USA > New York > New York City > A guide to the Cathedral church of Saint John the Divine in the city of New York > Part 2
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The Rev. George William Douglas, D.D. The Rev. George Frederick Clover, M.A. The Rev. Harold Adye Prichard, M.A. The Rev. Pascal Harrower, M. A. Honorary Vicars The Rev. William Edward Gardner, D.D. The Rev. Charles Kendall Gilbert, M.A. The Rev. Ralph B. Pomeroy, B.D. The Rev. Stuart L. Tyson, M. A. Head Master of the Choir School The Rev. Wilson Macdonald, M.A.
Organist and Master of the Choristers Miles Farrow, M.A., Mus. Doc. Head Verger Thomas Meatyard.
The post-office address of any of the above men- tioned is "The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York, N. Y."
Seals of Diocese and Cathedral
The seal of the Diocese is in the form of a pointed oval, or vesica,* and is as follows :
See note on page 114.
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Quarterly gules and argent, over all a cross coun- ter-changed of the same. In dexter chief the Ameri- can eagle with wings displayed or; in sinister chief and dexter base the sails of a windmill proper from the arms of the City of New York. In sinister base two swords in saltire or from the arms of the see of London. Surmounted by an episcopal mitre proper. The arms surmounted on a field purpure and enclosed by a bordure azure lined (or edged) or bearing the legend "Seal of the Diocese of New York MDCCLXXXV" or.
DIOCESE OF
NEW YORK
₹
SEAL OF GREK
X
MDCCLXXXV
Diocesan Seal
Gh+S
inmun
3.715
IS
aBOR
Cathedral Seal
The red color (gules) and the swords are histor- ically reminiscent of the fact that prior to the Inde- pendence of the United States the church throughout the American Colonies was under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Diocese of London.
The seal of the Cathedral, also vesica-shaped, is as follows :
Tierce in pairle reversed. 1st, from the arms of the City of New York: argent four sails of a wind-
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mill in saltire, between the ends in chief and base a beaver couchant, in fess dexter and sinister a barrel of flour all proper. 2d, from the arms of the State of New York: azure in a landscape the sun in fess rising in splendor or behind a range of three moun- tains the middle one the highest, in base a ship and sloop under sail passing and about to meet on a river bordered below by a grassy shore fringed with shrubs all proper. 3d, azure seven six-pointed stars argent between as many candlesticks or. Surmounted by an episcopal mitre proper. Enclosed by a bordure gules edged or bearing the legend "Sigil. Eccles. Cath. S. Johann. Theol. N. Ebor." or.
The seven stars and candlesticks refer to the Reve- lation of St. John the Divine, i. 20.
Services
The Cathedral is open for private prayer and medi- tation every day of the year from 7.30 a. m. to 5.30 p. m. There is a service in one of the chapels every week-day at 7.30 a. m. The principal Sunday services are at 8 a. m., 11 a. m. and 4 p. m., the latter two being with full choral service and sermon. Other services are held on week-days and Sundays as an- nounced from time to time. As before stated, all seats are free, and residents and strangers of all denomina- tions are cordially welcome.
The Cathedral service is neither "high" nor "low." It is the prescribed liturgy of the Church, with a fully choral rendering and congregational participation. Except during the vacation season, there are usually about 60 persons in the procession. The processional hymn is begun in the Ambulatory, through the south gate of which the procession enters the Crossing and goes to the Choir. First comes the crucifer, fol- lowed in order by the boys of the choir, the men of the choir, the Head Master of the Choir School, the
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Verger and the clergy in inverse order of their rank. The Bishop, if present, comes last, and is immediately preceded by the Verger. If the Bishop is absent, the Dean comes last, preceded by the Verger. If neither Bishop nor Dean is present, the Verger precedes all the clergy. The Verger (in black gown with purple facings), carries a silver staff surmounted by the figure of an angel holding a tablet on which is engraved the symbol of St. John the Divine, the chalice with emerg- ing serpent. When preceding the Bishop he carries his staff upright at his right shoulder, but when going before the other clergy he carries it in the hollow of his left arm. The organist and Master of the Choris- ters, wearing the gown and hood of Doctor of Music, is usually invisible, being seated at the console in the gallery on the screen at the south side of the Choir. At extraordinary musical services, an orchestra is seated in the Choir, between the stalls, and then the Master of the Choristers stands in the Choir, from which point he directs the singers, orchestra and assistant organist. The recessional is in the same order as the processional. After entering the Ambulatory, the procession halts while a dismissal prayer or hymn is said or sung there, and the solemn service ends with a far-away "Amen" from the unseen choir .*
Visitors
Visitors may see the Cathedral at all times between 7.30 a. m. and 5.30 p. m. except during the hours of service. The Verger is usually in attendance.
Architecture
The architects of the Cathedral have been: Messrs. George L. Heins and C. Grant LaFarge from July,
* The processional cross, a memorial of the late Walter D. Davidge, Chairman of Ushers, is overlaid with pure gold, and mounted upon a carved mahogany staff. In its center is a large topaz jewel with many facets. It was made by Messrs. J. & R. Lamb.
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1891, until Mr. Heins' death in September, 1907;} Mr. LaFarge from September, 1907, until the com- pletion of the Choir in April, 1911; and Messrs. Cram & Ferguson from April, 1911, to the present time. Mr. Henry Vaughan was architect of three of the Seven Chapels of Tongues, Messrs. Heins & LaFarge of two, Messrs. Cram & Ferguson of one and Messrs. Carrere & Hastings of one, as mentioned hereafter.
The prevailing style of the Cathedral will be French Gothic. The north of France, it will be remembered, is the birthplace of Gothic architecture. There, in the region so recently devastated by war, Gothic architecture rose and reached the flower of perfection in such monuments as Amiens, Rheims, Notre Dame (Paris), Chartres, Beauvais, and Rouen Cathedrals and many other churches, great and small.
Plan and Size
The plan of the Cathedral is cruciform (symbol- ism, the cross on which Christ was crucified ;) and is oriented so that the priest standing at the High Altar faces the east (the rising sun symbolizing the resur- rection, and the orientation also connoting the ideas of Christ "the Sun of Righteousness," "the Dayspring from on High," and the "Morning Star") .* Seven chapels, called the Chapels of Tongues, radiate from the Apse, or semi-circular eastern end of the Choir.
The loftiest features of the elevation are the two towers of the West Front (q. v.) and the great Central Tower above the Crossing. The latter, in the design now under consideration, consists of an octagonal lantern, carried up from the square Crossing in two stages, the upper smaller than the lower, and sur-
t Mr. Heins was born May 24, 1860, in Philadelphia, Penn., and died September 25, 1907, at Mohegan Lake, N. Y., where there is a church erected in his memory.
* Morningside Heights are so named because they front eastward.
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mounted by a flèche or open-work spire rising to a height of 500 feet (including cross) above the ground.
When completed, the Cathedral will extend from Morningside drive to Amsterdam avenue, more than a tenth of a mile. It will be 601 feet long and 315 feet wide across the Transepts, and, with an area of 109,082 square feet, will be the third largest in the world, St. Peter's at Rome being first and Seville Cathedral second.
The seating capacity of the Crossing in which the congregation ordinarily sits is 1500 ; but on special occa- sions, when chairs are placed in the Ambulatory and people are admitted to the Choir Stalls, the Cathedral can accommodate about 2500. When the church is finished, it will seat 7000 and will accommodate several thousand more standing.
Progress of Construction
The Founder of the Cathedral was the Right Rev. Horatio Potter, (Provisional Bishop 1854-1861 and Bishop of New York 1861-1887), who proposed it in 1872. The charter was granted by the Legislature of the state of New York in 1873. The Right Rev. Henry Codman Potter, (Assistant Bishop 1883-1887 and Bishop of New York 1887-1908), nephew and successor of Bishop Horatio Potter, actively for- warded the movement for raising funds in 1886. The Close was purchased from the Leake & Watts Orphan Asylum by deed dated October 31, 1891. The first service on the ground was held January 1, 1892. The corner-stone was laid on St. John's Day, December 27. 1892 .* The first service was held in the Crypt January 8, 1899, and the first service in the Choir and Crossing (being the consecration service) April 19, 1911. Ground was broken for the Nave May 8, 1916, by the
* See description of corner stone on page 98.
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Right Rev. David Hummell Greer, (Bishop Coadjutor 1904-1908 and Bishop of New York 1908-1919). The parts thus far built are the Crypt, Choir, seven Chapels of Tongues, Crossing and foundation for the Nave. The Mohegan golden granite for the walls of the Nave is now being quarried near Peekskill, N. Y., and is being delivered on the grounds. Some details of the Choir and Crossing are unfinished. The completed portion of the Cathedral has cost about $4,000,000. The Nave will cost about $5,000,000. Before the war it was estimated that the whole Cathedral would cost about $10,000,000, but on account of the increased cost of labor and materials, probably $15,000,000 would be a more accurate estimate.
Funds for Building
Visitors to the Cathedral repeatedly ask when it will be finished. It is impossible to answer this ques- tion definitely. Some of the cathedrals of the Old World have been seven hundred years in building and are not yet completed. The things which endure the longest are generally of slow growth,* and the Cathe- dral of St. John the Divine is no exception to this rule. It is not a steel-frame structure, but is of mas- sive masonry in the best traditions of Gothic architec- ture and is being built to stand for ages. Its physical construction must therefore necessarily be slow.
It is to be remembered, also, that the financial resources for the building of a modern cathedral are different from those which supplied the means for building many of the Old World churches. Westmin- ster Abbey was built almost entirely from revenues of the Kings from Henry III. to Henry VII. St. Paul's
* This is true in both the natural and the spiritual worlds. The oak grows more slowly than the pine; and the moral achievements which are worth the most and last the longest are the hardest to accomplish.
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in London was partly built by the gifts of penitents who performed their penances in money. Occasion- ally an ancient shrine grew into a great church in con- sequence of some tradition or superstition which caused a continuous stream of illustrious persons to shower wealth, privileges and honors upon it. Pope Honorius prescribed collections in all Christendom for the building of Rheims Cathedral. The metropolitan church of St. Rombold's, in Malines, Belgium, was built with money paid by pilgrims who flocked thither in the 14th and 15th centuries to obtain indulgences issued by Pope Nicholas V .; and the Tour de Beurre (butter tower) of Bourges Cathedral, like the tower of the same name at Rouen, "derives its name from having been erected with money paid for indulgences to eat butter in Lent." (Baedeker.) The list might be greatly extended.
To-day, however, reliance is placed entirely upon voluntary contributions. Some of the larger gifts to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine are mentioned hereafter, but there have been many other large ones and innumerable smaller ones equally acceptable from donors irrespective of denominational affiliations who have caught the civic and patriotic as well as the religious inspiration of what is to be America's great- est cathedral. In a general way, it may be said that the Cathedral will be finished as fast as funds are pro- vided ;- and no faster, for the authorities have rigidly maintained the provision of the statute, building only what can be paid for, and worshippers are therefore not kneeling on any debt. Anyone desiring here to enshrine a loving memory or to embody the offering of a grateful heart may place a donation to the Build- ing Fund in the alms-basin or in the box at the door, or send it to the Dean at the Cathedral offices in the old Synod House, at Amsterdam avenue and 112th street, New York City.
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Foundation and Superstructure
The foundation of the Cathedral is of Maine granite. Although the bed-rock of Morningside Heights (Manhattan schist) lies near the surface, it is so disintegrated near the top that it was necessary to go down 72 feet in some places in order that the Cathedral might rest securely on the "living rock." The excavation and foundation alone cost a quarter of a million dollars. The main walls of the super- structure are also of granite, faced on the outside of the finished portion with Mohegan golden granite quarried near Peekskill, N. Y., and on the inside with a soft buff-colored limestone or dolomite called Fron- tenac stone from Pepin county, Wis. The great flying buttresses and massive piers of the Crossing, exposed in their rugged unfinished state, exhibit the dark Maine granite. Local materials are mentioned in their appropriate places.
Exterior Surbey
Before entering the Cathedral the visitor should make a circuit of the Close (beginning on the south side and going eastward), comparing the outlines of the Cathedral with the plan and noting the location of the other buildings. This will give him a better understanding of the interior of the Cathedral and of its ultimate connection with the Bishop's House and the Choir School by means of cloisters. It will be noted that the Old Synod House (brick, with Ionic- columned portico) occupies the site of the South Transept.
The Seben Chapels of Tongues, (see page 71 et seq.,) may be identified on the exterior by the fol- lowing characteristics (south to north) : Chapel of St. James, rectangular plan, crenelated parapet of roof, and pinnacles on buttresses. Chapel of St.
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Ambrose, half round window arches. Chapel of St. Martin of Tours, fleurs de lis in quatrefoils above large windows; narrow pointed arch windows with single lights in basement. Chapel of St. Saviour (easternmost), rectangular plan; cross on gable ; statues in niches of buttresses and wall. Chapel of St. Columba, angel on roof ; statues in niches of but- tresses. Chapel of St. Boniface, statues in niches of buttresses; small mullioned windows of three lights in basement. Chapel of St. Ansgarius, rectangular plan ; parapet of quatrefoil tracery ; pinnacles on but- tresses.
Three of the chapels have the following sculptures by Mr. Gutzon Borglum: Chapel of St. Saviour: On eastern wall above the great window, the Christ Child ; in niches of buttresses on either side of window, Angels of the Resurrection; and beneath the window, the Virgin, seated between (left) St. Simeon who blessed the infant Jesus (Luke ii. 25-35) and (right) St. Zacharias, father of John the Baptist (Luke i. 67-80) .* Chapel of St. Columba: On roof, an angel with hands joined in prayer; in upper part of great window, St. Columba with tamed wolf, recalling how he subdued wild beasts as well as wild tribes; and in niches of buttresses the four patron saints of the British Isles (left to right) : St. David of Wales in beretta and fringed gown; St. George of England in armor with cross on shield and dragon at feet; St. Andrew of Scotland with diagonal crosst; and St. Patrick of Ireland, in Bishop's robes, with crozier in right hand and shamrock in left. Chapel of St. Boni-
* The figures of the Virgin and the Child suggest the fact that the Chapel of St. Saviour occupies the position usually given to the Lady Chapel in European cathedrals.
+ The diagonal cross of St. Andrew symbolizes not only the mode of his martyrdom but also humility. The legend is that when con- demned to death, he asked to be nailed to a cross of a form different from the Saviour's, as he was not worthy to die on the same kind.
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face: In niches of buttresses, Charlemagne, with crown and sword; Alcuin, Charlemagne's preceptor, in monastic garb with manuscripts in right hand; Gutenberg, with book in each hand, his initials "J.G." on one; and Luther, in scholar's gown, with book between hands.
The Clerestory of the Choir rises above the roofs of the chapels. In the canopied niches near the top of the turrets and buttresses are 10 stone figures 91/2 feet high by Mr. Borglum, as follows (south to north) : St. James the Less with fuller's club (indicat- ing manner of his martyrdom), and St. Philip with Latin cross (symbol of his crucifixion), together on turret; St. Bartholomewt; St. Thomas with square (spiritual architect) ; St. James the Great with staff (pilgrim) ; St. Peter with key (to the kingdom of Heaven) ; St. Andrew with diagonal cross; St. Mat- thewt with drapery over head; and St. Simeon with saw, and St. Jude with spear, (indicating manner of their death), together on turret.
Fourteen Stone Shields (only 12 in place), in the spandrels of the clerestory windows above the seven Chapels of Tongues, bear (or will bear) the following devices (south to north :) Above Chapel of St. James, (left) winged ox; and (right) artist's emblems, book and lily, all symbolizing St. Luke, (not yet erected.) Above Chapel of St. Ambrose, (left) lily, and (right) rose, both symbols of the Virgin Mary. Above Chapel of St. Martin of Tours, (left) eagle, and (right) chalice, symbols of St. John. Above Chapel of St. Saviour, (left) letters IC, XC, NI, KA, in four quarters formed by a Greek cross, signifying Jesus Christ Conquers; and (right), ini-
+ The usual symbol of St. Bartholomew, the knife with which he was flayed alive, and that of St. Matthew, the money bag, indicating his occupation before he was called, are not apparent.
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tials SP, SF, SS, of the Latin words Sanctus Pater, Sanctus Filius, Sanctus Spiritus, (Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit,) in a trefoil, symbolizing the Trin- ity .* Above Chapel of St. Columba, (left) crossed keys, symbol of St. Peter, and (right) crossed swords, symbol of St. Paul. Above Chapel of St. Boniface, (left) winged lion; and (right) fig tree, both symbols of St. Mark. Above Chapel of St. Ansgarius, (left) winged man and (right) axe and book, both symbols of St. Matthew.
Surmounting the roof of the Choir, and facing eastward, is a bronze statue, 91/2 feet high, by Mr.
IC XC
"Jesus Christ Conquers"
SPISF SST
"Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit"
Borglum, representing St. Gabriel as Angel of the Resurrection, blowing a trumpet.
West Front
Returning to Amsterdam avenue at 112th street, we come to what will be the main entrance of the Cathedral. In the space (now unoccupied) between the sidewalk and the foundation of the Nave will be * IC and XC are the Greek letters iota sigma and chi sigma, (uncial form,) being the first and last letters in each case of the Greek words for Jesus Christ. The letters NIKA are read together and spell the Greek word which means "conquers." Mrs. Jenner, in her "Christian Symbolism," says that this inscription "is stamped upon every altar- bread of the Orthodox Eastern Church, and it occurs on every eikon of our Lord."
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THE WEST FRONT (From Architect's Drawing)
the West Front (see figure 1 of plan). The tentative design for the West Front provides for three large and two smaller recessed portals, similar to the plan of Bourges Cathedral. Above the north and south portals rise two heavily buttressed square towers, named after St. Peter (north) and St. Paul (south), presenting strong relief. Above the central portal is the great Rose Window, flanked by the mullioned Gothic windows of the towers. Above these, a gallery of niches containing statues extends entirely across the façade, after the manner of the Gallery of Kings at Rheims Cathedral. Above this rise the belfries of the two towers, each surmounted by pointed turrets at the four corners, while between them, just above the gallery, appears the gable of the Nave. The West front is 220 feet wide and 80 feet deep, including the buttressing. The towers are 50 feet square, 235 feet high to the top of the parapets and 265 feet high to the top of the pinnacles.
The Rabe
Crossing the space to be occupied by the West Front, we ascend temporary steps to the foundation of the Nave (figure 2 of plan). Superstructure not yet begun (Dec. 15th, 1922). Here the visitor should pause and imagine himself entering the western limb of the Cathedral, 225 feet long, 132 feet wide, 175 feet high outside and 130 feet high inside, built in pure 13th century Gothic adapted to the requirements of the plan. The central aisle, *- as wide between the centers of piers as 112th street is between building lines-has two narrower aisles on each side. Instead of the closely-grown-up forest effect produced by the columns of many Gothic cathedrals, an air of open-
* What is here informally called the central aisle is sometimes called by architects the Nave, to distinguish it from the parallel pass- ages called aisles.
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-
THE EXTERIOR OF THE NAVE (Composite Photograph of Model. Human figure shows scale)
ness and spaciousness, which distinguishes this Cathe- dral throughout, is given by the relatively small num- ber of piers and columns and their ingenious disposi- tion. In this arrangement the architect has made two notable departures from the ordinary Gothic type : One is the erection of the clerestory on the secondary line of columns (those nearest the side walls,) which modifies the exterior system of flying buttresses, and the other is the introduction of intermediate slender columns in the primary line of piers, resolving the Nave into a system of four squares or double bays instead of eight rectangular bays. As the primary ranges of piers and columns rise to the spring of the arches which support the roof of the Nave, instead of being shortened to support the clerestory, an effect of great spaciousness and lofty aspiration is produced ; and this arrangement, together with the rhythmic alternation of great piers and relatively small clustered columns, allows a play of light and shade surpassing that of any mediaeval cathedral. Under the roofs of the north and south aisles runs the triforium gallery ; and there are many beautiful details of ornament, including the tracery, panelling, capitals, niches, pin- nacles and sculptures. A light and cheerful effect is produced by the illumination through 32 stained glass windows-eight in the aisle and eight in the clerestory on each side,-and the great Rose Window in the west end.
While standing at the west end of the foundation, the visitor should survey the great area of floor space that lies before him; then, looking eastward 225 feet (the length of a city block and half the width of a street) imagine the present temporary west wall of the Crossing removed, and the view extended about 225 feet farther to the High Altar in the Sanctuary. He will then have an idea of the great vista of the completed church.
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ONE SIDE OF THE INTERIOR OF THE NAVE (Composite Photograph Of Model. Figures of choristers show"scale)
Speaking of the building of the Cathedral in gen- eral and of the Nave in particular, in his address to the 138th Annual Convention of the Diocese of New York on May 11, 1921, Bishop Manning said: "As to the practical value and importance of the Cathedral, no one who knows anything of its work or of the multitudes that gather here for worship can entertain a question. Large as it is, the present space is in- sufficient. The Nave is urgently needed, not only that the great ideal which the building embodies may be carried forward, but that there may be room for the people who come for spiritual help, and that the Cathedral may meet its unequalled missionary oppor- tunity. I hope that our people, and especially those who have the stewardship of wealth, will keep this great spiritual and missionary enterprise in mind, and that many may be moved to aid it. The building waits only for the necessary funds. And in the revised drawings, we at last have plans which by their majesty and beauty worthily express the aim and ideal of this great structure I believe that we have now a plan worthy of the unequalled opportunity of this glorious Temple of God, and of its relation to the greatest and most complex city in the world. I believe that for the carrying forward towards completion of such a building as this, of which the whole country may be proud, and for the upholding of the spiritual, social and civic ideals which it embodies, not only the people of our own Church but many others in this metropolis and elsewhere will be glad to make their gifts and to have their part and share with us."
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