Over the past century and a half, S
Paul’s has been filled with great care and love. Some of the items are excellent examples of architectural church
furniture – others, like the nave altar, are very simple but look beautiful
when they are prepared for use.
Click the links
below for a brief description of the main items in the church:
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Font
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Altar
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Lectern
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Pulpit
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The Calvary
and Stations of the Cross
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Shrine
of Our Lady of Walsingham
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Sanctuary
Lamps, Votum Lights & Votive Candles
The font is used in the ceremony of
HOLY BAPTISM. This is when a person becomes a Christian through the pouring-on
of water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and is
welcomed into the community of the ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC and APOSTOLIC CHURCH.
That is why the font is near the door, the entrance into the church building.
Paul teaches that when we are baptised we die with Christ, go
into the tomb with Him [the reason fonts are usually made of stone], in order
to share His Risen Life. Baptism [also known as 'Christening'] is a decisive
and thus very significant rite. To remind us of its importance the font is
carefully decorated and has a large wooden canopy.
During Baptism God’s Holy Spirit is given.
Look for the painted carving of the DOVE which is a symbol of the HOLY SPIRIT.
HOLY OILS are used in Baptism, one to
signify God’s strength for Christian commitment, and the other as a sign of
becoming Christ’s, expressed in the words of S. Paul as a member of a royal
priesthood, a consecrated nation, a people set apart.
People are often baptised when they
are still babies but it is never too late and adults, of any age, can receive
this Sacrament too.
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The altar is the holy table on
which the PRIEST celebrates the central
act of Christian worship, the MASS: the reason this church was built. In the Mass, also called the EUCHARIST
(thanksgiving), the LORD’s SUPPER and HOLY COMMUNION, the once-for-all
sacrifice of Christ upon the cross is re-presented, and the bread and wine, by
the power of the Holy Spirit, become Christ’s Body and Blood, to feed and
sustain believers.
Upon the altar stand candles, to give it honour and to
remind us that Christ is the 'Light of the World'. We cover the altar with a beautiful coloured cloth called the
frontal. The colours change with the different seasons of the Church’s year.
This starts with Advent, the period before Christmas when we prepare ourselves
to celebrate the birth of Jesus. We pray to live better lives. Then the altar
cloth is sombre purple.
On Christmas Day the altar frontal
is a joyful white or even cloth of gold. We decorate the church with flowers
and many candles too. The altar cloth is lifted up to show the Christmas crib
which Saint Francis used to teach the faithful about the mystery of Christmas.
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This church is named after SAINT
PAUL, who was an Apostle and a Martyr. An Apostle is one who is 'sent': his
mission was to bring Gentiles to faith in Christ. Martyr means 'witness' and it
was because of his teaching and unflinching faith in Christ that S. Paul was
executed in the city of Rome. He holds the sword that a Roman soldier used to
cut off his head.
The shrine is decorated with red
cloth, the colour of the HOLY SPIRIT, which here stands for the blood the blood
of the martyrs. A red light burns before the shrine to give honour and again,
to denote his martyrdom.
Twice a year we remember Saint Paul
with a festival. On 25th January we remember when Saint Paul became a Christian and on 29th
June we remember when he was made a martyr.
At these times we decorate the
church and have a special MASS with elaborate music. After the Mass we stay in
church for a party, which is usually a splendid Lunch. This is a very old Christian
tradition and is very popular.
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This amazing Victorian Bible stand is made of brass and was
built to hold a large Bible. It is
large and decorated with angels to show how important the readings from the
Bible are to us.
In other churches the lectern can
be in the shape of an eagle. Our lectern was specially made for Saint Paul’s
Church and is of extraordinary quality.
The Holy Bible is the inspired Word
of God and comprises the Old Testament [the Jewish Bible] and the New
Testament. It is the Church’s book and the Church was led by the Holy Spirit to
know which books should be included and which not. The Bible is a vital part of
the Church’s Holy Tradition.
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The angel lectern at Saint Paul’s
was made by John Harman Powell in 1885 and was moved from the North side of the
aisle to its present position in 1978 when the Nave altar was constructed. It
represents S. John the Divine’s vision of the angels of the Apocalypse.
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At every major service in the church the priest will preach
a sermon from the pulpit, which is a high platform so that everybody can see
him. There is a wooden canopy which helps to amplify the sound, although these
days we also have a microphone, to make sure that everyone can hear the
priest’s teaching.
During the sermon the priest tells
the people in the church, the congregation, how to understand the readings we
have heard from the bible. In the sermon the preacher seeks to help his hearers
to apply the Bible’s timeless truth to everyday circumstances and challenges.
The pulpit was designed by the
first architect of the church, Richard Cromwell Carpenter, in 1848 and stood in
front of the first pillar on the South side of the aisle. It was not completed
until 1960 when the tester [canopy] was added.
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This fine, carved and painted wooden screen separates the main
part of the church from the CHANCEL, where the priests used to go to the High
Altar. Today the main Sunday MASS is
sung from the CENTRAL ALTAR, and only the choir sits in the seat behind the
screen. In ancient tradition the chancel represented Heaven, as the altar is
the place where heaven and earth meet.
The ROOD is the large carved cross
above the screen. There is a statue of Jesus on this cross, to remind us of his
death. On either side are two statues, one of his Mother, Mary, and the other
of Saint John, the disciple he loved most. The Rood, so placed, reminds us that
we must pass through the cross to glory, following Christ.
Along the bottom of the screen are
paintings of various saints, painted in an old-fashioned manner called the
Gothic style. You can see similar paintings in the many beautiful stained glass
windows. In the middle ages, when most people couldn’t read, these pictures
helped to remind the faithful people of the stories of the saints and of how
brave they were during times when it was deadly dangerous to be a Christian.
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The Rood screen was part of R.C.
Carpenter’s original design for the church in 1849. The Rood Cross and the
figures of the Blessed Virgin Mary and S. John were designed by G.F. Bodley in
1863 but not completed until 1910.
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Jesus said he was the light of the
world, showing people the best way to live. This Pascal, or Easter, Candle is
extra large because it shines as the Light of Christ, and is a symbol of
Christ’s victory over death and sin, which Christians share in Baptism. It is set up on a very large elaborate
candle stick to show how important it is.
Each Easter it is lit at the start
of the Easter Vigil, the first service of the Festival of Easter.
The letters on the candle are
Greek.
alpha, the first letter A in the
Greek alphabet and
omega, the last letter, represent
the beginning and the end of time.
Chi (ch) and Rho (R) the first two
letters of CHRist
These three letters are a Greek
abbreviation of the name of JESUS.
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This beautiful statue, in the
French style, is the focus of our prayers to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the
mother of Jesus.
Honoured as 'Mother of God', she
first heard God’s word and kept it before she bore Him in her womb. Mary is an
example of how all Christians should be: humble, obedient, faithful, and
trusting in God. She was given by Jesus from the cross to be a mother to all
his followers, and so is also known as 'Mother of the Church'.
At festive times during the year,
the statue is adorned with a golden rose, a lace veil and a golden crown, to
show Mary as the 'Queen of Heaven'.
Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
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The Shrine of the Good Shepherd
This shrine directs our prayers
towards Jesus the Good Shepherd who knows his flock as they know him. He lays
down his life for his flock.
You can see that he has rescued the lost sheep, for which he
rejoices. Jesus calls us to repentance, and no-one is beyond being reached by
His Love, to be 'ransomed, healed, restored'.
Sheep have always symbolized the
people of the church.
an early Christian mosaic of Christ the Good Shepherd, Ravenna, 6th
century.
The Calvary & the Stations of the
Cross
This sombre shrine directs our thoughts and prayers towards
the Crucifixion of Jesus. The crucifix reveals God’s love for humanity - nothing
is held back, all is given. For Christians the cross was a battleground between
good and evil, and on Easter Sunday we see that , despite the appearance of
Good Friday, Christ has won and Christians, as His followers, share in His
victory and the hope of glory.
If you look around the walls of the
church you will see a series of carved images showing the main events of the
last day of the life of Jesus, from his trials to his death on the cross and
his burial.
These help the faithful to
concentrate on their prayers, especially during Lent, the period of forty days
before the great festival of Easter, when we remember that Jesus rose from the
dead.
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The word means 'tent'. It is in the
tabernacle [the veiled safe], kept on the high altar, that the Sacramental Body
of Jesus Christ [the consecrated wafer] is kept for the needs of the sick and
dying, and as a focus of prayer. It is the most holy place in the church.
Christ said that he is the Bread of
Life, and it is in the Holy Communion of His Body and Blood that Christians are
fed, strengthened and kept in Eternal Life. Holy Communion is a foretaste of
the Heavenly Banquet.
A white light perpetually burns
before the Blessed Sacrament indicating the reality of Christ’s Presence.
The Tabernacles are covered with
ornate veils in the colours of the season, like the altar frontals. The Tabernacle on the High Altar is gilded
and decorated with semi-precious stones.
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This image of Mary with her Divine Son reminds us of her
appearance to the Lady of the Manor in a remote Norfolk village in the 11th
century. The replica of the Holy House at Nazareth at Walsingham became one of
the most esteemed and visited shrines of medieval Europe.
Destroyed at the Reformation it was
restored in the early part of the 20th century by Father Alfred Hope
Patten, SSC, Vicar of Walsingham, who as a boy learned much about
Anglo-Catholicism from his worship at Brighton churches of this tradition.
There is a library at the shrine in
remembrance of Father John Milburn, vicar of S Paul’s 1964-1982.
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The image of Our Lady of Walsingham
is a modern version, 1988, of the reconstruction commissioned by Fr. Hope
Patten.
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Sanctuary Lamps, Votum Lights and Votive
Candles
Hanging lamps and votum [in coloured
glass] lights give honour and dignity, whether to the Blessed Sacrament
[white], Our Lady [blue] or to martyrs and other saints [red].
Votive candles, lit at a shrine,
symbolise the prayer we offer, and are a powerful reminder of Christ’s light in
what is sometimes the darkness of this world, and they give encouragement that
others have prayed here, too. At the shrine of a saint it is customary to ask
the saint - one of our friends in heaven - to pray for the person or cause for
whom or which we have lit the candle, and for ourselves.
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As they come into the church, many
Christians like to dip their fingers into the holy water and make a sign of the
cross over their bodies to remind them of their baptism, the beginning of their
Christian journey. Similarly, when leaving church, the sign of the cross can be
made with the holy water as we ask God to bless us and keep us.
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Reflecting upon the Gospel, a
Christian is called upon to examine his or her conscience, to repent ['turn
around'] of sin and receive God’s free gift of forgiveness and a fresh start.
The Sacrament of Reconciliation
[Confession] is a means of so doing in the presence of a priest who has been
given authority at his ordination to forgive sins in God’s name.
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