The idea of ornamental windows for St. Paul's came from the Rev. John A. Winslow, rector 1938-1947. They were designed and executed by Rambusch Decorating Co. of New York. They depict the work of the Holy Spirit as shown in the Bible and in the development of the Church in America, Texas, and North Texas. Included in the windows are the various seals of Dioceses and Districts included in the development or our own parish.
The Christ Child is seen as the flower on the Tree of Jesse. This s an illustration of the 11th Chapter of Isaiah: “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a branch will bear fruit.” The Star of Bethlehem shines overhead and the ox and the ass are shown below. Jesus has a special halo in this window; it is a halo with three bars that look like the three arms of the cross. In Christian art, only God can be shown with this kind of halo, thus making the strong statement that this little child shares in God’s nature. At the top of the window is the word Emmanuel, “God with us”. These are reminders that even from birth Jesus makes God present to us in a unique and special way. His presence has drawn three foreign astrologers, the Magi, the Wisemen who have come to worship him. They remind us that the gift of God’s presence in Jesus is not just for first century Middle Eastern Jews, but for all people throughout the ages. The seal of the original Diocese of Texas also appears in this window. All of Texas, including our area was originally part of that jurisdiction.
The parable of the Good Samaritan is depicted in the second window. A man is robbed on the way to Jericho and left for dead. The priest and the Levite are heading into Jericho. They should have stopped but didn’t, only the despised Samaritan stopped. The caption reads, “A certain Samaritan had compassion on him.” As the original diocese split, Lubbock became part of a different diocese. The seal is included in this window.
The only miracle of Jesus that is found in all four gospels. Jesus is described as having compassion on the crowd of 5,000 men, not including the women and children. Jesus encounters the need, and seeks to do something about it. He miraculously feeds them with only five loaves of bread and two fish. The caption reads, “They all did eat and were filled.” The window includes a priest riding the circuit from one congregation to another, obedient to Jesus’ command from Matthew 28, “Go, therefore and teach all nations.”
The window depicts the Last Supper, the first Eucharist. Jesus is shown with his disciples, though Judas is sneaking off on the right side. It looks like a standard depiction, but there is a special hidden detail. The chalice is inside an almond shaped halo called a vesica piscis. This shape is made by the overlap of two circles, and appears in many different ways in different cultures. In Christian art it is a symbol of heaven and earth overlapping. It oftentimes surrounds Jesus. It is used in church seals – in fact two of the seals in the window have that shape. It is also used around the Eucharist as a reminder that earth and heaven meet in this Sacrament. Jesus is spiritually and really present in the bread and wine of Holy Communion. The window contains the quote from Luke, “I am among you as he that serveth.” Jesus is telling his disciples to emulate him, He serves others. He calls for those who follow him to serve others as well. The window contains seals from dioceses. The Diocese of Northwest Texas was formed in 1958 and the red, white, and blue seal of Northwest Texas appears closest to the pulpit. The seal was added to the window 10 years after the window was installed so it looks a little different.
This window depicts the Resurrection with Jesus bursting forth from the tomb, symbolically waving a banner of victory over his head. The bottom portion of the window has all three versions of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, including the current building. These buildings are pictured with symbols of the seven sacraments. For over a Century, St. Paul’s has been proclaiming by word and sacrament the Good News.
The walk to Emmaus is depicted in this window, with Jesus appearing to two disciples on the road out of Jerusalem. The verse is taken slightly out of context: “And they talked of all these things that had happened.” The verse actually is about the two of them talking before Jesus started walking with them. But can apply to the conversation they have subsequently with Jesus; how he tells them that his death was not a tragedy, but rather a part of God’s plan from the beginning. And even though the two disciples don’t recognize Jesus on the road, they will recognize him that evening in the breaking of the bread. And they will run back to Jerusalem to share that good news with others. In the lower portion of the window is a missionary priest preaching to a congregation by starlight and lantern light.
Fifty days after the walk of Emmaus, on the Jewish feast of Pentecost, the second chapter of Acts tells us that the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the disciples and “They were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” With the Spirit’s gifts they are empowered to begin preaching the good news of Jesus, first publicly in Jerusalem, and then in ever widening circles, all the way to Rome itself. In the lower portion of the window is shown a priest celebrating Eucharist on the back of a chuck wagon.
This is the only window in the church with St. Paul. The window contains the symbols of St. Paul; his traditional sword and a book which reads “Spiritus gladius,” sword of the spirit, a quote from Ephesians. Paul is defending himsef in the series of trials that would eventually take him in chains to Rome. He is standing before King Herod Agrippa II, a great-grandson of the original King Herod, and protégé of Caesar Claudius himself. In chapters 25-26 of Acts, Paul makes a lengthy defense, which turns out to be a very spirited sermon and proclamation of the Gospel. The quote is from Acts 26:19. He tells Agrippa that after Jesus appeared to him in a blinding vision on the road to Damascus, he answered Jesus’ call, “Whereupon O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.” Rather he began preaching the gospel all over the Roman Empire. The lower portion of the window shows one of the great missionary bishops, Bishop Garrett, who served the area from 1874 to 1910. He is in his buckboard having a conversation with a man by the side of the road.
St. Augustine of Canterbury was born a century after the death of the more famous St. Augustine of Hippo, the great theologian. Augustine of Canterbury was sent as a missionary to England by Pope Gregory the Great. The Pope had seen some beautiful English slaves for sale in Rome. He asked who they were and was told they were Angels. He supposedly said, Not Angles, but Angels.” (The pun works the same in Latin and English). He thought such beautiful people should be Christianized. Gregory sent Augustine to England, and he became the first Archbishop of Canterbury.
Bishop Samuel Seabury was the first bishop in the American Episcopal Church. There is a seminary named after him. After the American Revolution, there were no American bishops. Seabury was elected by the church in Connecticut to be their bishop, and sent to London to be ordained. The Bishop of London said, ‘Sure, as long as you will swear allegiance to the king.’ Even though Seabury was a British sympathizer and a chaplain for the British Army during the American Revolution, he refused to swear that oath, since he was now an American. He was eventually consecrated by the Scottish Episcopal Bishops, and returned to the US as the first American Bishop.
The entrance window contains the tablets of the Commandments, the Ark of the Covenant and the dove of the Holy Spirit with the Alpha and Omega between them.