Windows on the soul

Richard by Carol Ann Duffy

My bones, scripted in light, upon cold soil,a human braille. My skull, scarred by a crown,emptied of history. Describe my soulas incense, votive, vanishing; your ownthe same. Grant me the carving of my name.

These relics, bless. Imagine you re-tiea broken string and on it thread a cross,the symbol severed from me when I died.The end of time – an unknown, unfelt loss –unless the Resurrection of the Dead …

or I once dreamed of this, your future breathin prayer for me, lost long, forever found;or sensed you from the backstage of my death,as kings glimpse shadows on a battleground.

‘This is what I think my spirit looks like. I picked greens, purples and blues because I am very calm. I put scribbles on my picture of my spirit because I am untidy. I don’t get angry easily so I didn’t choose reds or oranges.’

A spiritually reflective 8 year old

Describe my soul………….

Windows On the SoulFW age 10, Edmund Waller Primary School

When you think,truly think,thoughts comefrom your heart,rather than your brain.

When you lookto sell your soul,you will seeyour true personality,use your opportunityto shine.Look to your soul and seeWhoever you want to be.

When you lookto your soul,to your heart,what do you see?'Love or hate?Confidence or prejudice?

If there wasa window to your soul,all your feelingswould be freefor the world to see.Would you be proudof them,or simply disappointed?

Leicester Cathedral’s King Richard III inspired stained glass windows

In the left hand light of the westerly window we see the aftermath of a battle, women approaching the dead and dying: ‘what doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly and to love mercy’ (Micah 6:8). This could be Bosworth, but here and elsewhere the figures and spaces are generic rather than historic; place and time are not pinned down.

Further up, a horse is led through the streets of a city, the body of a man slung over its back (just as was done to Richard III after Bosworth). Some citizens are full of mockery: ‘The scorners delight in their scorning’ (Proverbs 1:22). But beyond is a suggestion of two spires, St Martins, perhaps, where Richard’s body found sanctuary: ‘In your dwelling you keep them safe’ (Psalm 31:20)

The right hand light is about hidden-ness and being known, about death and burial, but ‘before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you’ (Jeremiah 1:5). People are passing to and fro by two rose bushes, whose roots infiltrate the ground, a ground representing layers of time and stories, and containing the bones of one long hidden. Artefacts of succeeding periods are embedded in the earth – ‘Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust, for thy dew is as the dew of herbs and the earth shall cast out the dead’ (Isaiah 26:19)

In the central light, these themes of carnage and death, of humiliation, and of burial and sanctuary, are gathered into an encounter with the risen Christ: two disciples, walking on the road to Emmaus, meet the as yet unknown figure of Jesus.

Fishing For Faith – Virtues For My SoulHornby St MargaretWe wanted to create a special window in school that is a constant reminder that God is always with us.How can we keep God in our soul?We thought Christian values would really help us to feel God's presence. If we remember God's values in our hearts we can create a world that is not lonely, chaotic and unhappy. We can be a better friend to God as well as ourselves and others. Our windows are telling us, keep God close.We are all one in Christ Jesus, and our school community project has brought different groups together from our village to design a continuous stained glass window along the breadth of the school building.The designs are inspirational and thought provoking as well as beautiful. The finished windows provide a very spiritual, but exciting addition to our school. The village community can look at these beautiful windows every day and know that they have contributed to this project.