We already know the story of St. James the Less. Traditionally shorter than St. James the Greater, his symbols are usually a fuller's bat or a saw. He was pushed off the top of the temple into thin air when he did not deny Jesus. The fall didn't kill him, so the crowd stoned him. Not dying fast enough, he had his brains dashed with a fuller's bat, which was used to fluff wool to make into clothing or felt.
So he's he patron saint of fullers (and pharmacists, who use mortar and pestle, of course). It's so interesting how the martyrs become patrons of the people who use the same instruments that killed them. St. Apollonia (a deaconess), whose feast day is today, February 9, was burned to death--but before that, she had her teeth broken and extracted with pincers. She's the patron saint of dentists. And toothaches.
Don't know why St. James the Less has a windmill. Resurrection Church in New York City had some windows commissioned and this same symbol came back for James and they were worried it was a mistake until I wrote and let them know we had one too.
It seems like I'm posting a lot of clerestory windows--that's due to the fact that there are three of them for every large story window. And also because it took me a long time to figure them out while I stalled and did other stuff. I'm hoping to mix it up again, see what else I see. I was at church today cutting fabric for banners but did not have the energy to take photos. My kids were demons.
On a side note, I am sick and tired of winter. Spring will be hard won for me this year. It is so hard not to just stay in bed and ignore it. Ignore it all. So I need to keep busy--this helps, actually, even if it seems like an insane thing to spend one's time on. And you would not believe how much it is making me learn.
3 comments:
I know you're sick and tired of winter, but I'm glad you have this blog going. It's not only a chance for you to learn, but it's giving me an education, too. It makes me want to check into our church windows, but we don't have near the variety that you do. Ours are pretty standard. But they are very pretty.
Your chuch in Cairo is beautiful--a little older, better preserved, it doesn't seem to have suffered as much as Pius. I think our windows are phenomenal (and I need to call the manufacturer about a couple of them I can't identify still), but I love the way your church is set up.
Thanks for writing this.
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