St Hugh’s Church - a little bit of history!

Post date: Aug 1, 2014 12:07:46 PM

Earthquake damage and the window of Christ the King: Take a look at the high altar. Originally, there was no central stained glass window. The pinnacle of the high altar soared up to a point just below the face of Christ the King in the present window. It used to be the custom, during the service of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, for the monstrance (the vessel which holds the Blessed Sacrament) to be carried up a flight of steps at the back of the high altar and placed on the shelf where the crucifix is now. Adoration sometimes continued all night, with a rota of parishioners taking turns to ‘watch and pray.’ On one such occasion on 7th June 1931 in the early hours of the morning, there was an earthquake, and the monstrance rocked backwards and forwards as the church shook. Some cracks appeared in the chancel arch afterwards and the tie bars were inserted. A few years later the stone-work at the centre of the high altar became unsafe and the central pinnacle had to be lowered.

Then

In the early 1950s the present window of Christ the King was inserted. Christ is shown wearing both priestly and royal robes and displays the wounds of crucifixion. The small figures underneath show Mary and the baby Jesus, surrounded by angels, and receiving the three wise men.

An extract taken from ‘A Visitor’s Guide to St Hugh’s Church, Lincoln’ by Mary Wilford

Now