The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1918-02-02
WESTMINSTER ABBEY
FAMOUS CORONATION CHURCH
OF ENGLAND DESCRIBED BY
MARY x. BURKE.

The famous Westminster Abbey, the
coronation church of the sovereigns
of England, the final resting place of
many, the national tomb house OF
heroes and great men as we'll as trl-
umph of Gothic architecture, was once
dedicated to the Fisherman of the
Galilean Sea, and rang to daily and
nightly services by holy monks or to
Masses celebrated by sanity priests.
The famous chapel that marks its
eastern extremity was once conse-
Grated to her whom men hail as the
Queen of Heaven, and you may see
even now on its western wall some
tokens of that ceremony Of consecra-
ton of this Chapel of Our Lady.
At the dissolution of monasteries
Westminster shared the fate of the
rest and the services were, of course,
changed. During the brief reign of
Mary the Roman Catholic Ritual was
restored and the "Confessors' shrine
erected.
At the funeral of Queen Mary Mass
vas said before the High Altar for
the last time and her successor, Eliza
beth, made Westminster collegiate
church and there in the Tudor Chap
ell, in it's northern aisle, lie side by
| side the collins of the two sisters,
| children of Henry VIII, Mary, the
daughter of his lawful wife, Catherine
of Aragon, and Elizabeth, daughter of
Anne Boleyn, while only chapels
width opposite rests her cousin, Mary,
Queen of Scots.
The monument raised to the mem
DRY of Elizabeth by James | is the
sculptor's expression of strength and
power and as she lies sleeping there
in royal state, guarded by lions, we
again contrast the strength which en-
abled the unnatural Elizabeth to sign
the death warrant of her unfortunate
cousin, with the wonderful charm and
fascinating beauty of Mary, Queen of
Scots, symbolized by the marble fig
ure with its sweet, finely cut face, its
graceful draperies and it's delicate
lace work
i The complete story of Westminster
Abbey would tell of the Benedictine
Order and of Dunstan, who had
grown up from childhood under the
shadow of that famous monastery of
Glastonbury, where he had been the
pupil of the we'll learned and deeply
religious men who had come over
there from Ireland. 1t would trace
the story of the Abbey from misty
legend into proved history, and tell of
Edward the Confessor, who called into
being that great religious house so
closely linked with crown and coun-
try, the first cruciform church in Eng
land 1t would tell you of Henry VII,
whose name ranks with Edward the
Confessor among the royal builders
of the Abbey. 1t would tell of his
chapel where roof and walls alike
were covered with delicate lacework
and rich embroidery made of stone,
while the tomb desigled for himself
and his Queen was worthy of the ex-
quisite chapel which enshrined it, and
the images of this royal couple made
in gilt bronze and surrounded by an
gels so lightly poised as to seem
flown there for a moment, seem well
guarded by their chosen saints; the
Virgin Mary with Christ in her arms
and st. Michael at her side; ST. John
/ the Baptist; st. John the Evangelist;
st. George standing on the vanquished
Dragon; st. Anthony, dressed as a
monk; Mary Magdalene, st. Barbara,
St Christopher and st. Edward the
/ Confessor, while outside the screen
stood a beautiful altar of white marble
gilded with fine gold, enriched by in
lay and carving, it's central figure, the
dead Christ, an altar broken into shiv-
ers by one of Cromwell's fanatics. 1t
would tell of an army of Saints and
Martyrs who seemed to guard the
walls, for king, apostle, saint, con-
lessor, all were there, in delicately
carved and decorated inches. 1t would
tell of windows with perfect glass of
wonderful coloring and the imagery
of the story of the old law and the
new, but alas! it would also tell of
their destruction. 1t would tell you
that in this chapel for nearly a hun
dred years, every knight was INSTALL
ed. 1t would tell you of the gold and
silver vessels on the altar; the gor-
geous vestments of the priest, the daz-
cling whiteness of the marble and
the glitter of the tapers round the
tomb but it would also tell of another
day when Westminster boys played
their games in the chapels and skip
ped from tomb to tomb in the Con-
! fessors' shrine, and before closing the
beautiful bronze doors of this wonder
lful chapel it would tell you that I'M