81. CHOIR STALLS

The choir stalls of St Paul’s are very plain and unadorned. A wooden screen follows around the chancel at the back of the choir stalls. At right we see the little Amnesty Chapel.   PLAN

82. CHANCEL NORTH WINDOWS

Above the Amnesty Chapel there are two large chancel windows. These are in grateful memory of those men and women who lost their lives in the navies and merchant service of the Commonwealth during two World Wars, and were installed by and dedicated in the presence of former ship-mates in October 1967.

83. ACROSS THE CHANCEL

We shall return to the Amnesty Chapel after completing our tour of the chancel. Directly across is the organ console, with two stained glass windows above. The cathedra sits below the console.

84. CATHEDRA

The cathedra is the BIshop’s chair or throne. It’s name comes from the Greek (Latin), and the Cathedral gets its title because it is here. The coat of arms is that of the Anglican Diocese of Wellington.

85. PLAQUES

On the nearby wall are two plaques. One tells that the organ console is given in memory of various people. The other refers to the two windows above the console. These commemorate those who have served in the NZ Army at home and abroad since the foundation of the country.

86. SOUTH CHANCEL WINDOWS

The two windows at left are the Army Memorial Windows. The two at right remember those in the Navy and Merchant Navy. These windows were designed by New Zealander Howard Malitte, and assembled by Brian Thomas, London.

87. PRECENTORS’ STALLS

Adjacent to the cathedra are two Precentors’ stalls. Each is decorated with ...

88. PRECENTORS’ CUSHIONS

... a specially crafted cushion, which probably also serves as a kneeler. One depicts crossed swords and the text: The sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17). The other carries the Latin text ‘Spiritus Gladius’, also meaning ‘Sword of the Spirit’.

89. BANNER AND PLAQUE

As we conclude our circuit of the chancel we come to a smart red banner carrying the ‘Spiritus Gladius’ logo, and a thanksgiving plaque for Walter Hurst, Dean of Wellington, who led the people from Old St Paul’s to the new Cathedral.

90. AMNESTY CHAPEL

Next to the choir stalls on the North side of the chancel we find the Amnesty Chapel. It is simply furnished, but we observe a mosaic on the wall at left, items on the central ‘altar’, and a crucifix and icon on the wall at right.

91. MOSAIC, ARMS AND SIGN

The mosaic at left is called Modern Madonna, and is by NZ potter, painter and print-maker, Ray Cowan. The coat of arms we have seen before, and the sign bears Amnesty’s well-known logo of candle and barbed wire.

92. AMNESTY ALTAR ITEMS

The two items on the Amnesty altar are an icon of the Crucified Christ, and a three-dimensional Amnesty symbol – both carrying a message of suffering.

93. CRUCIFIX, ICON, PLAQUE

The plaque at right is a further acknowledgement concerning the windows above the Amnesty Chapel. The icon of St Paul is from Kalambaka in Greece and was created by a Macedonian woman.

94. SANCTUARY SEDILIA

We move to the Sanctuary. On either side, five wooden seats or sedilia for clergy and serving ministers, are built into the wall. Each seat is made of 28 pieces of Japanese oak, and most of the design is handcarved.

95. SANCTUARY SEDILIA SOUTH

The seating is similar on the South side of the sanctuary, but here there is also the aumbry, where blessed elements of the Eucharist are reserved.

96. AUMBRY PLAQUE

On the wall is this brass plaque acknowledging the gift of the aumbry in recognition of the ministry of Dean Walter Hurst between 1963 and 1977.

97. SEDILIA CARVING

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the sedilia is the stone carving above them, a portion of which is shown here. There are figures of St Peter and St Paul, saints of God, Christian symbols and several NZ symbols, including the tui (bottom left).

98. ALTAR CROSS

Central to the high altar is the 1.5 metre tall silver altar Cross. If we look closely at this, we see at the crossing the Christian symbol of the Lamb with Flag.

99. DOSSAL

A dossal is a cloth hung behind a church altar, and St Paul’s has a very fine dossal. Designed by artist Beverley Shore Bennett, this hanging depicts Christ in Glory and reminds all who come to this place who it is that mediates the blessing of God. The central panel is made up of 4680 pieces, and is the artist’s expression of the transfigured Christ with hands in a gesture of blessing. This completes our tour of St Paul’s.