The Parish of St. Paul the Apostle is blessed with an architecturally significant building, designed by John Sutcliffe,  which is conducive both to the celebration of the liturgies of the Church throughout the Christian year and the teaching of the faithful through art and sacred space.  It lends itself to private devotion, parish liturgies and ceremonial extravaganzas.  We encourage you to kneel and pray, light a candle and join us in praying for the peace and unity of the Church, the nation and all in authority, the welfare of the world, the needs of local communities, those who suffer, and the departed.

As you enter the main doors of the church into the narthex there is a statue of our Patron, St. Paul.  Carved from linden wood in northern Italy by the studio of Conrad Moroder, St. Paul is dressed in the robes of a teacher and the cloak of a traveler.  He is shown with a large sword, the instrument of his martyrdom, and a large book of scripture, from which he preached and to which his epistles would be added by the Church.

Upon entering the nave, from the Latin navis for ship, look up and you will see roof trusses, which resemble a ship’s hull.

Immediately in front, as you enter the nave door, is the baptismal font.  Made of stone in the neo-gothic style it dates from the 1907 construction of the building.  It is near the entrance of the church building as a physical reminder that through baptism we enter the Body of Christ, which is the Church.

Just to the right of the font, near the west wall, is a large wooden light box that contains a stained glass window of St. Paul.  This window came from the previous church building at Duffy and Barnard Streets.  It is an excellent example of southern Victorian painted glass, and a striking feature is the use of pieces of faceted glass, which give it a jewel-like quality.  It was rediscovered during remodeling of the Chapel of Our Lady of Walsingham, where it had been hidden behind the reredos for 87 years.  This discovery is discussed in the history portion of this guide.

To the right of the 1888 window is an icon written in Greece depicting St. George the Martyr slaying the dragon.  From earliest times St. George has been venerated as a soldier saint, and became patron of England because of his popularity among crusaders who encountered his cult in Palestine.

Above the 1888 window of St. Paul is the second oldest work in stained glass to be found in the building.  Executed in 1907 by the Franz Mayer stained glass studio of Munich, Germany, it was given by the Grainger family in memory of their infant son Andrew.  This is the only window, which dates from the building of the present structure.  It was not until much later that the temporary leaded art glass that once filled the windows was replaced by the current stained glass created by Whipple-Mowbray of Exeter, England.

If you look east from the west end of the building your eyes will be drawn to the central architectural focus of the building, the High Altar surmounted by a reredos and the great east window.  Entrance to this space is gained by passing through the great rood and the attendant screen, which dominate the nave.  The rood, the screen, and the reredos, which dominates the chancel and sanctuary, were fashioned as a piece by craftsmen trained in Oberammergau, Germany.  The three-dimensional image of Christ on the cross, flanked by the Blessed Virgin and St. John, is a spectacular backdrop for the liturgy of the Word.  Framed by a great brick arch that separates the nave from the choir, the stark simplicity of the carved and stained oak speaks powerfully of the centrality of the Cross.

The rood’s haunting and embracing depiction of the Crucifixion is held in tension with the Cross of the Resurrection reigning over the sanctuary from the reredos of the High Altar.  In contrast to the rood, the Cross of the Resurrection is gilded and polychrome.  This venerable art form enhances the beauty of the church and focuses our attention.

At the center of this Cross is the Lamb Triumphant carrying the banner of the Resurrection, surrounded by a quatrefoil.  The circle that encompasses the quatrefoil at the center of the Cross emphasizes the unity of God.  Out of the circle grows a passion vine, which forms the four arms of the Cross.  This indicates that the good news of the resurrection is rooted in the passion of our Lord upon the Cross.

The reredos is flanked by statues of St. Peter and St. Paul, which were added during the Second World War.  St. Peter is holding the keys of the kingdom and St. Paul carries the sword of his martyrdom.

To the right of the reredos and above the credence table is an icon of Jesus, Mary and John the Baptist, known in the language of iconography as the Deis. Written by Ramona MacKinnnon it focuses on the Incarnation and the three persons most intimately involved in unfolding the mystery so central to the proclamation of Christianity and Anglican spirituality.

The chancel and the sanctuary contain several pieces of furniture, which originated with the 1888 church building.  These include the eagle lectern on the left side of the rood screen, the Bishop’s chair on the dais against the north wall of the sanctuary, the Rector’s chair on the south wall of the sanctuary and the sedilla to the left of the lectern.  The eagle lectern lends dignity and power to the space set aside for the reading of scripture.

While we do not know the origin of these pieces of church furniture, they are common examples of the type produced by many English and American church-furnishing companies of the period.  They bear the mark of machine turning and utilize a small repertoire of crosses, triangles and quatrefoils.

The present organ is a Fratelli Ruffatti pipe organ, from Padua, Italy.  A three manual pipe organ console, built by Rodgers of Hillsboro, Oregon, controls it.  The Ruffatti family has been building instruments for more than 300 years, including all of the organs in the Vatican as well as many Cathedrals in Europe.

Designed to be an eclectic instrument, it has the ability to successfully play all periods of organ composition, making it excellent for recitals as well as the support and encouragement of congregational singing.  Built in 1976 the organ contains 25 ranks of 1,403 individual pipes divided into four divisions — the great, the swell, the pedal and the choir/positive.  In 1998 the instrument was overhauled and restored by A. E. Schlueter Pipe Organ of Lithonia, Georgia, at which time he added a new Rodgers console.  The new console was made available through the generosity of the people of St. Paul’s and a generous gift of Gordon C. Carson, III, MD, sometime organist of St. Paul’s.  Also, through the generosity of Arthur and Susan Schlueter, the restorer added a nine-bell zimbelstern.

To the left of the chancel and the sanctuary is the entrance to the Chapel of Our Lady of Walsingham.  Classically the chapel to the left of the high altar in English churches is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Mother of our Lord.  The title under which this chapel is designated refers to the 11th century appearance of the Blessed Virgin to the Lady of the Norfolk Manor, Walsingham Minor.

The statue of Our Lady of Walsingham, to the right of the body of the chapel, depicts her as enthroned on the seven-post chair of Wisdom.  Crowned, holding a scepter of lilies and pointing to the child Jesus, she presents her Son to the world.  To the right of the statue, above the rack of seven-day vigil lamps, is a triptych recounting the visitation at Walsingham Manor, painted by Ann Morris, a life member of the parish.  The left panel shows Lady Richeldis being told by the Blessed Virgin to build the Holy House of Nazareth on the Manor, the middle panel shows the current configuration of the Pilgrim’s Church which contains the Holy House and the Well, and the right panel depicts the sign of Holy Water given to Richeldis de Faverches.

In addition to the objects of devotion associated with the Shrine of Walsingham the chapel also contains a painting of Our Lady of Guadalupe and an icon of St. Joseph on the north wall, statues of Martha of Bethany and Elizabeth of Hungary on either side of the reredos, and a tabernacle at the center of the retable. Our Lady of Guadalupe, is patroness of the Americas, she was painted in Peru.

Written by Fr. William Willoughby, St. Joseph is present because of the important role he played in the unfolding of the mystery of the incarnation. This icon reminds us of the important role men play in the nurture and rearing of children.

Martha of Bethany, sister of Mary and Lazarus, calls to mind all who have served the Lord in this parish and community.  Elizabeth of Hungary, patroness of the Third Order Franciscans and lover of the poor, challenges the parish to consider the needs of those less fortunate than ourselves and the needs of all God’s creatures.  The noted muralist Barry Thomas, a native of Glasgow, Scotland, painted the Tabernacle at the heart of the reredos.  Until his death in 1991 he maintained an active studio in Savannah for more than twenty years.  This was one of his last works.  The focus of the painting is a chalice and host, surrounded by adoring angels — reminding us that we sing “with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven.”

In the north transept are two icons of note.  On the freestanding altar dedicated to St. Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury and Apostle to the Anglo-Saxons, is an icon of Jesus Christ, Pantokrator.  Written in Germany and fired on porcelain this icon depicts Jesus as the Great High Priest enthroned in Heaven.

Just to the right of the Canterbury altar is the icon of Holy Wisdom written by Peter Pearson.  Wisdom (Hagia Sophia) is shown in this icon as coming from on high through the mediation of Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity.  She is seated on a throne supported by the seven pillars of wisdom and is attended by John the Baptist, forerunner of our Lord, and Mary, Mother of God (Theotokos).  Surrounded by water and the firmament, Wisdom connects the uncreated with the created.

In the south transept is the shrine of Our Lady Queen of Peace, erected during the Second World War by the acolytes of the Parish as a place of special intercession for those serving their country in the armed forces.  Every Tuesday a Mass was said at this altar with special intentions for those serving from the Parish.  A bronze plaque was erected in memory of those who did not return from the various theaters. Since the start of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan a Mass is celebrated at this altar every Monday with special intention for those who serve in our Armed Forces, especially those in harms way. The statue at the heart of the shrine was carved by a Sister of the American Mother House of the All Saints Sisters of the Poor in Cantonsville, Maryland.

Around  the perimeter of the nave is a set of fourteen Stations of the Cross for devotional use in the service known as the Way of the Cross.  Traditionally the stations are made before a series of plain wooden crosses, which can be seen above each pictorial representation.  The representations are meant to be aids in carrying out this ancient devotion so closely associated with the holy city, Jerusalem.