One of the first things to notice about the main part of the church is the seating arrangement. While the church holds over 600 people, no one will ever be more than 11 rows away from the sanctuary (except in the overflow section). The seats are arranged around the sanctuary so that people can see each other as we celebrate the Eucharist. Gone are the days when the people would only look at the priest and the other ministers. In this arrangement people can not only focus on the sacred action, but be connected to it. The people form a beautiful visual backdrop in front of which the liturgical action takes place. Yet no one is in the "background" -- all are called to full and active participation in the prayer of the Eucharist.
On the west side of the church, there are a few rows of chairs. This is the area where the choir sits at Masses in which a choir is used. Chairs are used so that the choir and instrumentalists have some flexibility in seating (there are some overhead microphones which are sometimes used to amplify choir or instruments). Our new organ is in this area too. It is a Cambridge 835 made by the Rogers Instrument Corporation. It is a two-manual organ that incorporates authentic pipe organ sounds achieved through Rogers parallel digital imaging technology. Two wooden speakers in niches on both sides of the sanctuary provide the organ bass notes, while the four speaker cabinets above give the higher pitched sounds.
The ceiling is angled to help focus attention to the sanctuary area. Acoustically, it is designed to help the sound of the people (the singing and the praying) to combine together in a live way. Embedded in the ceiling are a new kind of speaker which cannot be seen but provide an even coverage of sound throughout.
The stained glass windows are works of art that surround this room. The east windows (looking left as you face the altar) are waves of blue and white and green. This recalls the water, appropriately so, for this is the side of the church where the Baptismal font is located. On the west side, the windows suggest wind blowing through the land (and this scene ends up at the windows which recall mountains). God's Spirit is often described as wind (for example, at Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came to the Apostles) or God's breath. We again recall our parish motto: Share the Spirit of Love. The windows recall God as the creator who loves us and who gives us this beautiful world. Outside of all the windows is an earth berm that can be seen in an abstract way through the windows. During the winter, the snow covered hill makes a lot of the glass appear wintery-white. The bright spring lawn changes the colors of the windows as do the autumn brown and gold leaves. These windows are indeed for all seasons.
The stained glass windows in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel depict wheat and grapes, the bread and wine. These windows provide a most fitting setting for the Blessed Sacrament.
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