The Baptistery
The Baptistery design is based upon the biblical verses from the first Epistle of John with the Latin words Spiritus Sanguis Et Aqua meaning Spirit, Blood And Water in reference to the means of salvation (just like in the Baptistery of St Hugh of Lincoln at Stretford in Manchester).[i] One verse “and there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three are one”,[ii] makes reference to the Holy Trinity - “the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. This is reflected in the glass with the three main interweaving and overlapping circles, inside of which are shapes of crucifixes. Christians invoke the sign of the cross when beginning and ending prayer. The Holy Trinity is especially invoked at Baptism, as Christians are baptised in the Unity and Trinity of God.[iii] The window is thematically linked to the worship, adding to the special ambience of masses and services.
Picture by Rosemary
The Spirit, Blood And Water theme is represented in the glass with the colour scheme of yellow (spirit), blue (water), and red (blood). Purple, white, green, light pink and pale-yellow colours are also visible. The colours are arranged in a colourful, and seemingly abstract design. The Baptistery also has horizontal red and yellow lines, echoing the Clerestory windows preceding 'The Annunciation' where the lines penetrate solid square and circular shapes. These windows all depict the Spirit and its movement, creating a connection between the two storeys. Importantly, the ‘Spirit, Blood And Water’ motif also thematically links to the Mothers’ and Babies’ Chapel and Christ’s Crucifixion, from which ‘blood and water’ flowed.[iii]
[i] Robert Proctor, "Dom Charles Norris, Dalle de Verre and the Blessed Sacrament Chapel" in Buckfast Abbey History, Art and Architecture, ed. Peter Beacham (Merrel Publishers), 224.
[ii] 1 John 5:8.
[iii] Lillington Church, The Church of Our Lady, Lillington, Leamington Spa: A Magazine to
mark the Opening of the New Church (Leamington: Courier Press, 1963), 13.
[iv] John 19:34.