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Trinity Episcopal Church
on the Green

129 Church Street, Suite 705
New Haven, CT 06510

203-624-3101
trinity.church@snet.net

www.trinitynewhaven.org

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There are four waterfalls, symbols of the four Evangelists: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John; three fishes historically have represented both the Holy Trinity and the Living Christ; between the stones of the stone wall is amber and yellow glass, from the passage in Edward J. Getlein’s Here Will I Dwell where he said, "Love is the mortar that has held the stones of Trinity together."

The white irises are symbolic of purity and healing; the rising stony landscape on the right where water descends is the shoulder of a mountain, always a symbol of religious power, and for Christians the Church founded on the Rock of Salvation.

Nine icons were carefully decided upon to represent the living history of Trinity on the Green. Trinity’s turning to face modernity is represented by the guitar played by The Rev. Craig Biddle III from the pulpit, initiating modern music as part of the musical tradition of Trinity; in one icon a jazz band is singing in the 9:15 service.

Higher up in the window the Choir is singing before the great Aeolian-Skinner organ, with stained glass windows behind them. Under the Choir icon is a picture of Giving: a table is set with food for the hungry beneath a canopy of the necessities and delightful things of life. Lower, there are Three Women sharing each other’s life experiences.
The man guiding the Connecticut River raft is transporting the logs used to construct the first Trinity Church building, seen in the center of the window. The rafter also represents the hard-working people of New Haven and their participation in the life of their church.

The border design came to me as I watched a rare cloud formation just above my home in Point Pleasant, Pennsylvania. It is called an arcus, or roll cloud, which sometimes occurs at the lower front portion of a thunderhead. It reminded me of the tension and spiritual power required to hold everything together.

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    © 2002 The Episcopal Church and Visual Arts