Feb 4 2014

The Fifth Station

Jesus Is Aided By Simon

Simon wasn’t given the chance to volunteer for this task –
“And they compelled a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.” [Mark 15:21]

The tableau shows two men who are both holding the cross. Which one of them is Simon? There may be two clues that suggest that the man in blue is Simon. First, in all of the fourteen stations only two people are not barefoot – so far as we can see. The man in blue is one of the two and is wearing brown boots. That makes him different from almost all of the rest. Second, Luke tells us that Simon was behind Jesus –
“And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus.” [Luke 23:26]

We will meet Simon again at the eighth station.

The words, “As they led him away” suggest that this should be the second or third station, rather than the fifth.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

IN MEMORY OF JOHN PHELAN, CAHIR, AND HIS CHILDREN.

Feb 4 2014

The Fourth Station

Jesus Meets His Mother

This is another event that is not recorded in the gospels. In fact, there is no mention of Jesus’ mother in any of the gospel passion narratives except for the occasion when, in John’s gospel, she stood at the foot of the cross as Jesus was dying.

There is another woman present at the meeting. She is one of the women who accompanied Jesus on his journey from Galilee –
“There were also many women there, looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him, among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.” [Matthew 26:55-56]

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

IN MEMORY OF JAMES CURRAN,
BALLYSCANLON, AND HIS WIFE MARGARET

Feb 4 2014

The Third Station

Jesus Falls The First Time

This event is not recorded in the gospels, but it is likely to have occurred because Jesus had already been beaten and scourged and was, therefore, very weak.

In the background are the walls of Jerusalem. The place of crucifixion was just outside the walls so it wasn’t a long walk – but long enough when carrying such a weight.

Notice the two men in yellow and blue garb observing Jesus. They represent the onlookers – followers of Jesus, opponents, curious people, passers by, you and me.

The Roman (?) soldier stands in the background, too, unconcerned and uninvolved – it’s just another crucifixion.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

PRAY FOR THE MULCAHY FAMILY, FENOR

Feb 4 2014

The Second Station

Jesus Is Laden With His Cross

It is unlikely that Jesus would have carried a complete cross. Rather, he would have carried only the horizontal cross-piece. The vertical shaft of the cross was usually left in situ after the previous crucifixion and ready for the next.

Pontius Pilate is still in the background of the tableau holding what looks like a tablet with writing on it. Perhaps it is the inscription that was affixed to the cross –

“Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, ‘Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.'” [John 19:19]

Of course, that is an English translation. It was actually written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

IN MEMORY OF THE RELATIONS
OF ROBERT PHELAN OF ISLANDIKEANE

Feb 4 2014

The First Station

Jesus Is Condemned To Death

Here we see Jesus being led away, hands bound, to be crucified. At this point the Romans were in charge, but that doesn’t look like any Roman soldier that we ever saw. Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judaea, wanted to release Jesus who he thought was innocent but the crowd wanted crucifixion –

“So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.’ And all the people answered, ‘His blood be on us and on our children!’ Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified.” [Matthew 27:24-26]

We can see Pilate at the rear of the tableau washing his hands aided by a servant.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

PRAY FOR THE DONOR, THE REVD. WILLIAM BROWNE P.P.

Feb 4 2014

Stations Of The Cross, Fenor

Stations Of The Cross, Church of the Immaculate Conception, Fenor

[ The picture opposite is of Michelangelo’s Pieta. Click to zoom. ]

In this section of the web site we show you the Stations of the Cross tableaux that are on the walls of Immaculate Conception church. You will be able to see them in close-up as you have probably never seen them before. Also, weÂ willÂ describe the scenes depicted at each station.

Please note that, if you wish to partake of the Stations as a devotion by contemplating the scenes and praying at each one, we would advise you to make use of other web sites such as THISÂ at Charles Borromeo Catholic Church.

If you are interested in the history and development of the Stations, we recommend The Way of the CrossÂ on the Vatican web site.

You can see our own Stations of the Cross by using the menu on the left.

Feb 4 2014

The West Gable Window

The West Gable Windows

There are three windows in the west gable – the Phoenix window and the Chi Rho Boat window above the main door, and a small window in the peak of the gable. The images below are of the peak window, viewed from inside and outside the church. The view from the inside is partially obscured by the roof woodwork and by the masonry surrounding it.

This is the biggest of the four peak windows because of its prominent position above the main door.

Jan 26 2014

The South Transept Windows

In the south transept there are seven windows including a small window, shown below, in the peak of the gable. The other six windows will be shown in a west to east (right to left) direction, numbering them 1 to 6, respectively. They may be accessed from the menu at top left.

This is the window in the peak of the gable. As with the other peak windows, it cannot be photographed properly without the aid of a ladder or a brontosaurus.
This window, too, is partially hidden by its masonry surround. It is identical to the peak window in the north transept. The view from the outside shows a bracket that was once used to support an aerial.

Jan 26 2014

The sixth nave window

This window is slightly obscured on the left by a loudspeaker.

The window detail shows rosary beads and a crown.

The crown refers to Mary, the mother of Jesus, who is “Queen of Heaven”. The rosary is a five-decade rosary which has five sets (decades) of ten beads with an additional large bead before each decade and after the last decade. Such beads are normally used to say five mysteries of the rosary (five Joyful Mysteries or five Sorrowful Mysteries or five Glorious Mysteries). Beads used by religious orders often have fifteen decades for saying all fifteen mysteries. Rosary beads of various types have been in use since the 12th century.

On October 16 2002, Pope John Paul II declared that the following year would be the “Year of the Rosary”. The Pope added and defined five new mysteries that concerned events in the public life of Jesus. These new mysteries were called the “Luminous Mysteries” or “Mysteries of Light”.

Jan 26 2014

The fifth nave window

We are unsure as to exactly what this window detail is showing. It could be a small casket or a large chest. It doesn’t look like an altar. Could it be the Ark of the Covenant? –

“They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length [a cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimetres], a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside shall you overlay it, and you shall make on it a moulding of gold around it. You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. And you shall put into the ark the testimony that I shall give you [the two stone tablets bearing the ten commandments].

“You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel”. [Exodus 25:10-22].

The window detail is grey in colour instead of golden, has no rings or poles, no feet, and no mercy seat or cherubim. So it’s unlikely to represent the Ark. (See also the sixth south transept window).

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Dunhill & Fenor Parish Website

Category Fenor Church Windows

The Fifth Station