Lights Arise. A Benedictine oblate blog

Yesterday I visited the St. Leo Abbey church for vespers (5:00 pm) and compline (8:00 pm). After vespers I came back inside the church about 7:00 pm and enjoyed the stillness of the quiet church for about an hour.

There are many events to watch in a quiet church. One is the lights of the saints. The afternoon sun coming through the saints’ stained-glass windows located high on the church’s west wall is cast across the church onto the church’s east wall.

The Florida sun was getting lower in the sky in the west, but the light from the saints’ windows was projected onto the church’s east wall and those patches of light slowly got higher and higher. As the sun was setting the church was fairly dark because there were only a few lights on, but I could still see traces of the saints’ light high on the east wall as if getting ready to ascend beyond the church’s interior at the end of the day.

Each time I sit quietly in the stillness of the St. Leo Abbey church I am amazed at how much action and movement there is in the church. The light through the stained-glass windows of the saints powers some of the movement.

It is movement that is just beneath my ability to see while looking directly at it, but if I look away into the stillness for a minute and then look back, I notice that the light from the saints has just moved up a bit on the opposite wall. After an hour in the church — although the process is slow — there is great change from when I arrived.

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Picture is "Kenansville,Florida sunset 2" by crossfirecw

Listening to a "silent" church. A Benedictine oblate blog.

The art, designs, forms, and symbols in the interior of a church are a language that speaks to those who enter. See the blog The Silent Sanctuary Speaks I wrote a few days ago.

This language of art and designs — which is mostly unknown to me — spoke of four functions. At least that is what I thought I could hear murmuring as I sat on the pew and looked around at the cool church before the monks came in for the Divine Office.

CARRYING ME SAFELY TO THE MASS.

The interior of the church contained pictures of angels and I recalled Psalm 91 which is part of Compline Divine Office and that wonderful verse, “For God commands the angels to guard you in all your ways. With their hands they shall support you, lest you strike your foot against a stone.”

I knew that these visual stories were intended to help strengthen me and carry me in safety.

RECALLING GOD’S WORKS.

I sometimes look at a stained-glass window and the book or an animal or container it depicts along side the saint.

If I have a general idea of what the scene is about, I will do some study to learn about the major themes in that saint’s life and I can sometimes learn more about what work of God is being shown and that I should have readily in my mind.

It is exciting to try to solve the mystery of what’s being shown in the stained-glass window.

If this interests you and you want to help my current mystery, I think the stained-glass window at the top of this post is St. Benedict at the cave of Subiaco, the bread on the rope is from monk Romanus who supplied Benedict out of Romanus’ own allowance. The bell is so that St. Benedict will know the bread is there. I think the bird and the cross tell the story of when Benedict was assailed by temptation.

But what is the blue jar or vase? And I think there is an hour glass? Is the hour glass for knowing when to pray the liturgy of the hours?

I think the stained glass window’s scene is from Chapters 1 and 2 of “The Life of Our Most Holy Father Saint Benedict,” by Pope Saint Gregory the Great.

Here are some beautiful pictures of the Subiaco cave.

CLEANSING THE MIND.

The cloud of witnesses and acts of God spoken of by the church’s interior help me shed the anxieties of the world, the interior of the church holds my heart and mind on God. I have found no place better than the interior of a silent yet speaking church for this important part of prayer.

SUPPORTING THE LITURGY.

Liturgy — public acts of worship — are aided by the language of the art, forms, and designs in the church — like a choir singing.

I miss going to the abbey church. Maybe I can go next week.