Some of you know that I’ve shifted my job responsibilities at Urban Village and am now the Pastor of Emerging Ministries. One of my main tasks is to explore creative ways UVC might connect to the areas our sites are located. My biggest project in this new job is taking the lead to see whether UVC might expand beyond the city limits. River Forest United Methodist Church (RFUMC) is a small church in the near-western suburbs and UVC and RFUMC are going through a “dating” period to see whether RFUMC might become part of UVC. Until those final decisions are made, I am pastoring the current RFUMC congregation and getting to know the community. As you might imagine, RFUMC comes with a building with a lot of history and a lot of stories. It’s been more than 10 years since I’ve had to think about a building (which, for the most part, has been pretty great), but it’s also kind of fun to explore all the nooks and crannies of this new place.
A couple of Sundays ago, one of the church’s long-time members gave me a behind-the-scenes tour of the sanctuary and shared the history of the sanctuary’s stained-glass windows. Most of the sanctuary is surrounded by stained glass that display the stories of Jesus, culminating in the depiction of the resurrection above the altar. But I also noticed other stained glass displayed in other parts of the church (including my office) in a very different style, what I’d describe as Prairie style or in the vein of something designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. This makes sense because River Forest is next to Oak Park, home of the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio. RFUMC was designed by William Drummond, a protogee of Wright.
RFUMC’s sanctuary used to have these beautiful Prairie-style windows all throughout the sanctuary, but I was told that in the late 1960s, leaders of the church decided that this was a church and therefore pictures of Jesus needed to be displayed. So they made the decisions to take out the Prairie-style windows and replace them with Jesus.
The current stained-glass windows are fine. Jesus’ story is certainly told well and, of course, I’m never opposed to telling those stories, but I also grieve a bit the decision the church’s ancestors made.
Several years ago, our bishop noted that pastors are appointed (assigned/sent for those not familiar with United Methodist lingo) to a community, not a church. I appreciated that distinction and still do. If a community of faith is going to be worth its salt, it better invest itself into the lifeblood of its community, including doing something as small as honoring a community’s architectural heritage.
I also grieve the decision because it lacked imagination. I look at the current stained-glass windows and appreciate the stories they tell, but that’s about it. But my imagination goes into high gear when I look at the Prairie-style windows. I can make out a communion cup, juxtaposed next to a stalk of wheat. There are various places where you can see a cross. I see a peak and a valley, which are great metaphors of faith. I imagine I’ll find other symbols as I look at the other windows that are still displayed in other parts of the church.
Will you invest in your community? is a great question to ask anyone who wants to serve in ministry. Will you expand your imagination? is a question that is just as important.