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• 1 2019-12-06T08:20:15-08:00 Chapels 5 plain 2020-01-27T07:21:28-08:00
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Blessed Sacrament Memorial Chapel
  
      The Blessed Sacrament Memorial Chapel, to the right of the rear entrance to the Common Room, was consecrated to the daily use of the Parish on Sunday, September 30, 1951. Open for meditation and rest, it also provided the setting for many years as a place for the daily celebration of the Holy Eucharist and for the recitation throughout the week of the morning and evening offices of the Episcopal Church. It is presently used for special Eucharist and Holy Unction healing services. Closely reproducing a seventeenth century Anglican oratory, the chapel was originally designed by the J. & R. Lamb Studios of Tenafly, New Jersey. In 1991, an electrical fire gutted the original walls, though some of the fixtures were rescued. At the behest of Trinity’s then-rector, the Rev. Frank H. Moss III, Fort Wayne architect John Shoaff redesigned the chapel, making burled walnut paneling the predominant feature and a columbarium with brass plaques behind the small free-standing altar. Ervan Orban, a local carpenter, Episcopalian, and musician, executed most of the carpentry work. Behind the wall are kept the ashes of some of Trinity’s faithful departed.
       A finely-modeled wooden figure of Our Lord, dressed in red and white and holding the golden Chalice of the Eucharist, stands near the window in the chapel, which is a fitting memorial to all the faithful departed of Trinity Church. Its origin is unknown.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
       The windows of the chapel contain four panels, all reflective of Jesus Christ as Healer. At the top left is Jesus healing a blind man (Mark 8: 22-25). At the top right is Jesus raising to live the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue leader of Capernaum (Luke 8: 40-56). The bottom two panels depict St. Luke the physician and scribe, writing his two books for the New Testament. At the bottom right, St. Luke heals a dying man. These panels were all designed and manufactured under the direction of City Glass of Fort Wayne in the 1990s.
  
  
      At the rear of the chapel is a niche with a small votive stand and a prie-dieu of wood and brass given in memory of Mary Catherine Angell (1813-1896) by her children. The wooden Christus Rex in front of the door leading into the chapel is original to it and, before the fire, was affixed behind the altar. The lectern was given in 1942 by Kay Thompson in memory of Ansel Thompson, while the missal stand was given the same year in memory of Joseph L. McClure.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Christ the King Chapel
  
       The Christ the King Chapel, located on the first floor of the Parish House, was originally designed specifically for and used by Trinity’s school children. Since its opening in 1956, it has served as a place where younger members could become accustomed to the traditional setting of Anglican worship in an atmosphere of dignity, beauty, and convenience, with fittings and appointments scaled to the smaller worshippers’ size. The pews rose only thirteen inches above the floor level, with an initial seating capacity for ninety children. Since 1956, the chapel has undergone repurposing. The pews are now gone, and the chapel now serves multiple purposes, not only for children but for adults in a variety of settings. Moveable chairs allow the room to be configured in a variety of ways.
       The chapel, considered “contemporary Gothic,” originally employed furnishings created by St. Christopher’s Workshop in Bremen, Indiana. The focal point of the chapel for many years was the imposing redwood Cross and figure of Christ the King, which rose against a background of colored marble imported from Verona, Italy. Studded with bronze rosettes, the reredos was fifteen feet in height and formed a striking setting for the Christ in Majesty, which was executed in hard pine by a southern Indiana woodcarver.
       The 1956 altar, crafted of Botticino marble, was of contemporary design. The centerpiece on the front, which was mounted on a wrought-iron grille, portrayed the pelican-in-her-piety, picking her breast to feed her young with her own blood - a symbol of the voluntary shedding of the Savior’s blood upon the Cross for our redemption, and of the Blessed Sacrament. Twelve bronze rays, representing the Holy Apostles, radiate from the centerpiece; close inspection will reveal a thirteenth ray, darkened and rusted, which symbolizes the traitor Judas, probably a unique commemoration. The candlesticks on the Altar employed three square rods to denote the Ever-blessed Trinity.
       This Trinitarian symbolism was repeated in the chancel furniture. The lectern and prayer desk, of wrought iron, were each decorated with three intertwining circles of bronze, while the credence table bore that most appropriate symbol of the Holy Spirit, the descending dove. All of these decorations were subject to change in 2019 with a redecoration of the chapel under consideration.
  
  
  
  
  
       The Chapel features four stained glass windows, brilliantly colored and executed by the George L. Payne Studios of Paterson, New Jersey. Each window depicts one of the four Evangelists - St. Matthew, donated by Hazel Rogers in memory of Hubert H. Rogers; St. Mark, donated in memory of Harry Evans by Mrs. Evans; St. Luke, donated by Vera Pruegger in memory of Frank and Mary Pruegger; and St. John, donated by Hazel Miller in memory of George A. and Mary Miller. Each saint is depicted with his traditional devices. St. Matthew appears with medallions of a winged man and an axe, the symbol of his martyrdom. St. Mark is shown as a winged lion and an oak leaf cluster with acorns. St. Luke appears with medallions of a winged ox and of a caduceus, symbolizing his role as a physician. St. John is shown with an eagle and a chalice, since he was almost poisoned with a chalice until the poison came out of it in the form of a snake. These windows in vivid hues are fine examples of sound continuity of theme and color, and with the opening of the church grounds to the west, they now capture more sunlight and can be enjoyed in their full glory.
  
  
       A fifth window may be found in the sacristy. It departs from the others in design, featuring in contemporary style a communion chalice in sharp, angular lines with a host, the beams of light radiating outward from it. The rest of the window consists of geometric squares and rectangles in red, turquoise, and cobalt blue.
       The organ in the chapel was constructed specifically for its use by the Wicks Organ Company. The small Baroque instrument has six stops and features a flute stop particularly adapted to accompanying young voices. The organ’s “key desk,” which takes the place of a console, is so designed that anyone who can play a piano has no difficulty in making a transition to the organ.  
  
  
  
      On the wall opposite the altar, directly under the organ pipes, is a small sculpture of the Madonna and Child by an unknown artist. It was presented in 1960 in memory of Jean Austin Williams by her daughter, Dr. Bernice Williams.