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Westside Windows Win 1: Dear God, help me follow your law. Eastside Windows Win 1: Dear God, help us protect your creation and avoid evil. God's Story Through The Windows of St. Paul Church West - God comes to us through His Word. 
The West side of church celebrates the word of God given to us through the ages. As Jesus stated: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill." (Matthew 5:17) The LAW was first given to Moses in the form of the Ten Commandments. The Prophets follow foretelling the coming of the Messiah. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John proclaim the Good News or Gospel of Jesus Christ. St. Paul, our patron, wrote letters or epistles to the early Christians. We the Church are to carry on these traditions through prayer and the Liturgy of the Word - the first part of Mass. Window 1: The Moses window. Moses was given the LAW of God in the Ten Commandments which is pictured in the lower left side of the window. Also pictured is the staff and bag of food which he had on his journey from Egypt to Midian. The sun shows the direction he walked - East - the direction of sunrise. (Exodus 2:11-15) Back to Top Window 2: The O Wisdom window. This is the first of seven windows which depicts the words of the prophets referring to Jesus Christ. These are known as the "O ANTIPHONS". You will notice the red and yellow flower on each window emphasizing the "O" of each antiphon. Back to Top Antiphon means - a devotional composition sung as a response during the liturgy. This window pictures a scroll on which the word of God is written. The entire window shows the word of God coming from God's throne to us in the written form of the scroll. "Though the grass withers and the flower wilts, the word of our God stands forever." (Isaiah 40:8) Back to Top Window 3: The O Adonai window. Adonai means lord. We address God with this title knowing that he is the powerful one - Our God of the Covenant. This is why in this window we find the burning bush at which Moses was given the call to rescue God's people from slavery in Egypt and the Ten Commandments which represent our part of the covenant. (Exodus 2:23 - 4:9) Back to Top Window 4: The O Root of Jesse window. This window represents our anchor in the past to give security in the present. Jesse was the father of David. It is through David's descendants that the Messiah - Jesus Christ - is born. This window has a flower and leaves its roots firmly established. This living plant helps us to remember that we are well rooted in the word of God and His word is alive in our Church today. (1 Samuel 16t: 1-13) Back to Top Window 5: The O Key of David window. A key is used to unlock a door and enter. Through David - the king line opened the way for the promise of the Messiah - Jesus Christ. (Isaiah 22: 15-25) Back to Top Window 6: The O Dayspring window. As the sun rises each day it brings new hope and anticipation for the renewal of life. This window shows the sun rising to give us the eternal hope of God present in our lives. The Day of the Lord is announced as a day of joy and deliverance for all those who hope for salvation. "The people who walk in darkness have seen a great light." (Isaiah 9:1) Back to Top Window 7: The O King window. We believe that God is the King of us all and the universe. The chair represents God's authority, the scepter His power, and the crown His rule over us. When we see this window we realize that god is the one in charge. On the seat is the chi-ro - the first two Greek letters of Christ. Christ being referred to as King can be found as early as the Magi asking, "Where is the newborn King of the Jews." (Matthew 2:2) Back to Top Window 8: The O Emmanuel window. Emmanuel means God with us. Since the time of creation God's people were looking for their Savior. Now he has come. We call this the Incarnation - God becoming human. We see Jesus in the manger, His head is surrounded by twelve stars which represent the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matthew 1:23) Back to Top Window 9: St. Matthew window. Matthew is depicted as a man because his Gospel begins with the family history of Jesus starting with Abraham and continuing through the centuries down to Jesus. Matthew shows us that God keeps His promise of a Savior. (Matthew 1:1-17) Back to Top Window 10: St. Mark window. Mark is shown as a lion for he begins his gospel talking about St. John the Baptist. It is quoted: "A voice crying out in the desert. Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths." (Mark 1:3) Back to Top Window 11: St. Luke window. St. Luke is traditionally portrayed as a sacrificial bull which was used for sacrifices in the Old Testament. He begins his gospel with the story of Zachary the priest whose job it was to make sacrifices for the people. St. Luke writes about Jesus being the one true sacrifice. Jesus is the Passover Lamb. (Luke 22:7) Back to Top Window 12: St. John window. St. John's Gospel is written on a lofty level so he is portrayed as an eagle. The main theme throughout his Gospel is the divinity of Christ. He begins his gospel sublimely: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He (Jesus) was in the beginning with God." (John 1:1-2) Back to Top Window 13: St. Paul window. St. Paul is pictured holding a sword and a bible. The idea of the sword comes from the Letter to the Hebrews which states: "The word of God is living and effective, sharper than a two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit." (Hebrews 4:12). The bible contains 13 letters that are attributed to St. Paul. You will also find that he has 13 pieces of glass around his head. Back to Top Window 14: The Church window. At the very top we find the Chi-ro symbol of Christ showing us that Jesus Christ is the head of the Church. In the middle of the window is the Papal coat of arms. The Pope is the Vicar of Christ on earth. The tiara (triple crown) shows the triple character of the Pope - father, ruler and vicar of Christ. The crossed keys represent the power on earth to bind and loose people from the bonds of sins. This power was first given to St. Peter. (Matthew 16:19) The lower part of the window portrays the coat of arms for Bishop Stanislaus Bona - the bishop of the Green Bay diocese when St. Paul's Church was built. The pontifical hat is the symbol of the bishop. The miter and crosier are insignia of a bishop's rank. The cross is the main message of the Gospel. The right half has a golden horseshoe which is the symbol of St. Stanislaus - the patron saint of Bishop Bona. The white eagle is the symbol of St. Casimir - the church where Bishop Bona was pastor before coming to Green Bay. This eagle was also used on the coat of arms of Pope Pius XI who named Bishop Bona to the Episcopate. The left half of the coat of arms has a shield divided by St. Andrew's Cross. The cross symbolizes the beginning of the Christian faith the early settlers brought to this territory. The ship in the center is the symbol of St. Francis Xavier - patron of our diocese. The ship also represents the means by which the early missionaries came to the shores of Green Bay in the early 17th century. The arrowhead symbolizes the Indians to whom the missionaries preached the gospel. At the bottom we find Bishop Bona's motto "Nomini Tuo Sit Gloria" which translates "To Thy Name Be Glory." Back to Top Window 15: Oremus or Prayer window. The Church calls us to prayer. We have the Chi-ro symbol. The incense rising depicts our prayers ascending to Jesus. The outstretched arms represent us in prayer. Back to Top Window 16: The Celebration of the Liturgy of the Word window. This window sums up the west windows, which we celebrate during the first part of Mass. The hand over the bible represents the action of the Living Word of God in our lives. Back to Top Above the entire west side windows, stars are set in the heavens. The colors of red - God's love - and gold - the richness of God surround the stars. We are reminded to look to God in all we do. The green colors remind us of the living word of God. The blues are to remind us of the faithfulness of Mary through whom Christ became present to us. The west side has 62 stars in the heavens and 118 small crosses at the bottom of the windows. Window 14 (the Church window) has 12 crosses. Window 15 (the Prayer window) has 13 crosses. This is to remind the Church and us of the importance of the action of Jesus on the cross. Window 8 (the O Emmanuel window) does not have any crosses at the bottom for it is at Christmas that we celebrate the birth of Jesus - The Word Incarnate. God's Story Through The Windows Of St. Paul Church East - God comes to us in action. 
Window 1: Creation window. The hands show God's action of creating the world. Below we find the tree of life with the serpent (devil) coiled around it which represents some sort of trial through which men and women could prove their faithfulness to God. (Genesis 1-3) Back to Top Window 2: Cain and Abel Window. Sin again enters the world with Cain killing his brother Abel. They were making a sacrifice to God to show their worship, but Cain forgot to love his brother. Thus begins the story that we need a savior. (Genesis 4:1-16) At the top of the window you will notice a stream of red flowing down. This symbolizes Cain's Sacrifice not being accepted whereas the flame of Abel's sacrifice is rising over the lamb meaning his sacrifice was accepted. Back to Top Window 3: Abraham's Sacrifice. God tests the faith of Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his only son. At the last minute an angel stops him and shows him a ram that is caught in a bush. The angel tells Abraham to sacrifice the ram instead. The angel is pictured behind Abraham. You will find the ram at the bottom right of the window. We can only stand in awe that later in history God sacrifices His only Son, Jesus, for us. (Genesis 22:1-19) Back to Top Window 4: Melchisedech's Sacrifice. The theme of sacrifice is carried through to this window. All sacrifices in the Old Testament were conducted by priests. Melchisedech is the first priest mentioned in the Bible. (Genisis 14:18) After a victory by Abraham, Melchisedech brought out bread and wine and blessed Abraham. This sacrifice of bread and wine foreshadowed the holy sacrifice of the Mass in the Eucharist. The Candelabrum or Menorah represents the lampstand found in the temple of Jerusalem. The breastplate is part of the sacred vestments worn by a high priest in the temple. Each of the twelve squares represent one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The priest wore this breastplate as a representative of the people when making atonement for their sins. Back to Top Window 5: The Sacrifice of the Lamb. An umblemished (the very best) lamb was sacrificed symbolizing the worshipper's total dedication and homage to God. Before the lamb was totally consumed by fire, the worshipper laid his hand on the animal identifying himself completely with the sacrifice. In this picture we see the lamb on the altar. The smoke from the incense bowl is going up to God. This window is centered around the Exodus event where Moses led his people out of Egypt. On the night of the first Passover the Hebrew people put the blood of the unblemished lamb "Lamb of God" on the doorpost of their houses so that the angel of death would pass over them. In the Mass we call Jesus the "Lamb of God" because he continues to save us now. On top of this structure we see the pillar of fire that leads God's people to freedom. Back to Top Window 6: The Temple window. The temple in Jerusalem was the main place of worship for the Hebrew people. Pictured over the temple is the star of David. It is from the family of David that the Messiah is promised. The vine at the bottom of the window is the root of Jesse - the family line of Jesus. (1 Kings 6-8) Back to Top Window 7: The Incarnation window. (Incarnation = the Word became flesh) The prophecies of the Old Testament come true in the birth of Jesus Christ. We see Mary and Joseph kneeling with the child Jesus in the stable. Overhead the star of Bethlehem shines down marking the coming of the promised Savior. (Matthew 1 and 2, Luke 1 and 2) Back to Top Window 8: The Death and Resurrection window. The true and complete sacrifice was accomplished, but death was not the end. We also celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. This it the only window without stars in the heavens. This window shows a lightening bolt depicting the veil in the temple was torn in two. The moon reminds us of the gospel story of darkness covering the land when Jesus died. Below we have the empty tomb - the sign of Jesus' resurrection and the victory banner - the joy of the resurrection. It is fitting that we have our confessional under this window, because the sacrifice of Jesus was for our sins. (Matthew 2-28, Mark 14-16, Luke 22-24, John 17-20) At the very bottom of this window is an "m" which symbolizes Mary's devotion to her son to the very end. Back to Top Window 9: The Baptism window. We now turn our attention to the Sacraments of the Church through which Jesus acts directly with us. Our first window depicts baptism. The Holy Spirit is shown as a dove showering grace. We see the chi-ro or Christ symbol. The clam shell is pouring out the living waters of Baptism. Jesus giving us living water can also be found in His discussion with the Samaritan Women. (John 4:4-42) In this window the idea of living water is depicted by the fish at the bottom of the window. Back to Top Window 10: The Confirmation window. The second Sacrament shown is Confirmation. We see the Chi-ro (Christ symbol) at the center of the shield. This Sacrament gives us the strength to put Christ in the center of our lives and the power to proclaim His Gospel. Above the shield are seven flames depicting the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety and Fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:2-3) Back to Top Window 11: The Eucharist as a Sacrament window. When Jesus fed the 5,000, a boy had five loaves and two fish. Jesus blessed this food and it fed all those people. Now Jesus feeds His people through the Sacrament of the Eucharist. We find in this window the Chi-ro (Christ symbol) flanked by two Greek letters "A" alpha and "O" omega which represent God the beginning (alpha) and the end (omega). God is now made present through the Eucharist. We can find the five loaves and two fish under the Chi-ro. (Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:34-44, Luke 9:10-17, John 6:1-15) Back to Top Window 12: The Reconciliation window. When Jesus gave Peter the keys of the kingdom, he also gave the apostles the power to forgive sins. This power of the keys is given to each priest to free us from our sins. (John 20: 19-23, Matthew 16:13-20) Back to Top Window 13: The Anointing window. The Sacrament of the Sick gives a person the strength to cope with an illness through prayer and holy oil. Our prayers ask Jesus Christ to be with us (Cup & flame) and the oil pitcher sympolizes Christ's strength and healing power. (James 5:13-15) Back to Top Window 14: The Matrimony window. The Sacrament of Matrimony is celebrated between a man and a woman with Christ at the center. The intertwining rings with Christ at the center symbolizes Matrimony. The union of these three consecrates the Sacrament of Matrimony. (Matthew 19: 1-12, Mark 10:1-12) Back to Top Window 15: The Holy Orders window. The Sacrament of Holy Orders ordains a man to the service of the Church (Deacon, Priest, Bishop) which is represented by the stole. The Chalice and Host represent the Eucharist which is the man service of the priest. Back to Top Window 16: The Mass Sacrifice window. The cross of Christ and the lamb signifies the sacrifice of the lamb - Old Testament - is now the sacrifice of the Lamb of God - Jesus. Back to Top Our church is unique because for the first time these types of windows were installed. Our windows - God's story - Our story is firmly imbedded into the pillars of the Church. We have a story that has a firm foundation, which we are surrounded by whenever we come to St. Paul. Thanks be to God. |
St Paul Catholic Church Office/Rectory: 920-788-4553 |