Early sixties
talking to children
eight to nine years old.
Subject: the newly
opened Coventry
Cathedral,
the blitz, the glass
end wall engraved
with saints and angels,
and beyond, the ruins
of the old. The architect,
Sir Basil Spence, explains
how he'd imagined
standing outside looking in
and seeing the great works
inside through bodies
of the saints. But Martin
has a different take: thinks
it was to let the worshippers
look out and see the world
they're praying for. I wonder
then, how often do we see
the object of our prayers
and all the saintly and
angelic powers that stand
nearby to intervene.
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14 comments:
Thankfully they're camped around us.
Hmm, looking around now for the saintly angelic powers. They elude me most of the time.
I wish I could see them. I do like Martin's idea really.
Thinking of the Coventry Cathedral, I was there once a long while ago. I remember feeling God's presence stronger in the old cathedral. Perhaps the saints WERE there.
Is religion all about looking out or looking in. Good provoking thought.
this is just what i love about kids...their mind goes fresh ways and shows us new perspectives..think we all need those windows that let us look out beyond our own borders..
lovely to read Dave,
reminded me of my school days at a Convent and those prayers,Christmas carols,sisters cum teachers!!
Two different points of view Dave - personally I find the beautiful engraving on the glass so exquisite that I look neither out nor in.
I've never seen any saintly or any angelic powers at work ever :-).
Thought provoking words.
i echo claudia in i love spending time with kids they often make me think in ways adults do not...
To truly see one must close their eyes and like a child open their heart. I enjoy your work Dave and believe there is a greater power around each and every one of us, just waiting to be noticed.
The Unknowngnome
Amen to that!
Mary
Mmm, I found the sensation in each of them. I wouldn't like to say which was the stronger, but I was bowled over by Spence's building and still am. Also by the works that belong with it, the Epstein sculpture, the Sutherland tapestry, Piper's Baptistry window, the en gravings etc.
Tabor
Excellent thought - or even looking through? Thanks for that: set the brain cogs slowly turning.
Claudia
Absolutely. Agreed on both points.
Rohit
Ah, the richness of memory! There's always another nugget left, I find.
The Weaver of Grass
I agree they are exquisite. To the best of my recollection though, the discussion didn't really touch on the engravings, but was about why the wall was made of glass. The children found that such a novel idea - an I found Spence's explanation somewhat odd, much as I liked his building.
Windsmoke
No, you don't see them - that's the trouble.
Louise
Thanks. Good to know you thought so.
Brian
Agreed. It must have been a child who invented outside the box.
Cole
Hi, A very warm welcome to you. Thank you so much for leaving a comment. I do absolutely go along with your thoughts.
It is all a question of perspective really, isn't it?
It's having the courage to remove the blinkers and see with new eyes.
Honestly! I've momentarily been there. They are there all right, but children probably see them more easily than we do :)
Yes, in and out, both parts of the same thing. I visited Coventry Cathedral a few years ago and was shocked at how neglected it was - and there was nothing about its creation in the bookshop. I wrote to the Dean pointing out the wonderful and inspiring history of it and suggesting that the gift shop had more about it but I never got a reply - he was "too busy" they said, and he would reply later. He didn't though.
I thought that the town of Coventry was a sad place - conceived with such conviction and hope, with its marvellous cathedral. Most of the locals I speak to seem to write it off as a dump - but it seems to me that they must be the ones who have made it so. Or am I missing something?
Thinking about the two cathedrals: I have remembered my thoughts from my long ago visit now: The old cathedral was built to glorify God and the new cathedral built to glorify Man. I may feel differently if I visited again today.
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