Bishop Earl Fernandes dedicated a new altar on Aug. 13 at the Columbus St. Charles Preparatory School’s Mother of Mercy Chapel.
The ceremony marked 95 years to the day when building was dedicated to Our Lady of Mercy in 1937.
The chapel is used daily by students as a place of prayer and reflection, for weekly student Masses, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, confession and penance services. It is also used for a number of alumni-related Masses and gatherings.
Bishop Fernades was assisted throughout the liturgy by deacons, alumni seminarians and priests, and Knights of the Chair (St. Charles students who serve the bishop at Masses, mainly at St. Joseph Cathedral and St. Charles).
The dedication of the chapel’s new hand-carved wooden main altar was an essential component of the Mass. The Prayer of Dedication and the Anointings included a blessing and sprinkling of water, an anointing with oil and incense, and the lighting of the altar’s candles.
The 10-month construction project was necessary to address the school’s significant enrollment growth. St. Charles began the school year with 678 students, the highest in its 101-year history. This transformative project was directed by architect William Heyer and the general contractor, CK Construction.
“Jesus Christ, King of the Universe,” painted on the chapel’s apse in the 1950s by German artist Rudolph Scheffler, had been the sole feature of the wall above a row of seven stained glass windows depicting the sacraments. That work is now encircled by a colorful set of iconic figures, symbols and images.
New sets of inspiring young male and female saints line the space above the northern and southern arcades beneath newly added Marian quotations.
Other artistic additions include new marble steps around the back altar and tabernacle and beautified side shrines to Mary and St. Joseph. The Stations of the Cross, originally in simple metal settings, now boast wooden frames. A reredos with a limestone and mosaic depiction of the virtues of Our Mother of Mercy, religious imagery and a crucifix will be arriving from overseas in the coming weeks to secure behind and above the tabernacle.
In addition to increasing its seating capacity, the choir loft was expanded. The building’s mechanical systems were overhauled; its sound and lighting systems were upgraded to significantly brighten the space and improve its acoustics. Overall, a more pleasing ambience was created.
A vaulted barrel ceiling was added to the connecting hallway and stairs between the Main Building and the chapel’s front doors. A beautiful new brick and limestone entryway with wooden doors now adorns the exterior of that hallway’s northern exterior entryway. “Hail Queen, Mother of Mercy” is engraved in Latin over the doorway.
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