is visiting in the home of His friends Martha and Mary, in Bethany. Mary sits at our Lord's feet, engrossed in His explanations of the life of the spirit. Mary becomes a source of great annoyance to her sister, Martha, who is busy about trying to make her Divine Guest more comfortable. Therefore, she complains to our Lord that Mary has left her alone to do all the serving. The Divine Lord answers her in the ever memorable words, "Martha, Martha, you are busy about many things, but only one thing is necessary: Mary has chosen the better part; and it will not be taken from her." We are not to conclude from this statement of our Lord that those who live an ideal Christian life are not pleasing to Him, but that those who seek a life of perfection are His very own special ones.

The Keys to the Kingdom

8.  THE KEYS TO THE KINGDOM

Here we see Christ giving to Peter the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Through the Power of the Keys granted by Christ, His Church, which is pictured, is able to forgive sins and the punishment due to them, eternal and temporal. The Church is able to grant indulgences to the faithful on earth and to the poor souls, and to excommunicate the recalcitrant sinner. The Apostles are shown in the background so we might understand that this power was given not only to Saint Peter, but also the Apostles.

The next three windows (windows nine, ten, eleven) are a set with the theme of "Communion of the Saints." They are in the back of the church and face the Tabernacle. The center window pictures the Sacred Heart of Jesus (window 10), to His right Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (window 11), to His left, Saint Joseph, the workman (window 9). These windows present a connection of the Holy Family's ties and that of the countries of America and France.

St. Joseph the Workman

9. SAINT JOSEPH, THE WORKMAN

The window on the left of the Sacred Heart is Saint Joseph, whom God chose to watch over the childhood of the Incarnate Word. Here he is depicted in his role as a worker, holding in his hands one of the tools symbolic of his trade. In the upper right hand corner is Saint Joan of Arc, patroness of France. She met her death by flames as she was burned at the stake, defending her Faith and her country. On the lower left, Saint Louis, who became King of France at the age of twelve. He was said to be "the holiest and most just King who ever wore the Crown." At the lower right we see Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, another flower of sainthood in France. With persistent entreaties at the age of fifteen, she was permitted to enter Carmel of Lisieux, where she died at the early age of twenty-four.

The Sacred Heart of Jesus

10.  THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

The center window pictures the Sacred Heart of Jesus lovingly portrayed for us. We see His heart is so full of love for us because in this Church we have honored His most adorable Heart. He has promised to bless the place in which His Sacred Heart is honored and loved. On the left of Jesus is Saint Francis Xavier Cabrini. In the lower pan is Saint Isaac Jogues, a Jesuit missionary and martyr. Below is Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, a young Iroquois girl. These three devoted servants of the Sacred Heart met their deaths in various ways, yet were united in one aspect and motive: love. We too are known for the love we bear for the Sacred Heart and for one another; therefore, our love is but an overflow of our love for God.

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart

11.OUR LADY OF THE SACRED HEART

The window to the right of the center is our Lady of the Sacred Heart, one especially dear to Monsignor Maurice Bourgeois because of his great love for our Lady and for what the figures in the picture represent. Above our Lady of the Sacred Heart is Saint Maurice, who was a true soldier of Christ. He was martyred during the time of the severe persecutions of the Church by Maximian Herculius. To the lower right of our Lady is Saint John Mary Vianney, better known as the Cure d'Ars. He is beloved by all priests because Pius XI at the time of his canonization named him patron of the clergy. Right next to our Lady stands Saint Philomena, to whom the Cure d'Ars had great devotion in his life time. At the very bottom of the picture is Saint John the Baptist, who may also be called a model for those who preach the Word of God.

The Miracle Cure of the Paralytic

12.  THE MIRACLE CURE OF THE PARALYTIC

Pictured in this window is Jesus, speaking to a paralyzed man, who because of the crowd has been lowered from the roof of the house into the presence of Jesus. Jesus seeing their faith, said "I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home," which, as He implied, was like saying, "your sins are forgiven." Looking at this window we learn the lessons our Lord was trying to convey to the crowd, that He was soon to confer upon the newly ordained priests, His Apostles, on the night of the Resurrection: the power to forgive sins. Let us be truly grateful for the great benefit we receive each time we go to confession and our sins are forgiven when the priest says, "I absolve you..."

The Transfiguration

13.  THE TRANSFIGURATION

In this window we see the transfiguration of Jesus on the Mountain. Here with the three Apostles with whom He is closest - Peter, James, and John - Jesus gives them a glimpse of Himself resplendent in glory. As they see Jesus transfigured before them, talking to Elijah and Moses, they are astonished at what they hear and see. In this Gospel narrative, Christ is revealing Himself to the world as He will appear one day to judge the living and the dead. Let us prepare ourselves for His final coming so that we may bear witness of His glorious Transfiguration.

Symbols of the Old Testament

14.  SYMBOLS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

Here we see depicted symbols of the Old Testament, the seven-branched candlestick, the horn, and the scroll. The seven-branched candlestick given to Aaron by Moses, who had been commanded to do so by the Lord. It was to be turned against the north, toward the table of the loaves of proposition so that it might give forth light to the children of Israel. The horn, symbolic of a trumpet, was used to gather the multitude to the door of the tabernacle of the Covenant. The scroll contained the inspired word of God, the Jewish Bible. From these symbols of light, sound and written word, we, the people of the New Testament, can also be guided by the beacon of sanctifying grace from a life of darkness to one of light. By the chimes of our church bells we may be led to the altar of God, and by the inspired words of the New Testament come to a greater knowledge and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, who alone is the way, the truth, and the life.

Palm Sunday

15.  PALM SUNDAY

In this scene, we witness Jesus in His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. There, the King of Glory seated upon an ass, processed in, and before him branches were spread by the populace. They saluted Him as they acclaim in a loud voice, "Hosanna! Blessed is He, who comes in the name of the Lord." Within a few days, though, this fickle-minded crowd would be crying out again. The words would not be words of praise, but of hatred and revenge, "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!" How often are we like that crowd, in time of consolation and peace we feel inclined to sing His praises; but in moments of aridity and trail we are inclined to say "Crucify Him!"

Maybe not by actual speech, but by our actions, we may indicate that we do not know that Man. It is then when trails and tribulations weigh us down that we need to seek GOD, and go to confession for words of comfort and hope.

The Last Supper

16.  THE LAST SUPPER

Of all the windows in the Church, this one is perhaps the most precious because of the stupendous miracle that our Lord performed at this time. It was at this time that He gave us the fullest proof of His love: Himself in the Holy Eucharist. Yet even this beautiful ceremony of the first Mass and the ordination of His first priests was marred by the presence of Judas. Judas is the traitor who sacrilegiously received holy Communion from the hands of our Lord Himself. We need to show gratitude to our Lord for this great gift, without which we would have been left orphans. We need to pray for the institution of Sacred Priesthood that our priests may live up to the high ideals of Jesus and their sacred calling. Let us also pray that our church parish will have many native sons in the Sacred Priesthood of Jesus Christ.

The Burial of Christ

17.  THE BURIAL OF CHRIST

Jesus had now fulfilled the purpose for which He became incarnate - the Redemption of the human race. The horrors are over, the betrayal of Judas, the denial of Peter, the desertion of the Apostles, the scourging, the crowing with thorns, the long steep road to Calvary, the Crucifixion! The seventh dolor of Mary, as pictured so often by swords, is the piercing of her maternal heart. She sees His mangled body, prepared for burial. Though her faith in His rising again is supreme, she realizes that this burial severs all natural earthly ties with her Divine Son. How desolate this moment was for the Mother of our Divine Savior! There may be moments in our life when God will visit us with such desolation of spirit. Will we be as valiant as this woman, the Co-redemptrix of the human race?

The Resurrection

18. THE RESURRECTION

This third day dawns bright and beautifully as our crucified Christ throws off the bondage of His burial garments, and arises in His glorified state, the conqueror of sin and death. Though there is no special mention of His appearance to His Blessed Mother recorded in the Gospels, it is commonly believed that He must have appeared to her first. She, by whom He was given birth, gave vent to the wonders that God had worked in her many years previous and truly exalted in this triumphal victory of her Son. Her joy was now complete. However, her Son, our Lord was to ask one more sacrifice of her, she must remain on earth to mother the infant Church until He would see fit to raise her up body and soul into Heaven. There she would reign forever as "Queen of Martyrs." We, too, will one day rise gloriously with the crucified Lord because we will have lived the life of a true follower of Christ.