August 1, 2006

DIAMONDS in a NEW SETTING

A few additional definitions...
Ad orientum...is from “oriens” meaning “the rising sun”, thus “the East” or “the dawn” – and with the preposition “ad” (“to” or “towards”) – the whole people of God looking with awe and joy at the resurrected Lord Jesus.
Ambo............. in early Christian churches, a raised pulpit-like stand where parts of the service were read or chanted; most often two of them, one on each side of the nave.
Clavinova.......a digital piano, has the ability to save songs, availability of several different voices and in some cases, can be connected to a computer.
Niche..............a recessed space or hollow; specifically, a recess in a wall for a statue.
Sacrarium......special sink in the sacristy with pipe opening directly into the earth; basin often hid beneath a hinged cover; provides for proper disposal of sacred substances. Also referred to as a piscina.

# 2 Meeting Date: 08 / 01 / ’06 @ 7:00 p.m. in the parish hall. Father Hemann, facilitator, opened the meeting with a specifically chosen Psalm. Those present were John Blanco – Jean Burns – David Forbes – Mike Hittle – Sherry Hittle – John Kallin – DarleneAnn Lansink – Ken Newquist – Diane Patera – Leneé Sinnott – Vicki Stover [F ]

Worship Space again dominated much of the discussion. It opened with the revelation that there could be a change in the church in relation to direction of the priest when Mass is said, that being that he may return to having his back to the parishioners. At the previous meeting, it was said that the altar and priest should be facing east......ad orientum...this could change that, but Father doesn’t believe it will happen anytime soon, if ever. As said before, some of this will be decided by our bishop. There were mixed reviews from the last meeting, especially in regard to the progress made / not made. It was also noted that, contrary to an earlier belief, the architect, when present, is not costing us per minute, per hour, etc. ... his fee is based on a percentage of the final cost. We are very happy to have Brad Mollet on board and have full confidence that he will render us all the drawings and work that we need for the project.

It was important to know where the church would fit into the “whole complex”...the religious education center, the rectory, the prayer garden, the court yard, the parking. We are to build the church and then consider the parking, not the other way around.

The group present was asked if they wanted a jam-packed capacity versus comfortable seating. Even though our parish wants to be somewhat conservative, it was agreed that seating for 300 was too small. In no way would that ever be adequate if the parishes from Holstein and Odebolt someday join us. Though they will not be contributing to cost of the building, they may eventually be attending here and then would be contributing to the upkeep. The overflow room was extensively discussed noting that the Moville parish makes good use of theirs. Thoughts went along the line of a movable glass wall separating it from the main nave. The glass wall would also have in it the Sacred Heart picture window from our present church. This, in the future, could be remodeled if the need for the “regular” nave is to be increased in size. With 288 being our present seating, it was eventually decided upon to have a nave seating 350 (or thereabouts) with room for 100+ in the overflow area. Committee members were urged to lean toward larger rather than smaller when designing the new church.

A quick and unanimous decision was to have the baptismal font in the back of the church in the gathering area a/k/a the narthex...a place where “being brought in” would be appropriate. Father mentioned the baptismal font in the Milwaukee Cathedral...that it was casket-sized...The font at the Milwaukee Cathedral could serve as a great model. There was some talk regarding constant running water, the pump for such, if water would be heated, if holy water could have chemicals added (yes), that holy water can be drained naturally unlike that of the consecrated wine which requires a sacrarium. Materials used for the font have to flow with the remainder of the design; marble was a distant possibility. A multi-tiered design was approved; it would be used for full-immersion baptisms with a small font within the main one for the baptism of pouring.

Father noted that the sanctuary was a “mini-copy of Heaven”. There should be a distinction between the sanctuary and the nave and the steps in front are part of that separation; there is some thought of going back to altar railings to maintain this separation. There could be three steps coming up from the nave denoting the Trinity. Along each side there would be a ramp-like feature for the handicapped to be accessible as lectors and others with positions in the sanctuary. The main thing in the sanctuary is the Altar (Liturgy of Eucharist) and the Ambo (Liturgy of the Word)...these should be centered under the dome where Jesus would receive full attention; this means the altar and the tabernacle are centered. The place of proclamation for the presider is normally a podium but he may also preach and proclaim the Word from the ambo or chair.

The general consensus is to save the present high altar and for it to be a free-standing one in our new church. It would be used for the tabernacle enthronement, the tabernacle able to be accessed from the front and the back, where there would be an “intimate space”. There was some concern regarding how stable our high altar would be once it was removed from its present position; it was decided that it should be checked over for viability. This same question was posed about our stained-glass windows.

Niches [also referred to by the group as “cubby holes”] could be used for devotionals. In regard to saving our statues from the present church, the meeting members were told that they must be willing to let go of everything...and then bring back what they can / could use. It was pretty well decided that the present statue of Mary, for one, would find a niche in the gathering area. Toward the front, symmetrical on the sides, there is a distinct possibility of having “seasonal statues” which would rotate as they came into use. Examples would be the Divine Mercy, the Holy Family, the Infant of Prague, Padre Pio, John Paul II (when he is canonized). St. Isidore could be considered since we are an “agricultural parish”. Realizing our parish is that of the Sacred Heart, our present Sacred Heart statue could still be used. As for a place for the Unity Candle used for weddings, a removable stand would be brought in and out for this event.

One of the most interesting aspects of the evening was Father’s view and description of side pillars with a recessed area where the present Stations of the Cross would be reframed and imbedded into the wall with a light, possibly a votive candle. Just listening to what he envisioned seemed to make for more fervor and enthusiasm for the finished product. As for the pillars, they would not impede any access to the pews; they would be totally away from the pew section. If there wasn’t a question of cost, it would be fantastic to have stone pillars.

Having a square altar was brought up; it might help to create more space for the Eucharistic Ministers as more of them would likely be used per Mass.

Handicapped area...this will go by code, a code knowledgeable to our architect. There should be places available in the front, middle and back so that those using it don’t feel either conspicuous or ostracized.

Sound...very important...that should be in a room in the back of the church...either left or right side, but in the back and adjusted from there.

Acoustics are affected by the amount of carpet used, but the group was certain they did not want any under the church pews. Tile / terrazzo was much preferred. It was suggested to check with the Boatman Company, the installers of the tile floors both at the Cathedral in Sioux City and at Horn Memorial Hospital in Ida Grove.

Lighting...there should be a compromise between natural and installed; the windows should be toward the top of the main church.

Pews and such...angular pews in the nave were not favored; more space was needed between pews, including for more ease in cleaning. Having angled pews in one of the transepts was brought up, but it was determined that this would cause the symmetry to be unbalanced. The reason for bringing this up was because it was proposed to use one of the transepts to house the organ, clavinova and piano. Considering the cost, we will have to do some intense research to determine whether we will have a electronic organ over that of a pipe organ.

The way the new church is being laid out, the pews would extend five feet further back than what we now have, this being that there would be more pews put into the width of the church. One members of the group felt we were getting too far away from the sanctuary, but Father and the general sense of the group believed that it would be no problem.

Dimension comparisons...
Space / pitch between our present pews = 35” --- for new church...38”.
Seat space in our present pews = 19 1/2” ---- for the new church...20”.
Seating capacity in present pews = 8 ---- in the new pews...10
Seating inches in present pews = 166” ---- in the new pews...200”.
Width of present center aisle = 6’ ---- width for new aisle...8’ 4”.
Width of a present side aisle = 3’ 6” ---- width for a new side aisle...6’.

Father closed the meeting minutes before 9:00 o’clock with prayer.

Most members remained to see pictures brought back by Jean Burns; she visited several Omaha parishes and prepared displays. Six-year old St. Leo’s parish was not anything like what we would want in a church. St. James Church ( 3-4 years of age ) had natural light which was “just right” and a baptismal font which was much preferred by those in attendance. At the 1942- built St. Margaret Mary, the overall church was deemed a “good one”. It did have a dimmer side, but not too much so. The pillar design was a distinct feature which would be nice to incorporate in ours if cost was not a matter of importance. At an earlier time before she was looking at a church with our new church in mind, Jean found the St. Patrick one in Gretna NE to be “pretty awesome”.