Our Window

OUR WINDOW

By Dr. Patrick Perryman

Of all the architectural features of First Presbyterian Church of Beaufort, the one that is most visible, unique and outward-facing, is the large round window in the front of our beautiful sanctuary. This window, with interlocking curves, is original to our building and sets us apart from all other churches in the Lowcountry. 

Our wonderful church matriarch, Betty Waskiewicz, shared how our window was featured in some of the earliest photos of our church dating back to 1929. Miss Betty enjoyed considering this window so much, that she continued to search across all the churches of Beaufort and happily reported that we are the only church with a window of our shape and design. 
The shape and features of this beautiful window tell a unique story that reflects our past as well as our church today – especially as we embark on a journey of discovery and transformation and pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit to move us forward as a Sailboat Church. 

We have been amazed and delighted with the way the Spirit has revealed multiple symbols and stories of our window. When you look at the window, we invite you to see the waters that surround Beaufort and a number of nautical features – that invoke guidance, direction, and course-setting. 

Sing to the Lord a new song!
Sing God’s praise from the ends of the earth!
You who sail the sea and all that fills it,
The coastlands and their residents.
Isaiah 42:10

Give me your lantern and compass,
Give me a map,
So I can find my way to 
The place of your presence,
To enter the place of worship,
To meet my exuberant God.
Psalm  43:3

The curves that divide the circle reflect the 60 degrees as a sextant from which the name of the navigational instrument comes. A sextant is used to navigate in concert with the stars and can be used with the moon to help identify longitude. The interlocking curves also suggest the plates of an astrolabe which help identify latitude. At noon, a mariner would hold the astrolabe up so the sun shone through its two sights and then read the scale on the plates to determine the latitude of the ship. Both of these navigational aides direct our attention away from ourselves and toward the heavens. Both of these tools represent a time before computers and digital devices when we had to rely on harmony with God’s creation to make our way forward.

The interlocking ovals suggest the movement of a gyroscope, and while I didn’t know the name or even the exact purpose, I thought to myself, “This looks like the floating compass that I see next to the helm of a boat.” While nearly all of the other instrumentation is electronic or digital—relying on GPS satellite signals or even the sonar of a depth finder—the ship’s compass is old school. The technical term is “binnacle compass,” and the purpose is to keep it level even when the boat pitches and rolls. 
A compass, no matter what direction we turn, always points us to the North Pole—a destination most of us will never reach in our lifetimes; but one that is steady, dependable, and always true. A compass makes a good metaphor for our spiritual lives and the work of discerning God’s will for us. Our window is marked off on four sides like directional points of a compass. 

The four (compass) points are each emphasized with a keystone. A keystone is the element of an arch that holds everything together. Looking at our four, I am reminded of four watchwords of the Reformation: sola gratia, sola fide, sola scriptura, sola deo gloria—grace alone, faith alone, scripture alone, to the glory of God alone!

The window itself contains symbolism as a particular type of window. The history of round openings into places of worship dates to classical Rome and was integrated into Christian church architecture during the Romanesque period. A round window in a worship space is called an “oculus” or “eye.”

For the eyes of the Lord range
 throughout the entire earth, 
To strengthen those whose 
heart is true to God.
2 Chronicles 16:9

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and God’s ears are open to their cry.
Psalm 34:15 

One day Jesus and 
his disciples boarded a boat. 
He said to them, 
“Let’s cross over to the 
other side of the lake.”
So they set sail.
Luke 8:22 

Finally, the window also resembles a porthole. In ancient times the bow of a vessel was the sanctuary of a patron deity and the round hole in the bow was an eye or oculus that supposedly enabled the ship to find its path through the sea. Architecturally, it is found in many churches where a round window is located high on the entrance looking into the narthex. I love the idea of our sanctuary as a ship!
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