From the Royal Cornwall Gazette, Friday 17th October 1884, page 5.
After being closed for several weeks the spacious church of St. John’s, Truro, was re-opened on Sunday last, when a series of special services were held. The interior now presents a most attractive appearance, and it only needs the removal of the cumbrous west gallery to make a perfect church. The Rev. J.H. Moore has worked untiringly to bring about the entire restoration, whilst those who have supported him are most deserving of praise. A very handsome ceiling of carved wood, arranged in panels, has taken the place of the old plaster, whilst the new organ is exceedingly handsome. Entering by the west door, the circular window above it, presented as “a thank-offering for recovered health,” reminds us by the symbol of the eagle that we are in a church dedicated to St. John the Apostle. The gallery windows are intended to bear representations of Adam—head of the human race from whom we have inherited sin and death. David’s window is the gift of one who desires annonymously thus to express “gratitude.” All the glass is by Messrs. Heaton, Butler, and Bayne, London. The monograms on the alter cloths, although of somewhat peculiar form, are all taken from ancient examples. In the early Christian Churches the butterfly was employed as a symbol of the resurrection—on this account butterflies have been introduced in the superfrontal. There is no particular meaning attached to the ornamentation on the stoles, but the forms are derived from paintings in the catacombs. The leading idea of the decorations of the sanctuary is the resurrection of Christ. At some future day it is hoped there will be a small reredos, to keep before the eye that death which “swallowed up death.” The central window shows the angel appearing to the woman on the morning of the resurrection; on the south side is a memorial window, the translation of Elijah as a type of the resurrection, Elijah being represented in renewed youth; the north apse window (not yet given) is intended for the figure of Jonah, another type of the resurrection. The decoration of the apse walls is of the simplest character and has been derived, to a certain extent, from the catacombs of Rome. Much remains to be done: the ground of the dome should be of gold diapered with a scroll pattern of greenish brown, in the form of a vine (S. John, ⅹⅴ.). This vine pattern would be made to spring from a chalice occupying the central position in the frieze formed by twelve lambs, copied from a very ancient Christian design, emblems of the twelve apostles. Above, in the dome itself, should be represented the figure of our Blessed Lord in Glory. Thus, from from first to last the teaching of St. John the Divine in his gospel and in the book of the Revelation, is the subject of all the decorations. The completed design contemplates the removal of the west gallery and forming the space under the tower into a baptistry the entrances being north and south instead of at the west. The organ and case is the work of Messrs. Forster and Andrews, of Hull supplied at a cost of £344. The case is after the design of Mr. J. Arthur Reeve, architect, London, who has also designed the other improvements. The stops are:—Great Organ—open diapason, stopped diapason, dulciana, principal, flute; Swell Organ—violin diapason, gamba, lieblich gadact, principal, fifteenth, oboe; Pedal Organ—bourdon, principal.
Sunday was also set apart for St. John’s harvest thanksgiving, and the church had been most tastefully decorated for the occasion. The preacher in the morning was the Lord Bishop of Truro, and there was a crowded congregation. The clergy present were the Revs. Chancellor Whitaker, J.H. Moore (vicar), J. Maxwell-Lyte, G.H. Napier, and John Brown (diocesan inspector of schools). Mrs. R.H. Carter presided at the organ, whilst the singing, led by the choir, was hearty and devotional. The Bishop selected as his text, St. Luke, ⅹⅴ, 11.—“A certain man had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father, father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me.” His lordship said—There has been a twofold object in our celebration and our service to-day. We assemble to thank Almighty God for the bountiful harvest, and for the bright gladdening sunlight with which He has cheered our hearts during the summer and autumn months; we acknowledge that He alone is the giver of every good gift, alike for body and soul. We offer up, I trust, some thankoffering, be it large or small, for the bounteous mercy which He has showered down upon us. We assemble, secondly, to thank Almighty God that that, which, when last I spoke to you in this place, was only intended, is now an accomplished fact. Every time that a church is restored or beautified one step is taken—one forward step by the diocese as a whole. Every church beautified honours God, strengthens the hands of the Church, provokes others to likewise earnest devotion, and makes those who have a church unworthy of the Lord ashamed of their niggardly spirit and lukewarm religion. May God help you, my dear people, to use aright this new gift bestowed upon you to-day; may He fulfil for you all the good pleasure of His will; may He bless you and your vicar, and all the office-bearers of the church, uniting you all together, so that your light shining forth through the diocese may advance the glory of our God and the good of His Church. And on every day like this there must be some new lesson learnt, some definite resolve to be carried out—God helping us—in the strength of the sacraments and the prayers of this newly-restored church. Let us try this morning from this passage, which I have chosen for my text, to gather this lesson. His lordship then proceeded to deal with the parable of the prodigal son, and the vivid lessons which he drew therefrom will not soon be forgotten by the congregation. He dwelt more particularly on the selfishness of the prodigal in considering himself, and his friends and God second. Although he received ungrudgingly whatever his father saw fit to give him; although everything was freely given, there was one drawback to his happiness, and that was that in everything he enjoyed he was to acknowledge that he was dependent upon his father’s will. Everything was his in a sense—everything was given him ungrudgingly; but it was necessary that it should be taken as a gift and against that the pride of the boy rebelled. He wished to possess everything that belonged to himself, act as he chose, and do as he pleased; and, turning from the imagery of the parable to its inward teaching, his lordship showed that in their Christian life there were many of them who were no better in this respect than the prodigal. They despised this nasty mean character; they looked with half pity and half contempt on that degraded being going up to his father and demanding the portion of goods which fell to him; they dispised him for always putting himself first, his friends second, and God last; they felt he was only reaping the proper harvest for the seed sown when they found him in that far-off country, with substance wasted dying of hunger; but they ought to have some pity for themselves for putting self first, and their friends and companions second, and then, if there was a fragment left to be tossed like a bone to a dog, anything they did not want, anything that was easy to part with, giving that to God. His lordship concluded an eloquent and a forcible discourse by dwelling on the certainty of the harvest being reaped according to the seed sown.
Throughout the week special services have been held. On Monday the Rev. J.S. Tyacke, Helston, preached in the evening; on Tuesday the Rev. S. Pascoe, Newquay; on Wednesday the Rev. S.W.E. Bird; Thursday, Rev. E. Townshend, Penzance. This evening the sermon will be preached by the Rev. J.A. Leakey, whilst next Sunday a series of services will be held. The collections on all occasions were on behalf of the Church Improvement Fund. On Monday afternoon Mr. G.R. Sinclair gave an organ recital, of which the following was the programme:—Prelude and fugue in A mi. (Bach); air, “If with all your hearts,” Elijah (Mendelssohn); funeral march and hymn of Seraphs (Guilmant); concertante in C, for stringed instruments (Handel); hymn during offertory, No. 365; andante with variations, Septuor (Beethoven); barcarole, 4th concerto (Bennet); pastorale in C (Wély); sonata in C mi., No. 2 (Mendelsshon); The Benediction.
The Bishop and Miss Wilkinson, on Sunday morning after service, took luncheon at the vicarage, with the vicar, officiating clergy and churchwardens.
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