CCC Windows

SpotLight on the Windows!

CHRIST OF THE LAKE

The round window over the Baptistry was given by Grace Phillips Johnson in memory of her eldest son,

Charles Harmony Johnson, Jr.

(1904 - 1955)

Christ stands in a landscape of palm trees, water and flowers; a scene typical of Central Florida.

Week Two: THAT THEY MAY ALL BE ONE

The spirit and passion of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has been towards the unity of all God's children under the Lordship of Christ. This commission comes from our Lord's prayer in Gethsemene, "I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee..."(John 17:20-21)

This window represents the hope of unity in its broadest dimension: not just a Church united, but as a world united.

In the center panel we have the dove representing the "Holy Comforter" which God sends us to lead us on the pathway to divine intelligence and in deeds of goodness. At the very center are the clasped hands of Christian greeting and unity. Thus we are reminded that all peoples, regardless of class, nationality, color, or gender, are welcome in the great fellowship of Christ's church. Around the window, superimposed over a map of the world, are representative figures of all the great races and cultures. Swinging forms of line and color indicate how in the present and future the mingling of cultures will help us to transcend racial, political, and economic barriers.

As one examines this window, he is reminded of the global dynamic at work in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Week Four: BAPTISM

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) was birthed by men who had high respect for the sensible, rational abilities of man. All the pioneering fathers were men of intellect who were greatly influenced by the rational writings of philosophers such as John Lock. They admired America's own resident rational philosopher, Thomas Jefferson.

Much of this insistance upon a rational approach to religion was in response to the highly emotional, illiterate nature of much of the frontier preaching. The pioneer fathers had little patience with mindless Christian behavior.

The Baptism window reflects the product of the Restoration Movement's attempt to order the "process" of salvation into a rational scheme. Walter Scott's formula was simple and clear cut. There were three things for man to do, and they were all things that man COULD do, and having done them, could be sure that he had done them. He must believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. He must repent his personal sins with Godly sorrow and resolve to sin no more. And he must be Baptized (Garrison and DeGroot). God would deliver what He has promised. He would forgive man of his sin and deliver unto him the gift of the Holy Spirit and the hope for eternal life. This formula had great appeal on the frontier. Here was the blending of rationality and authority, an appeal to common sense and scripture (ibid).

The window represents this formula. Faith is represented by the cross anchored in the rock of ages. Around the word Repentence flows the violet colors of Christian Humility. The center panel dominates the window's theme with the suggestion of baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist-an act that demonstrated our Lord's willingness to be obedient to His Father's will. A close inspection will reveal other figures of people whom John baptized witnessing the act of obedience by our Lord. Through baptism, comes the remission of sins which is represented by the scarlet colored areas beign washed by blue green waves. As a new disciple emerges from the waters of baptism, he receives the gift of the Holy Spirit represented here by the descending flames of fire.

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in its quest to restore the church to New Testament practices, observes baptism by immersion. Disciples believe in immersion for three main reasons: it is the form of baptism administered to Jesus by John, it was the practice of the early church of the New Testament and immersion best symbolizes the death, burial and resurrection of the Christian's journey from a life without any hope into a life of eternal hope.

The Clerestory Windows

High above the floor of the sanctuary are six Clerestory Windows gracing the walls just below the arching beams which support the roof of the sanctuary. These windows reflect the essence of Christianity:God seeking after man through His power, majesty, wisdom, tempered by His compassionate love, mercy and justice.

Just as the beauty and the light descend upon you as you stand peering up at these windows, so God descends upon man in His unceasing revelatory acts. So we are uplifted by the act of God, and not by any initiation of our own.

Week Eleven: MERCY

God reaches out to man through His divine mercy. Man is guilty of the most grievous faults. The wages of his disobedience is death. Yet God forgives man of his disobedience.

The story of redemption is a story of man's disobedience and God's mercy. Time and again God is driven to destroy man for his perfidy. And each time this utter destruction is stayed by God's mercy. At no time is man ever guiltless and undeserving of God's radical execution. But the mercy of God is as endless as His love.

No better symbol can represent God's mercy than the arch of the rainbow-the sign of God's covenant with Noah. As the rainbow arches across the sky over all the world, so God's mercy protects His creatures from destruction. Contained within the rainbow is the ceaseless rain which God once caused to fall upon the earth in punishment for man's sin. A dove flies with an olive branch in search of Noah to tell him the God's promise of a new beginning is honored in the appearance of dry land as the flood waters retreat back up to the heavens.

	Central Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Sanctuary Windows
	SpotLight on the Windows! Each week, we will be SpotLighting one of the beautiful stain glass windows in our Sanctuary. Scroll down to catch up on those windows you missed. All information is taken from the Grace Phillips Johnson Memorial Windows book, published around November 1979 for the dedication of the Windows at Central Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). For more in depth information, please contact the church office.	CHRIST OF THE LAKE The round window over the Baptistry was given by Grace Phillips Johnson in memory of her eldest son, Charles Harmony Johnson, Jr. (1904 - 1955) Christ stands in a landscape of palm trees, water and flowers; a scene typical of Central Florida.
	Week One: PIONEER BEGINNINGS Central Christian Church is a member congregation of the brotherhood of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). This brotherhood grew out of the American Restoration movement during the early in the nineteenth century. This window represents the historical roots out of which grew the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The center suggests the "big three" of the movement: Thomas Campbell, his son Alexander Campbell and Walter Scott. These three represent the Pennsylvania branch of the movement which preferred to call itself the Disciples of Christ. The rugged pioneer spirit is represented around the figures and extends to the left panel with frontier scenes including a covered wagon, wooden buildings and a gathering of pioneer folk. The right panel is a Kentucky frontier scene showing Barton W Stone, "Racoon" John Smith, and other prominent figures in the struggle of the frontier church to realize a uniquely American Christianity without the divisive histories and creeds of the European churches. The Kentucky movement preferred to be known simply as "Christian", considering all other names as non-biblical. These two branches, Christians and Disciples, joined in 1832 at Lexington, Kentucky to form one stream thus giving us our name; the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) One of the first apologists and historians of the Restoration Movement was a New Castle, Pennsylvania industrialist, Thomas W Phillips, who assisted in funding the "Christian Publishing Association," and who wrote the widely read book, The Church of Christ. His portrait is found in the upper right hand corner of the right panel. He was the father of Grace Phillips Johnson.	Week Two: THAT THEY MAY ALL BE ONE The spirit and passion of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has been towards the unity of all God's children under the Lordship of Christ. This commission comes from our Lord's prayer in Gethsemene, "I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee..."(John 17:20-21) This window represents the hope of unity in its broadest dimension: not just a Church united, but as a world united. In the center panel we have the dove representing the "Holy Comforter" which God sends us to lead us on the pathway to divine intelligence and in deeds of goodness. At the very center are the clasped hands of Christian greeting and unity. Thus we are reminded that all peoples, regardless of class, nationality, color, or gender, are welcome in the great fellowship of Christ's church. Around the window, superimposed over a map of the world, are representative figures of all the great races and cultures. Swinging forms of line and color indicate how in the present and future the mingling of cultures will help us to transcend racial, political, and economic barriers. As one examines this window, he is reminded of the global dynamic at work in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
	Week Three: DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME Central to the worship of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is the celebration of the Lord's Supper. Each Sunday the congregation gathers around the table of the Lord to partake of the emblems of the loaf and the cup representing the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Members believe that the observance of the Lord's Supper each Sunday was the common practice of the early first century church. All believers are invited to the table. Also, no specialy ordained priesthood or ministry administers the ordinance. The Lord's Supper belongs to the laity, and it is the lay persons who say the prayers of consecration. This window symbolizes the centrality of the Lord's Supper in Disciple worship. In the center are emblems of the loaf and the cup representing the presence of Christ. From these emanate a great light around which the Christian community gathers. No alter rail separates the worshippers from the Holy Feast of the bread and the wine. At the Lord's Table the Christian community celebrates its oneness with Christ and with one another. It was over a dispute concerning who was worthy to receive the Lord's Supper that the Campbells first broke rank with the historic church. The Campbells felt no doctrinal testing was required for admission to the Supper. To this day, the Disciples of Christ guard against the Lord's Supper ever becoming a test of fellowship or under sole administration of a selected priesthood. The Lord's Supper, along with Baptsim, are the ONLY Two Ordinances recognized by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).	Week Four: BAPTISM The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) was birthed by men who had high respect for the sensible, rational abilities of man. All the pioneering fathers were men of intellect who were greatly influenced by the rational writings of philosophers such as John Lock. They admired America's own resident rational philosopher, Thomas Jefferson. Much of this insistance upon a rational approach to religion was in response to the highly emotional, illiterate nature of much of the frontier preaching. The pioneer fathers had little patience with mindless Christian behavior. The Baptism window reflects the product of the Restoration Movement's attempt to order the "process" of salvation into a rational scheme. Walter Scott's formula was simple and clear cut. There were three things for man to do, and they were all things that man COULD do, and having done them, could be sure that he had done them. He must believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. He must repent his personal sins with Godly sorrow and resolve to sin no more. And he must be Baptized (Garrison and DeGroot). God would deliver what He has promised. He would forgive man of his sin and deliver unto him the gift of the Holy Spirit and the hope for eternal life. This formula had great appeal on the frontier. Here was the blending of rationality and authority, an appeal to common sense and scripture (ibid). The window represents this formula. Faith is represented by the cross anchored in the rock of ages. Around the word Repentence flows the violet colors of Christian Humility. The center panel dominates the window's theme with the suggestion of baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist-an act that demonstrated our Lord's willingness to be obedient to His Father's will. A close inspection will reveal other figures of people whom John baptized witnessing the act of obedience by our Lord. Through baptism, comes the remission of sins which is represented by the scarlet colored areas beign washed by blue green waves. As a new disciple emerges from the waters of baptism, he receives the gift of the Holy Spirit represented here by the descending flames of fire. The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in its quest to restore the church to New Testament practices, observes baptism by immersion. Disciples believe in immersion for three main reasons: it is the form of baptism administered to Jesus by John, it was the practice of the early church of the New Testament and immersion best symbolizes the death, burial and resurrection of the Christian's journey from a life without any hope into a life of eternal hope.
	Week Five: NO CREED BUT CHRIST In their quest for a united church, the pioneer fathers felt that formal creedal statements were only divisive. They rejected the historic creed of the church, such as the Nicean and Apostles creeds, as mere human intrepretation raised to the heights of scriptural authority. Not that they disagreed with the content of the creeds, but they objected to their use as a test of Christian Fellowship. Campbell could see no value in creedal statements except to create a "pernicious tendency of religious controversy among Christians." We can see the extent of the influence of rational philosophy upon the minds of the Restoration fathers. Each man is given the capacity to read and interpret the Scriptures without the binding interpretations of creedal statements. The same tide swept away the authority of other Christian doctrines of the trinity and predestination. To these rational men, these doctrines evolved into church law after the writing of the New Testament, and thus were void of any divine authority. The window represents the "creedlessness" of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). One of the battle slogans which emerged out of the Restoration Movement was "No Creed but Christ." It became a clarion call to thousands of frontier folk who sought relief from the repressive creeds and doctrines of the historic church. It was simple and direct, thus appealing to the unsophisticated frontiersman. It said that the revelation of the Word of God in Jesus Christ was the only authority for the practice of Christian belief and behavior. The kingly figure represented in the window draws our attention to Jesus Christ who walks among us today guiding us in our search for the Truth. This figure is gleeming white, like that which appeared to the Disciples when Jesus descended from the Mount of Transfiguration. The figure seems to be coming at us with his right hand uplifted as in an act of ordination. The background is an indication of the cross in darker violet and blue colors.	Week Six: NOTHING CAN SATISFY THE MIND BUT GOD HIMSELF The mind of man is on a relentless quest for Truth. He is aware of the mystery that abounds, and is driven to reveal that which the mystery holds. Yet with each new discovery man finds his thirsting and hungering unsatisfied. This quest to know is both the blessing and the sheer pain of humanness. This unceasing desire to know is man's unconscious search for the source of his being. It is like a river of water searching for the sea which is both the beginning and the end of all waters. The mind of man flows towards a confluence with the Almighty. Only here will the mind of man ever be satisfied. In this window we see a bold symbolic representation of God. We are reminded the "God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." Spirit has no form or substance, so it must be represented by symbols. Here it is symbolized by light penetrating darkness, and by the imaginative use of geometic shapes which are considered to be perfect, such as the circle, triangle and square. These primal shapes are not limited to jsut man, but appear in nature as if to reveal to us the perfection of God, the Creator and Sustainer of life. The inscription, "Nothing Can Satisfy the Mind But God Himself," comes from Barton W Stone, and reflects the insight of the rational religious. The mind is an instrument created by God to be used by man in his search for Truth and meaning. Freed fromt he bondage of sin through Jesus Christ, the mind reaches out for ultimate communion with God.
The Clerestory Windows High above the floor of the sanctuary are six Clerestory Windows gracing the walls just below the arching beams which support the roof of the sanctuary. These windows reflect the essence of Christianity:God seeking after man through His power, majesty, wisdom, tempered by His compassionate love, mercy and justice. Just as the beauty and the light descend upon you as you stand peering up at these windows, so God descends upon man in His unceasing revelatory acts. So we are uplifted by the act of God, and not by any initiation of our own.	Week Seven: WISDOM Wisom, as understood in the scriptures as coming from God, is more an ethical than an intellectual word. In the state of sin, man confused wisdom with intellectual and philosophical knowledge. Thus, St. Paul derided the Greeks for their seeking after wisdom. The wisdom of God is beyond the comprehension of man. Divine wisdom is not something man reaches for through the mind, but rather it is what God reveals. It is the final knowledge of good and evil. The window explodes in all directions with a radiance of golden light which penetrates and enlightens all. At the center is the primary symbol of the Christian faith, the cross. We are reminded of Paul's words, "For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe...we preach Christ crucified" (I Corinthians 1:21-23).	Week Eight: MAJESTY The ancients thought of God in pictures rather than in abstractions. This is true throughout the Bible. They took those images which were bigger than life and used them to describe the attributes of God. Water spoke to them of God's mercy, the shepherd reminded them of God's unceasing care for his creation. Nothing is more majestic than the towering range of a lofty mountain. And nothing seems to be more unchanging and permanent. Throughout the ages man has been drawn to the mountains for refreshment and inspiration. When shrouded in clouds, the mountain took on an even more majestic aura. Upon the mountains man built his holy places and his temples. To a mountain punctuating the Sinai wilderness, Moses went to receive the Commandments from God which would forge a rag-tag band of emancipated slaves into a mighty nation. Violet and purple predominate this window which resembles Mt. Sinai which towers above a majestic range. Here was the Holy Ground upon which Moses stood on naked feet before the aweful majesty of the Almighty. On this ancient mountain, God reached out not to destroy, but to create a nation of priests to serve Him.
	Week Nine: POWER "In the beginning God created..." (Genesis 1:1). That creative act continues even today as the universe experiences the birth of new galaxies and the death of old ones. The creative force of the universe is not chaotic and without meaning. It comes from God who creates order out of chaos, and who gives the universe its ever changing form and substance. Man's awareness of the universe stirs awe in his soul. The sheer size of the ver expanding universe numbs the comprehension of the human mind. It drives the poet to ask, "When I look at they heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou has established; what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him" (Psalm 8:3-4). Thus God's power not only raises an awareness of His presence, but drives man to his knees in worship and adoration. The dynamic creative power of God is represented in this window. A spiral movement spins out from a hidden center, thus suggesting galactic forces creating new worlds with the predominating color of blue representing infinity.	Week Ten: LOVE "For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Himshould not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). Here lies the perfect reason for the Christ-event. Almighty God, in all of his power, majesty and wisdom, is a God who loves His creation. No other word holds the meaning of the Christian faith more than "love". Once again we must be reminded that divine love is ethical and not emotional. It is a love which moves out of a divinely profound sense of justice towards all of creation. The love of God is radical caring. The faithful can only be amazed by God's choosing to love His rebellious and disobedient children. The love of God revealed in Jesus Christ is represented in this window by a shepherd's crook entwined around the human heart. Upraised hands point to the aspiration of humanity to realize the perfect love of God which is the salvation of the world.
	Week Eleven: MERCY God reaches out to man through His divine mercy. Man is guilty of the most grievous faults. The wages of his disobedience is death. Yet God forgives man of his disobedience. The story of redemption is a story of man's disobedience and God's mercy. Time and again God is driven to destroy man for his perfidy. And each time this utter destruction is stayed by God's mercy. At no time is man ever guiltless and undeserving of God's radical execution. But the mercy of God is as endless as His love. No better symbol can represent God's mercy than the arch of the rainbow-the sign of God's covenant with Noah. As the rainbow arches across the sky over all the world, so God's mercy protects His creatures from destruction. Contained within the rainbow is the ceaseless rain which God once caused to fall upon the earth in punishment for man's sin. A dove flies with an olive branch in search of Noah to tell him the God's promise of a new beginning is honored in the appearance of dry land as the flood waters retreat back up to the heavens.	Week Twelve: JUSTICE In God's reaching out to man in His revelatory acts, the structures of mankind come under divine scrutiny and judgment. In his state of sin, man has caused much injustice to happen. The rich lord it over the poor. Whole peoples groan under the heavy yoke of oppression. Human possibility is crushed by economic and political systems which violate man's freedom. God will not only punish sin, but also vindicate His oppressed people. He will right the wrongs that violate the human spirit. The justice of God will deliver the poor and the disinherited from the hovel of history. This window represents the words of Isaiah 40:4, "Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill shall be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain." Once again vivid pictures are used to describe the activity of God. The Lord God will cause the righting of the ways of man as surely as the forces in nature cause the mountains to crumble and raise the low valleys.
	THE BALCONY WINDOWS More can be told about the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) by examining the nature and organization of the local congregation than through any other endeavor. Each congregation is free to call its own minister, determine its own budget and program, determine its own policy, and to administer the ordinances according to local belief and custom. This fierce independence is indicative of the kind of individualism prevalent on the American frontier. Far removed from population centers and limited in means of communication and transportation, the frontier people forged their own organizations out of the sheer need of survival. Also, there grew a deep suspicion about the place of clergy in church organization. "The clergy had elaborated simple Christianity with so much ecclesiastical machinery and theological lore that they had made themselves indispensable for administering the one and understanding the other" (Garrison and DeGroot, p 176-177) The balcony windows tell something of the nature and organization of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
	Week Thirteen: CONGREGATIONAL INDEPENDENCE Each local congregation of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is an independent unit of the total church. The congregation is the local manifestation of the church, and works in cooperation with the church on regional and international levels. Congregational autonomy developed in reaction to the strict ecclesiastical structures of the historic church. Disciples believe that local people can best govern their own affairs without interference from outside sources. Through the years local congregations have turned to other agencies of the church for advice in underwriting budgets, securing ministers, developing program, and securing property and buildings. In this window, we see a scene from our history when the "Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery" was written. This document marked the formal beginning of the "Christian" movement in Kentucky under the leadership of Barton W. Stone. Stone insisted that the Bible was the one universal source for directing the affairs of the church. Thus there is the inscription from the Last Will and Testament, "We will, the people, take the Bible as the only sure guide to heaven."	Week Fourteen: INDIVIDUAL INDEPENDENCE An uniquely American religious movement would reflect the kind of freedom secured by the American republic form of government. The early leadership fo the Restoration Movement was greatly influenced by the democratic forces which forged American independence. The individual person was of paramount importance, and any structure or force which threatened individual freedom was not tolerated. The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) practices the freedom of each individual member by assuring that person with the right to read and interpret scripture and to be heard in congregational decisions. The very forces alive in society make individual independence difficult to maintain. Economic, political, and cultural dynamics threaten each of us with a tyranny of the human spirit. In this window, we see the human surrounded by many influences facing towards God. In every case, "Man stands alone before his God".
	Week Fifteen: LOCAL CONGREGATION Each local congregation governs its own affairs. This congregation elects from its membership elders, deacons, and deaconesses who are from various areas of the congregation's life. Together these persons form the General Board which sets the governing policies of the congregation. In all areas, the local congregation is governed by lay persons who use their practical wisdom and scriptural understanding in making decision on behalf of the church. In this window, we have a scene of a meeting of church members administering the affairs of the local congregation. They meet knowing that "All things should be done decently and in order" (I Corinthians 14:40). The orderly procedures of the church are to reflect the nature of a God who orders His creation.	Week Sixteen: INTERNAL COOPERATION The work of the church is accomplished by Christians joining together in cooperative ventures. Freedom can only be possible when members are responsible to each other and the whole church. Each is assigned a task according to their abilities, and together they form the body of Christ, the church. Paul wrote, "Called to freedom through love, be servants of one another" (Galatians 5:13). Thus the church exists through the discipline of servanthood. Here we see the members of the church meeting and helpfully extending their hands toward each other.