Building for the Kingdom 6-13-10

Tappahannock, Virginia

A cerulean Sunday morning was given to a journey down peninsula to visit a homeless church. An Episcopal congregation there was put out of its building about four years ago as a result of an upheaval in the Episcopal world. The vibrant congregation of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church is meeting in the back yard of a house. The congregation was in a celebratory mood because the Virginia Supreme Court ruled two days ago in favor of this congregation regaining possession of its fine Carpenter Gothic facility, a quaint small all-wood church built in a style popular from about 1850 to 1905. This intrepid congregation of about forty has been the lightning rod for a test legal case than churches throughout the world have been watching closely. In some circles this recent decision is considered epic. My experience of the congregation in its unusual setting must have been much like those times when faithful gathered on the hills of Palestine to hear of Another Way of living – grand, perhaps epic. Even with this recent decision it may be a year or two before this congregation gets its building back. The wheels of justice turn very slowly.

A few blocks from here is another grand church made of board and batten. It has been standing over this tiny town for 160 years. For about a week I have been driving by it, wondering what it amounted to. I had heard it was a quaint church with pretty windows. Sunday afternoon is normally good for catching up on sleep. Today it afforded an opportunity to ‘collect’ what proved to be another superb example of Carpenter Gothic church building from the mid 19th century. This church proves to be a fine repository of several styles of stained glass, including the work of Louis Comfort Tiffany, America’s glass master of one hundred years ago.

The church is in pristine condition with a newly installed cedar shake roof with the delicious aroma of cedar oil still emanating from it. The interior of the church has been finished with more recent inventions such as dry wall, giving the church a pleasing open freshness. Carpenter Gothic churches tend to be rather dark inside if still finished with dark woods and stained glass windows. The exterior contains very clear architectural elements unique to this still of church building.

As so often happens, I was granted private access to the building and was able to set up cameras on tripods and capture most every aspect of the interior. Making the experience nearly an act of worship was my friend Beverly sitting at the grand piano and letting loose with wondrous renditions of some of my favorite music forms. I was immediately reminded, happily, once again of the affable GK Chesterton’s observations about flecks of paradise washing up onto the shores of his life. I had several wash up on mine today.

Blessings