Some of
these photographs were featured in an article entitled "Stained Glass as a
Vehicle for Spiritual Growth in the Post-Vatican II Catholic Church," which
appeared in the Winter 2006 Issue of The Stained Glass Quarterly.
The
article can be downloaded by
clicking this link.
The stained glass windows in Our
Lady of Lourdes are of a style called dalle de verre; they were made
by Hopcroft Stained Glass Studios of Kansas City.
Dalle de verre windows
are made from slabs of glass that are typically an inch thick and eight
inches wide by twelve inches long. Once the design for the window is made,
these slabs are scored like regular glass and broken along the scoreline by
using a special triangular anvil. Once the slabs are broken to size, they
can be faceted along the edges with a hammer and are then laid out according
to the design. The slabs are then joined by pouring epoxy (or, in older
windows, concrete) between the slabs to hold them together. The
individual panels that make up a dalle de verre window are quite
heavy and sturdy.
Hopcroft Stained Glass Studio
was established here in Kansas City in 1914 by Hugh Hopcroft. The studio has
many installations around the metro area and across Kansas and Missouri, as
well as in other states.
The windows of Our Lady of
Lourdes depict, beginning on the right side of the nave as you face the
altar:
- Creation of the Universe
- The Garden of Eden
- God’s Covenant with Noah
- God’s Covenant with Moses
- Psalm 23 (though you could
make a very reasonable argument that this window is actually a part of
the Birth of Our Lord window to its left and not an individual
theme in its own right, the original design named this window Psalm
23, which it the “The Lord is my Shepherd, there is nothing I shall
want…” psalm.)
- The Birth of Our Lord
On the left side of the nave
beginning at the back of the church are:
- The Baptism of Christ
- Wedding at Cana
- Loaves and Fishes
- The Last Supper -- Eucharist
- The Crucifixion of Christ
- The Empty Tomb
- The Risen Lord
- Pentecost
The window at the front of the
church above the main doors – the most spectacular window in the building –
depicts The Annunciation. There are also some sidelights on either
side of the sanctuary that are quite nice; very tall, narrow windows such as
these are often difficult to do successfully.
