Panes of Glory is one of the few books on sacred art in Roman Catholic churches outside the province of Quebec. The photographs let us appreciate the quality of the windows, while the reflections share the meaning found in details of dress, colour, and symbols.

Using hand-blown sheet glass imported from England, France, and Germany, the artists at Robert McCausland Limited, Toronto, modelled these Neo-Gothic windows on the styles of the 1800s and 1900s. The McCausland firm stocks over 600 shades of colour, and because the sheets are hand made, each one has a unique personality. The windows display McCausland’s hallmark, “the correct use of brilliant colours,” as seen in this vignette of Jesus in the temple. The humanity and individuality of each figure in the windows reveal why the McCausland studio is known for setting the standard for facial features in stained glass.

Traditional religious symbols, such as the fleur-de-lys for our Blessed Mother and the chalice and host for the Eucharist adorn the windows. Other symbols include the Greek letters (A) Alpha and (Ω) Omega, signifying Christ from beginning to end. The motifs of grape vines and wheat sheaves in the backgrounds suggest the life, growth, abundance of the Eucharist.

In his reflections Fr. Prieur explores the layers of meaning in the windows’ images, symbols, and colours. St. Alphonsus of Liguori’s “mitre and crozier leave no doubt he is a bishop teaching the faithful. The raised fingers of his right hand symbolize the two important truths of our Christian faith: the Trinity and the human and divine nature of Christ the Reconciler. His voluminous cope is green, a colour of life and growth.

“Green also suggests the hope that flowed through his writing because he based it on the powerful truth that Jesus Christ has redeemed the most helpless sinner.

“The pectoral cross and deep blue-purple lining of his episcopal cope remind us that Alphonsus suffered and that he sharing in the suffering of Christ.”

“Thank God for reformers and mystics with their feet on the ground, like St. Teresa of Avila … Her Carmelite identity is clear from her brown tunic, white mantle and bluish-black veil. At her feet lies a lily, which in religious art signifies chastity and purity.” One of the books might be The Interior Castle, her “remarkable, totally practical and understandable description of our journey or movement to the God within us.”