Before the hungry hordes arrive, here is my little church on Easter morning. I love my church building. It's a beautiful church where people have worshiped since 1844, full of prayers of the saints who have passed on, and the saints who pray there now.
According to legend, the emperor Diocletian once tried to poison John by ordering him to drink a cup of poisoned wine. Saint John blessed the wine and the poison slithered away in the form of a snake.
The stained glass behind the altar depicts the legend, with John holding a cup with a snake rising up from it. If you click on the picture for the enlarged view, you can see the cup and the snake.
The picture below shows the Easter cross. At the beginning of the service, the children process to the front and decorate the cross with flowers. The flowers cover a plain white cross wrapped with chicken wire to hold the flowers. A former rector disliked the cross rather intensely and wanted to get rid of it, but his side of the battle was lost almost before it began, because the protests were so many and so loud that he quickly gave up his idea.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.
Happy Easter to you and your family GM!
ReplyDeleteHe is risen and that's a great thing! Happy Easter, Grandmere!
ReplyDeleteHow could anyone be opposed to the flowering of the cross?
ReplyDeleteRoseann, perhaps because the cross is somewhat of an eyesore before the flowers go on. I don't know, but it didn't happen.
ReplyDeleteJoyfilled Easter to everyone.
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter Grandmère Mimi and everyone!
ReplyDeleteI love it, and the snakes are still slithering out of the cups!
Adios POISON! Hello unconditional WELCOME AND LOVE!
Happy Easter from the inner garden at my home in San Miguel the Archangel (speaking of getting rid of poison), Central America.
There is are pictures of my garden today on the opening page and scroll down too...it´s very ¨floral¨around here too:
http://www.leonardoricardosanto.blogspot.com
Love your old church; 13 years younger than ours, and much better preserved and cared for (ours burned down twice in its history).
ReplyDeleteMy old church in St. Louis used to do the flower cross. I think it began as an old German tradition. The parish Christmas tree would be stripped of its branches after Epiphany and used to hold a bird feeder on the parish grounds. For Good Friday, it was cut in 2 and used as the cross for the Good Friday liturgy. On Holy Saturday, or on the morning of Easter Sunday, it would be covered in chicken wire and the Sunday school children would decorate it with flowers. I thought it was a beautiful tradition. I'm not sure whether they still do it or not.
Happiest of Easters to you! Your church is just lovely and so peaceful and welcoming. I belonged to a little 100+ year-old stone church that probably wasn't much bigger in the Bronx. It was my favorite church home that I've had.
ReplyDeleteAnd the flowering of the cross is lovely too and such a nice way to involve children in the joy of the resurrection.
Alleluiia! (And thanks for stopping by my new place. You were the 1st! So special to me....)
Thanks, all.
ReplyDeleteWe had a Baptism today, too - a dear little baby boy. Both his parents grew up in our church. On his mother's side, the boy is the fifth generation to belong to our parish. On his father's side, he's the fourth generation, at least. He belongs to all of us now.
Priscilla, I'm proud to be the first to leave a comment.
ReplyDeleteI added your new blog to my blog friends list.
What a beautiful church. Happy Easter Grandmere Mimi.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit having never heard of 'flowering the cross.' I love the idea and if I thought anyone in my parish's hierarchy, lay or clerical cared about what I think, I would suggest it for next year. I wont.
ReplyDeleteHope you had a great Easter.
FWIW
jimB
Lindy, I may love my old church too much. It's just a building, after all.
ReplyDeleteJim, I love the tradition of the children flowering the cross. I don't make many suggestions in my church, either.
I had a very nice Easter.
Well, I think it looks fine too. I can see why you'd be attatched.
ReplyDelete