THE EAST WINDOW“The Apostles”

THE SYMBOLS SPEAKHow symbols display the

faith of believers through the beauty of stained glass

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w i n d o w s, stained glass, replacing the plain

glass, was installed with the . . .

In 1966, in the

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. . . 14 symbols already embedded in them

THE APOSTLES

The East Window

THE APOSTLES

14 symbols

. . . Jesus called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles . . . Luke 6.13

Disciple = learnerApostle = one sent out

Each apostle is recognized on a certain day of our church year, noted underneath the symbol.

Each symbol displays either an event from the life of the apostle or symbolizes how he was martyred.

1 SIMON (PETER)

Two crossed keys show-ing authority to forgive and retain sins (Mt 16.19)

Authority was given to church based on Peter’s confession “Thou art . .” (Mt 16.16)

Peter (Greek=rock) Cephas

(Aramaic=rock) Wrote 2 epistles of

NT

Jun 29

2 ANDREW

X-shaped cross shows the manner in which he was crucified--on a cross of this design

It came to be known as the “St Andrew” cross

He brought Peter, his brother, to Jesus (Jn 1.40-42)

Nov 30

3 JAMES the Elder

The 3 shells are signs of pilgrimage & the missionary spirit of James

James traveled widely with the message of Christ

Brother of John First apostle to die

(Acts 12.2)Jul 25

4 JOHN

Chalice with serpent It was said that John

drank poison and survived

John, the last apostle to die, was the only one who didn’t die a martyr’s death

Brother of James Wrote the Gospel, 3

Epistles, & RevelationDec 27

5 THOMAS (Didymus-twin)

Spear and carpenter’s square

The square indicates he was a builder (India)

Spear shows how he died

Thomas needed visible proof to strengthen his faith (Jn 20)

Known as “Doubting Thomas”

Dec 21

6 MATTHEW

Three money bags are a reminder of the previous profession of Matthew--a tax collector (Mt 9.9-13)

He is also called Levi

Wrote the Gospel of MatthewSep 21

7 BARTHOLOMEW

Bible with a knife The knife is a symbol

of how he died--he was flayed (skinned) alive

Also called Nathanael

The first disciple to call Jesus the Son of God (Jn 1.49)

Aug 24

8 JAMES the Younger

Picture of a saw Shows how he

died--said to be killed in Persia for his faith and then sawn in two

Also known as James the Less (Mk 15.40)

May 1

9 PHILIP

A cross and 2 loaves of bread

Reminder of the feeding of the 5000 when Philip doubted Jesus’ power (Mt 14.13-21)

Brought Nathanael to Jesus

May 1

10 JUDE

Ship with a plain white sail--different from the symbol for the Church

Jude sailed away for missionary service in distant lands

Also known as Judas, son of James, or Thaddaeus

Oct 28

11 PAUL

Bible with double-edge sword behind it

“Spiritus Gladius” is written on the pages of the Bible: “The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God” (Eph 6.27)

Known as the Apostle to the Gentiles

Wrote most of NTJan 25

12 MATTHIAS

Bible with double- sided ax

Shows Matthias’ martyrdom--he was beheaded

Matthias was chosen as the replacement apostle for Judas (Acts 1)Feb 29

13 SIMON the Zealot

Fish on top of Bible

Illustrates that Simon was a fisher of men by the power of the Word

Belonged to the political party of the ZealotsOct 28

14 JUDAS ISCARIOT

Blank shield Disciple who

betrayed Jesus Nothing desirable to

remind us of his be-trayal, therefore no symbol

Even though blank, it sends a powerful message

SUMMARY

Two sets of brothersPeter and Andrew

James and John

All but one was a martyrOnly John died naturally

The additional 2 apostlesPaul

Matthias

SUMMARYFive had more than 1 name

Simon=Peter=Simon Peter=CephasThomas=Didymus (twin)

Matthew=LeviBartholomew=NathanaelJude=Judas=Thaddaeus

Three had the same nameSimon Peter and Simon the Zealot

James the Elder and James the Younger

Judas son of James and Judas Iscariot

Be thou faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life. (Rev 2.10)

The East Window

End of this section

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