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By Gretchen Keiser
Very near to the rustic center of Kennesaw, where
a railroad crossing and the road meet a quaint-looking row of stores, there is
a white church which seems to fit the neighborhood.
It is simple, but the original structure was added
onto over the years as the community needed more space, creating a type of
haphazard growth. Until last year it was the First United Methodist Church of
Kennesaw. In recent moths as it became the home of one of the newest parishes
in the archdiocese, the pastor, Father Leo Herbert, and the parishioners, began
to consider how to renovate the nearly 100-year-old church to reflect its new
life as a center of Catholic worship.
What they have tried to do, under the guidance of
Crawford Murphy, a Selby, NC, architect and designer, is to bring "an old
classical type of building … back to its original beauty," Father Herbert
said from his office in a parish building adjacent to St. Catherine of Siena
Church on Cherokee Street. The result of many months of planning, and then a
flurry of work on the part of parishioners, Murphy, the design firm and others
commissioned to do artwork, was unveiled last Sunday at an ecumenical service.
It was also readied for this week's Confirmation Service, when Archbishop
Donnellan would be present.
Father Herbert, whose office window looks right
out on the church, admits readily, with a quiet pride, that he thinks the
renovated church "is absolutely beautiful" and he is eager to bring visitors
across to see for themselves. What appears to be a large building from the
outside actually seats about 200 comfortably, he said, and is already filled to
overflowing during some Masses. The growth of the less than one-year-old parish
to 270-300 families "is a nice sign, in a sense," Father Herbert said. "But at
the same time, it's a problem for us." At the moment, the parish is coping with
success, but already looking ahead to see if, as they suspect, the growth will
continue.
In a building attached to the church, Sunday
school classrooms for kindergarten through 12th grade have been set
up and there are two sessions for each of the grades up through 8th
grade, Father Herbert said.
Entering the church building, a baptismal font and
a silk-screened graphic depicting the mystical "marriage" of St. Catherine are
first seen. To the right and left, a sacristy and a reconciliation room have
been added.
Within, the church has been painted white and the
pews, which had been pained dark brown, have been brought back to reveal the
original light pine wood. Window moldings also were returned to the original
light wood color and new light fixtures were installed, introducing
contemporary spot lighting to the simplicity of the old building.
Several aspects are striking. To the right of the
altar, the tabernacle is visible from a small, open room, lighted by two large
windows. The simple Blessed Sacrament chapel, which has room for several
chairs, was created by opening up a former storeroom. Father Herbert said he is
pleased because the tabernacle is visible throughout the church. At the rear is
perhaps the most unusual addition: Stations of the Cross displayed in
continuous form on a horizontal strip of cloth above the rear doors. The
Stations were created using the "old, old art form" of hooking strips of wool
flannel material and tying the strips to a fine grade of burlap, Crawford
Murphy said. The concept was to use a traditional art form, since it was to be
placed in an old church, he said; yet the form was used to create a very
contemporary design which depicts the Stations as simple crosses in different
arrangement. Two of the Stations, the 12th showing the crucifixion,
and the 15th, depicting the promise of resurrection, depict the body
of Christ upon the cross.
Murphy's mother, Mary Brandt Murphy of Atlanta,
was commissioned to do the Stations of the Cross. Frank Colson, a Florida
sculptor, was commissioned to sculpt a bronze processional cross, showing the
suffering Christ. In addition, the Architectural Design Group, where Murphy is
a designer, provided altar furnishings. All the additions emphasized the
simplicity and lightness of the church. Yet the work also uncovered old beauty,
such as elegant original door fixtures.
"I'm still always thrilled when I walk in here,"
Father Herbert said. "I can't believe what has happened."
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