Classes explain foundations of Catholicism
It sits facing east, greeting the sunrise each day as a glorious sentinel of God, holding elements of the divine within and keeping the sins of the world outside its wooden doors and ornate stained glass windows.
For almost 100 years, St. Edward Catholic Church has stood at 407 Beech St. in Texarkana, Ark., bringing light and love to those who enter or simply travel past the stately brick building.
The Rev. James West, who’s been the priest at St. Edward since February, recently opened the church’s doors to the public during the first of a series of meetings for both Catholics and those not of the faith to learn more about what they believe and the symbols used in the religion.
He began the tour by explaining how the workings and layout of Catholic churches resemble the Temple of Jerusalem.
“Our Lord was born into the House of Israel. He then fulfilled the promises God had made in the Jewish tradition,” he said. “We have grown directly out of that and that is reflected in many of our practices in the Catholic church and even in the structure of the church building itself. The temple of Jerusalem was constructed in such a way that depending on who you were, you had access to a certain level, but your access might come to an end depending on who you were.”
Outside the temple were several concentric courts, the largest being the Court of the Gentiles, which translates to “of the nations.” All were welcome in that area, which was the size of 20 football fields, but non-Jews were banned from entering the Court of the Israelites through pain of death.
From there, West said worshippers would enter the Court of Women, and then into the Court of Men, which females could not enter. Then was the Court of the Levites and beyond that was the Court of Priests, which contained the altar of sacrifice. Therein lay the Ark of the Covenant, considered to the be the Holiest of Holies.
“It was kept in the far back in the most sacred part of the temple,” West said. “One would have to be an Israelite priest to enter into any of this area.”
He said only the high priest could enter that area and could only do that one day a year, the Jewish Day of Atonement, the high day on the Jewish calendar.
“That’s when the high priest went to beg God for forgiveness for the sins of the people committed over the previous year. He did that by going in and whispering the name of God,” West said. “It was kept quiet in reverence, not freely spoken and it was only spoken by high priest. He would whisper it three times on the day of atonement and would leave.”
He said this was an example of the increase in the formality and the sacredness of God.
“This was what our spiritual ancestors understood very well because they were Israelites. They had come from this tradition,” he said. “When we started to construct our churches, we started to use that pattern in a more simplified way. But still moving from the more informal up to the most sacred, we have three major places in the church.”
Those are the vestibule (also called a narthex), the nave (where the pews are located) and the altar, where mass is conducted. The vestibule is so named because in older times, that was where the priest would put on his vestments prior to mass. West said the word nave is representative of a ship or boat.
“What type of vessel do you find in the navy? The navy would be that part of the military that would generally be on the boat. The nave is just a segment of the church and is the boat,” he said, adding that the nave was also similar to Noah’s ark. “Outside the boat was death and destruction. Within the boat, there was life.”
The altar, which sits at the very front of the church, contains a religious relic, which sanctifies the area. West said he wasn’t sure what relic was placed in the altar at St. Edward, but pointed out the square cut out of the marble where the relic was placed years ago.
The simple act of entering the church building itself is a sacred movement, West said, explaining how it was significant in the Catholic practice.
“Sometimes the simplest things that you wouldn’t necessarily give any thought to whatsoever have profound, sacred, ritual meaning. Simply stepping into the door of a church is one of those things. The step into the church is powerful,” he said. “It is significant. Because in the mind of the Catholic church, this is what we’re leaving behind. The mundane, the ordinary. We are stepping into the sacred and leaving the mundane and ordinary behind. It is representative of leaving the world behind in order to enter into Heaven. That is the ritual meaning of stepping into the church.”
In performing the ritual of entering and leaving the sacred space, parishioners also identify God. West said there is only one God, and that is the great truth God gave to Israel.
“Our God that came to Earth 2,000 years ago taught us that in that one God, there are three divine persons. The Blessed Trinity,” he said, gesturing to the fonts of holy water placed in the vestibule. “We state ‘in the name of the Father and the