Belfast Cathedral

If  you have followed any of my travels, you know that I love cathedrals and graveyards. And if they are side by side, all the better.  Both make me think of the eternal.

The most interesting comment that I heard from locals on this trip was about the cathedrals, churches, etc. "We keep our churches in good repair because of the history of the place, but we don't use them so much anymore."

That is a sad commentary on the times, for in Scotland we were in the place where the Scottish Reformation began. And here in Ireland...much the same. What happened that people lost their need for the 'church'....and have they also lost their hope in Christ?

Belfast Cathedral is also known as the Cathedral Churck of St. Anne. Today the church is Anglican/Irish but maintains a partnership with St. Peter's Roman Catholic church.

Belfast Cathedral is not one of the oldest churches we have ever seen, but it is pretty interesting. It was dedicated in 1904. A memorial service was held here after the sinking of the Titanic and many members of Thomas Andrew's family attended. 

This is the Central Nave, or what we would call the center aisle. The pillars represent different areas of life in Northern Ireland. Between the two tall archways is the Quire (Choir) and then you reach the High Altar.

This is the ceiling detail above the Quire (Choir) Unlike in most of our churches, the choir faces the center....but the accoustics in this type of building is so different than in most of our churches. They don't need fancy sound systems. 

Reflected in this cross is the stained glass. This is a great photo and the only one I ran across from this perspective!

The floor in this Cathedral is one of the most unusual that I have ever seen.

Central Aisle..notice the marble tiles in pink, white and black.

If you follow the black tiles throughout the sanctuary, they will lead you around but to no where in particular...in other words, you wander.
If you follow the white tiles, they will lead you to the altar, where you will find God.
I thought it was an interesting representation of walking in darkness or in light. 

Baptistry Font, see ceiling detail below.

The Baptistry Font is made from marble found from throughout Ireland. The base is black marble, representing sin. The columns are red marble, representing Christ's blood, shed at Calvary. The bowl is from white alabaster, representing new life. The stained glass windows all represent baptism. The ceiling dome is what captivated everyone's attention and this photo does not do it justice. This is 150,000 pieces of glass mosaic that represent Creation representing earth, fire, and water. The hand of the Creator is raised in blessing as well. 

Pulpit. Spencer enjoyed reading Scripture from the large Bible. A mic was not needed because the accoustics are wonderful in the building.

Seraphim at the top of the chapel.

This is the ceiling over the Chapel of the Holy Spirit. It is an outstanding mosaic. Dating to 1932, it represents the 1500th anniversary of St. Patrick coming to Ireland. The center of the dome, shown above is silver and gold mosaic tiles and shows four seraphim holding items of relevance in the Christian faith. (Cross~ Lamp~ Chalice~scroll/Book of Life) The stained glass windows in the chapel illustrate actions of the Holy Spirit. It took seven years to complete the mosaic work in the chapel. 

No pews. They use chairs.

On the back of the chairs you can see the kneeling mats. 

The Quire (Choir) and the high altar.

Mosaic over one of the entrance doors. It represents St. Patrick coming to Ireland to spread the Gospel.

This is the beautiful pipe organ that was rebuilt around 1974. It is a Harrison and Harrison of Durham 1917 Pipe Organ and the second largest pipe organ in Northern Ireland. Terry blessed us with a mini concert since we were the only guests in the Cathedral at the time. It was wonderful!

Stained Glass

The stained glass in the cathedral was outstanding!

Look up...this is a huge skylight directly above the choir area. This spire points people to the church and upward to God. It is quite the contrast....very modern in this Romanesque style building. When you see the outside view of the Cathedral, you will see the other end of the spire.

The other end of the Spire. 

Church is not a huge part of daily/weekly activity here. In fact, two church groups share the church, which is rather unusual. They do have an outstanding choir and music is important to them here.

It makes one wonder what happened to make something that used to be central to life in an area, now sit on the sidelines of life. When did church become 'irrelevant" to daily life? Do we just get so busy in our day to day activities that church (representing time spent with God) is just squeezed out?

I hope this day was a day for reflection, and I personally loved that marble floor and what it represented.