ALONG THE SAME VEIN

Nothing was more controversial in the renovation than the black marble.  People either loved it or hated it.  These strong opinions were expressed regularly, some even writing letters to the pastor. The history of the black marble is that it was installed in 1959 during the last major renovation of the church.  The type of marble is called PORTORO and is mined in Italy.  It's very high quality and was quite the fashion at the time of its installation. The black background with gold veins created an elegant backdrop.

On the flip side, it gave the sanctuary a dark and cold feeling. One of our goals was to bring in more light, but we also wanted to respect the history of the church. We contacted Rich Murray Granite and Marble Works (located in central Illinois) and Rich was incredibly knowledgeable.   He thought that the marble could come down so that it could be re-used (we weren't sure how it was attached to the walls).  He advised us that the marble could be fabricated to our specifications. In addition, he could keep the extra marble on consignment and sell it for our parish.

After many discussions, we decided that it would be important to keep some of the marble throughout the church for both aesthetic and historical reasons.  Rich carefully cut and milled pieces to our contractors specifications.  You will find the black marble has been re-used in several locations:  The baptismal font, the Welcome Center, the Our Lady of Guadalupe shrine, and the side and back altars in the sanctuary (the back altar and the steps are the original with the back altar getting a new wood surround). The black steps leading up from the church to the sanctuary are actually black tile that was chosen to coordinate with the Portoro Marble.

The results exceeded our expectations!  The marble is especially beautiful close up and works really well as an accent.  Many parishioners have ordered pieces and have had tabletops, counters, trivets, and coasters made as keepsakes. We have received some income from the sales and still have more on consignment.

While the Portoro marble wasn't part of the original church (built in 1892), it has been around for almost 60 years.  Re-purposing the marble was a great opportunity to honor that and to incorporate it into our new design.  We hope you agree!

THE SACRED HEART

Early in the process of Project 2017, we knew that a priority would be to restore the presence of a rose window in the space above the altar.  (The St. Francis de Sales window, now in the choir loft, was in the spot above the altar in our original church and moved in the 1950's renovation to its current location)  That space above the altar was plastered over on the inside and looked like a blank hole from the outside, remember?

The discussion of course began about the design of the new window.  Almost immediately, Bishop Jim Schuerman suggested that the depiction should  be that of the Sacred Heart. Our patron saint, St. Francis de Sales, was devoted to the heart of Jesus.  He founded the Order of the Visitation, one of whose members was St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. Christ revealed the mysteries of His Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary Alaoque.  It was not coincidental that St. Margaret Mary Alacoque was a member of the Order of Vistation  whose founder, St. Francis de Sales, was the outstanding defender of God's universal love for the human race!  

The Sacred Heart became the theme of Project 2017, even depicted in our logo created by committee member Nick Vorpagel. :

Catholics (and people in general) are visual people.  That’s why in addition to using parables to give us messages, Jesus uses images to convey His messages. Seeing an image of the Heart of Jesus with thorns and the cross and flames certainly grabs our attention and speaks to us. The thorns around His heart are a representation of our sins and how our sinning pierces His heart. The flames and the cross serve as a reminder of the suffering He endured for our salvation and of His burning love for us. The dripping blood represents the blood Jesus shed for our salvation. That’s a pretty powerful message!


Our designers from Conrad Schmitt Studios, also incorporated the design of the Sacred Heart in the stenciling around the sanctuary.

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The Sacred Heart window, designed, created and installed by Gilbertsons Stained Glass Studio of Lake Geneva, is a beautiful focal point our our newly renovated church.  Not only does it bring light, color, and life to the sanctuary, it is also a reminder of Christ's love for all!

Here is a lovely prayer, written by St. Francis de Sales about the Heart of Jesus:

             

May thy heart dwell always in our hearts!

May thy blood ever flow in the veins of our souls!

O sun of our hearts, thou givest life to all things by the rays of thy goodness!

I will not go until thy heart has strengthened me, O Lord Jesus!

May the heart of Jesus be the king of my heart!

Blessed be God.

Amen.