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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