Evening star., 1936-03-21
By Victoria Stevenson.

- CULPTORS are bringing 90
figures out of the cream Nor
man stone Of the reredos OF
- the Washington Cathedral.
which Is called the Ter Sanctus. The
great carving behind the high altar, of
stone cut in Jerusalem from the same
quarries that supplied the stones for
the Temple, extends its sculptured
wings to both sides of the sanctuary
Designed to proclaim part of the
oldest liturgy of the church, 1t pre-
sents its hymn Of praise:
Therefore with Angels and Arch
angels and with all the company Of
heaven, we laud and magnify thy
glorious name; evermore praising thee
and saying. HOLY, HOLY, HOLY,
Lord God of hosts, Heaven and earth
are full of thy glory: Glory be to thee,
o Lord Most High"
Christ sits enthroned in majesty
with His hand appraised in blessing in
the center of the design of the great
stone screen. The Vesica-shaped
Glory, or oval Of light rays, used only
in sacred art about the figure of the
Savior, is formed by the opening
words of the Gospel of st. John: I'm
the beginning was the Word and the
Word was with God and the Word
was God - and dwelt among US"
Four creatures of symbolism in the
square intablature about the figure OF
Christ represent the praise of the
whole animated world. According to
to their description in the Revelation
of st. John, the first is like lion,
the second like calf, the third has
face as of a man and the fourth is like
a flying eagle, land they rest not day
and night saying, Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty, which was and Is,
and is to come"
Within the four upper inches, two
to the right and two to the left OF the
Savior, figures of angels and arch
angels portray the heavenly choir in
its unceasing praise in which mortals
Join with their hymns of service and
thanksgiving. The scene in bas-relief
beneath the central figure OF the
reredos pictures those who were near
GSb 10 IIlG Lulu AlS 11Ao Col IAA4y
life, the apostles, Mary the mother of
Jesus, some of the women and the
brethren" To the north and south
of this picture are the figures of St.
Peter and st. Paul. whose names are
borne by the Cathedral.
THE series of small statues directly
= above the altar in gablet-
inches reveal Joshua, Samuel, Isaiah,
jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Micah, Hag-
gai. Zachariah and Malachi, prophets
of the Old Testament, whose lives or
writings foreshadowed the birth of
the Savior. The old and new dispen-
sations are, however, united by the
figure of John the Baptist.
The six large figures o men and
women to the north and south of the
central panel symbolic the millions of
mortals whose charitable lives will
measure up to the six-fold test of the
last Judgment. The three figures on
the north side, from the highest to the
lowest, represent those who will be
rewarded by hearing the words:
st was endangered and ye gave Me
meat;
"I was a stranger and ye took Me in:
at was sick and ye visited Me-"
The corresponding figures on the
south side portray those who will hear
the divine Communications:
st was thirsty and ye gave Me drink;
'Naked and We clothed Me;
IT was in prison and ye came unto
Me-"
In their wonderment they seem to
ask when they had seen the Lord
to give unto Him such ministry. They
receive the answer, "Inasmuch as ye
have done it unto the least of these
my brethren, ye have done it unto
Me. Come inherit the king
dom prepared for you ="
THOUGH the reredos has not been
completed and the central figure
Is still in model, this description of
its design enables the pilgrim better
to understand the story Of Christian
Victory through the many figures
which already have been carved un-
der the direction Of Angelo Lauldi,
sculptor.
The wing which extends over the
north doorway Of the inner sanctuary