The Edward Burne Jones Window

This window in the chancel has dominated the worship of our church for over 100 years. It is one of the finest examples of stained glass in the country, and was designed by Edward Burne Jones, a Victorian artist who lived from 1833 – 1898. Born in Birmingham, he went on to study at Exeter College, Oxford where he met William Morris and the two became fast friends.

Influenced by eminent Victorians like Rossetti and Ruskin, Burne Jones abandoned a possible calling to the ministry and entered the world of art. He travelled extensively, particularly in Italy. As well as paintings he also produced decorative work for William Morris’ company, book illustrations, tapestries, other crafts and, of course stained glass windows. He produced more than 270 cartoons or designs for windows between 1872 and 1878, and received many prestigious commissions in Oxford, Winchester and Birmingham Cathedrals, as well as St Giles here in Edinburgh, and further afield in Rome, Boston, Montreal and Australia.

Our window, completed after Burne Jones’ death, also incorporates the work of another artist John Henry Dearle whose work appears on at least one of the panels in our window (the depiction of Jesus with Doubting Thomas).

The window, gifted by four separate families as a memorial, was an integral part of the development of the Chancel, added on after the main church was built. This also included the Father Willis organ, and the final dedication service was held on 4^th & 5^th May 1901.

There is a huge amount of symbolism in the window. The vine motif is a symbol of abundance in the Old Testament and one of the symbols of Israel; in the New Testament it symbolises Jesus Who is the true vine, a symbol of communion but also of His everlasting love. The four evangelists are portrayed with their four symbols. Matthew begins his gospel with an account of the ancestry of Jesus and focuses on his human nature and kindliness – his symbol is the winged angel. Mark’s opening lines describe a voice crying out in the wilderness, and later emphasises the royal ancestry of Christ. His symbol is a lion – a creature of the open plains and the king of beasts. Luke deals large with the healing and sacrificial nature of Jesus. His symbol is the ox – the animal of sacrifice. John’s Gospel begins with the Word of God and emphasises the holiness of Jesus. His symbol is an eagle as it can fly higher than any other bird and so nearer to heaven. Legend has it that the eagle is the only creature that can look into the sun without blinking – seeing and bearing the truth. That’s why lecterns, like ours, are often in the shape of eagles.

Before us, each Sunday, the gospel of Jesus Christ is not only preached from the pulpit and read from the lectern, it is portrayed in this magnificent window – where the story of good news is displayed for all to see.

What the window tells us

The gospel of Matthew is represented by the arrival of the wise men in Bethlehem, bearing their gifts of gold and myrrh and frankincense. It is a story about worship and wonder and the bringing of gifts. Each time we look at it we are reminded of our need to come to the Christ-child with the gifts of our time and talent and money. Each time we look at the window we are reminded of how people came from the four corners of the world to worship Jesus. Each time we look at the window we are reminded of the incarnation of Jesus – the time when God came amongst His people to show us His love and care, to show us that the promise would be kept, to show us that His gifts of mercy, grace and love would come to play a part in the world. Each Sunday, in this window, the gift of Christmas is displayed. Not just the gold and myrrh and frankincense, but also the gift of Jesus Christ to us.

The gospel of Mark is depicted by Jesus calling the children to His side. In Victorian times with high infant mortality children where seen as very precious – it is why – serendipitously or otherwise, we find children on every wall of the church, reminding us of their importance. In our window Jesus not only calls the children, but also takes them in His arms and blesses them. Perhaps it is an echo of baptism. It is certainly a clear reminder and challenge to us that Jesus welcomed children and placed them close to His heart. His Church should be no different.

The gospel of Luke is depicted by the Lord’s Supper. The meal that Jesus instituted in order that people would remember what He was about to do for the world – give His life. The bread and the wine, the body and the blood. The image of divine sacrifice, before us each Sunday. What is interesting is that the little script, the only one in these four little lights, is not the words “Remember me” but “Lord, is it I?” (which ironically is not a quote from Luke but Matthew and Mark). What it is emphasised is the betrayal of Jesus, as each of the disciples questions who it is that will do this terrible thing. It is a serious, sombre thing to put in a window. How have we betrayed our faith in Jesus Christ, and how, but by His grace alone, will we ever be forgiven and saved?

The final gospel, John’s, is also depicted by an odd image. When you think of all the things that could have been chosen – the ‘I am’ sayings of Jesus, or John 3:16, it is the time when Thomas has the chance to handle the risen Jesus and test His wounds that is chosen. Could it be that this image, not worked by Burne-Jones but by John Henry Dearle, also points to another harsh reality of believing in any age – the presence of doubt?  This image confronts us with what we all face in life – doubt. Faith is a hard thing to come to terms with; it is hard to believe. But the encouragement of Thomas doubting and his honesty, and then the dawning of his faith is an encouragement to us all. He’s not so much doubting Thomas, but rather honest Thomas who becomes believing Thomas. “My Lord and my God!”

One picture is worth ten thousand words. This window, that we take for granted, and view largely from a distance, is fraught with images and symbols and obvious messages and hidden ones. A treasure of faith for all of us to enjoy each time we come to worship.