St. Mary the Immaculate Conception
Stained Glass Windows
The stained glass windows that were installed in the church of St. Mary the Immaculate Conception occupy the most prominent settings in the church. The windows installed so far directly face one another, and an important part of their theological message is established by their relationship to one another.
The rose window stands above the altar and depicts the Most Holy Trinity, with a special emphasis on the Holy Spirit. Opposite the rose window and altar is a Marian window above the entrance and baptismal font. Mary stands with and above the assembly with her gaze fixed on the Holy Trinity giving praise for God’s having done “great things” for her. We join her in giving thanks that, through Mary’s ‘Yes’, God prepared the world for our Savior.
The Trinity Window
This window, installed in the south end of the nave in the Spring of 2014, is made from faceted glass and is dense with symbol. The Holy Spirit is featured as a descending dove, the Son by a cross that divides the window into quarters, and the Father by an eye (subtly built around the rounded tail of the dove). The forms of the three persons are distinct but woven together; they are shown as “three persons; one God.”
The Marian Window
Installed in March 2015, The Marian image spreads across three windows and combines two iconographic types: Mary as “Our Lady of the Burning Bush” and “The New Eve.”
In the central window, Mary holds the cross (the symbol of her Son from the Trinity Window) and emerges from a burning bush (indicated by the leaves of intense red and orange).
Church Fathers understood the burning bush from the Old Testament book of Exodus to prefigure the mystery of Mary’s virgin motherhood. As St.Gregory of Nyssa writes: “From this we learn also the mystery of the Virgin: the light of divinity which through birth shone from her into human life did not consume the burning bush, even as the flower of her virginity was not withered by giving birth" (Life of Moses 37).
In the side windows, Mary is flanked by Adam and Eve. They are partially clothed by the burning bush and cover their faces in shame. As at the moment of original sin, both Adam and Eve shift blame: Adam points to Eve, and Eve points downward, where the serpent would now crawl on his belly. Our first parents symbolize all of humanity burdened by sin.
Mary stands between them holding the cross, symbol of our salvation. Church Fathers thus described Mary as the New Eve. St. Irenaeus writes, “the no of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. What the virgin Eve had bound in unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosed through faith” (Against Heresies, 3.22.4).
Taken Together
In these two major windows, our parish joins Mary in her great Magnificat, proclaiming the great things God has done for us. Mary stands with us, with her gaze locked on the glory of the Holy Trinity, giving thanks and praise for the goodness he has done to us.
Our Lady of the Burning Bush is a constant reminder to us of the grace that God extended to Mary to preserve her from sin and prepare her for her unique vocation as perfect mother and first disciple of Christ—the one whose ‘yes’ echoes through all of human history.
We are reminded that Mary’s cooperation with God’s plan in no way diminished her. Similarly, our faithfulness and service to God will not diminish our lives, but lead us to abundance of life and joy. Proclaiming Mary as the New Eve, we recognize that God has worked from the beginning of time to prepare Mary for a unique role in His plan to overturn the sin of our first parents (which we have all ratified).
What do we call God’s plan to preserve Mary from sin and use her yes to initiate God’s plan that salvation might be delivered to the human family by one who belongs to the human family? We call that “The Immaculate Conception.” It is under that great title that we seek Mary’s intercession as our intercessor and gather to worship under the protection of her motherly mantle.