Welcome to the home stretch of our Windows Wednesday series! Today is the first of our final three posts and will cover the South Façade Window in the Sanctuary. This massive piece incorporates images and symbols that span the entire Bible and extend the story of Christianity from the Book of Genesis to the founding of Methodism. I want to mention once again how grateful we are to Willet Hauser Architectural Glass, and especially their archivist Amy DiGregorio, for providing the images of the artists’ designs and some of the documents created during the design process. This window especially would have been incredibly challenging to view without the design, as the balcony interferes with viewing the entire window at once in the Sanctuary. Throughout the entire window, a ribbon of white glass shows the connection of each story to the present day and our congregation.

This eastern portion of the window is on the left as you face the window from inside the church. At the bottom, it begins with imagery from the Noah story in the Book of Genesis. We see images of water and a rainbow. Next up from the bottom is the the story of Abraham and Isaac, as Abraham prepares to sacrifice his son to prove his obedience to God. Above them, we see Moses with two tablets containing the Ten Commandments held aloft. Continuing, we see David playing his harp, and Solomon consulting a scroll. Nearing the top, images of Isaiah and Amos, representing the prophetic books of the Bible. In the top corner, we see John the Baptist. His annunciation of the coming of Jesus ends the Old Testament period, ushering in a new age with a new Covenant.

Next week, we will examine the peak of the window, which is full of Christian symbolism representing the life and works of Jesus. The week after that, in our final post, we will look at the Western side of this window, which, beginning with the Disciples, shows images of people who helped spread the Gospel and grow our denomination. After the completion of this series, a page on our website will be developed to help visitors examine this façade window in greater detail. Stay tuned for more information on this. Scroll over the image of the artist’s design below for a view of the window as installed in the building.

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. Romans 15:4

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About the Author

Adam Alderson is the business manager and director of Resurrection at the United Methodist Church of Kent. He has a B.A. in Classics with a minor in Art History from Kent State University, and enjoys reading, graphic and web design, and singing and acting locally. Adam lives in Stow with his wife, Patti, and son, Alexander.