Duncansburgh Church (3) – Stained Glass

The side windows of the church reflect various Bible stories. They speak about the breadth of Christ’s love and welcome. From back left as you face the front, they are:

Jesus welcoming the children: When some parents brought their children to Jesus, the disciples tried to keep them away, but Jesus would not let them. “Let the children come to me,” he said, “and do not try to stop

them, because the kingdom of God is made of

such as these.” (The story is in Mark 10.13-16).

As his followers our job is to be welcoming and

caring towards the children in our community.

Ruth

Ruth is an Old Testament character. She left her home in Moab

to stay with and care for her widowed mother-in-law Naomi

(bottom panel). She arrived in Israel as a stranger but found

kindness from Boaz who let her gather grain in his field (main

panel). She became one of the ancestors of Jesus. The window

is a reminder of the importance of family ties and the need to

be caring and compassionate to strangers.

Continued overleaf

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War memorial

The next window is the congregation’s war memorial for those

who gave their lives in two world wars. It has references to

various Bible verses on a theme of those who give themselves

for others. More information is given below the window.

The Roman officer

Opposite the war memorial window, a Roman officer asks Jesus

to heal his sick servant. As a high-ranking soldier in an

occupying army, he risks his reputation by asking Jesus for help,

not for himself but for his servant. Jesus praises his faith and

the window reminds us that the Christian faith is for people of

every race and background. The story is in Luke 7.1-10.

Nathanael

Nathanael was an early follower of Jesus. His story is found in

John 1.43-51. Although he was grumpy old cynic, the love of

Jesus melted his heart and he was the first to recognise Jesus as

the Son of God. Christ welcomes even the world-weary.

Calvary

The last window shows Jesus on his way to the cross,

surrounded by followers who are sad at what his

happening. Even the Roman soldier looks upset. This

window reminds us of the theme that links them all, that

Christ’s love reaches people of every background, age,

gender, and race. He gave himself for each of us, and is

willing to welcome all who come to him.

Guide card 3 of 3.

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Fort William Duncansburgh Macintosh Parish Church

The Main Window

Like most Church of Scotland buildings, Fort William

Duncansburgh MacIntosh is fairly simple in style. However, the

stained glass windows which reflect various Bible stories are

worth a closer look.

The rose window at the front shows Jesus at the top, with his

arms outstretched in welcome. He is surrounded by his

disciples around a table sharing their last supper. There are

twelve disciples, so even Judas who later betrayed Jesus is

included.

The centre section shows some ears of grain, a cup and some

grapes, reflecting the bread and wine shared at the last supper

and in our communion services. These are set over a cross,Anglish

because communion reminds us that Jesus gave his life on the

cross for us.

On either side of Jesus are two symbols which are the first and

last letters of the Greek alphabet, alpha and omega, which

remind us that Jesus is the first and the last, the beginning and

the end of our faith.

John’s gospel talks about Jesus as “the lamb of God”, because

he was the one who gave up his life for us, just as in his day a

lamb might be offered as a sacrifice. In the bottom panel there

is a lamb carrying a “chi-rho” (a cross made of the first two

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letters of the word Christos, or Christ, in Greek). This lamb is

also the traditional symbol for the gospel of John, so maybe the

window suggests we should look at the last supper story in

John’s gospel (John 13.1-35). In that story Jesus, the master,

gets down and washes the feet of his friends like a servant. He

tells them, “If you have love for one another, then everyone

will know you are my disciples.”

There is no disciple shown in the bottom panel, behind the

lamb. That’s because Jesus is also welcoming you and me to be

his followers too.