Sanctuary Banners of Faith Lutheran Church
These banners were conceived, designed and constructed by Gabrielle Burnand between 1983 and 1992 for Faith Lutheran Church in Castro Valley, California. She and her husband Len have been members of the congregation since 1978. The original photographs of the banners, reproduced here, were taken by Bob Malby, another member of Faith Lutheran Church. This guided tour booklet was prepared by Stéphanie Anderson, based on descriptions provided by Gabrielle. Her hope is that you will be inspired through the banners by the beliefs in which a walk with Christ are grounded. The ten banners are depictions of action words that are intended to emphasize the active Christian Life. The banners are arranged in two sets of five on either side of the church nave. While the sequence of the banners doesn t exactly correspond to the Apostle s Creed, many of its tenets are incorporated into them. Those on the left side reflect our beliefs and those on the right depict our creed in action. There is a sense of progression in the depth of Christian commitment and development from the entrance towards the altar. In addition, each foundational word of belief on the one side has its complementary word of action on the opposite side. The word on one side is offered or available to us through Christ. The other is our response to that same word: Believe Receive Live Grow Forgive Repent Noel Rejoice Love Sup
Believe This first banner sets the premise of what we believe. Red is the color used to represent the Church, the body of believers. The Church s foundation is built on belief in the Trinity. A trefoil represents the Trinity, or Triune God. God the Father is depicted in the flames of the burning bush, out of which God spoke to Moses. God the Son is represented by the cross. The dove reflects God the Holy Spirit. Receive When we believe, we reach out and receive what God has provided for us through Christ s death and resurrection. We receive His grace, represented by the rainbow. The rainbow is the sign of the covenant God made with man at the time of Noah and the ark. The cross within the rainbow symbolizes Christ and His fulfillment of that covenant. The Holy Spirit, in the symbol of the dove, pours out His grace on us. Our reception of that grace is depicted in the water of baptism, which is being poured into recipients of all ages and races, depicted by the different colors and sizes of open hands. As baptism is administered in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the Trinity is also depicted here in the Father s rainbow, the Son s cross and the Spirit s dove.
Forgive This banner shows Christ and His admonition to us to forgive seventy times seven, depicted by the cross and the Roman numeral sevens. We are to forgive because He has forgiven us. The sevens are in four colors brown, yellow, black and white and they are woven through each other. Forgiveness must be extended to all and between all people and all races. Grow We can only grow in Christ as we live in Him. We take our strength and support from Christ by clinging closely to Him, in the same way the vine in this banner does by weaving itself completely onto the cross. The vine here is a passionflower vine. Growing in Christ also means needing to carry our cross to follow Him.
Live This banner has two contrasting parts. The dark blue area carries a crown of thorns representing Christ s sacrifice. Out of that crown springs a radiant living butterfly. Christ is resurrected into the light blue sky filled with a rising sun. The offer to us is new life in Christ and the hope of eternal life. The letters of the word Life are shaped to appear flowing and alive. Repent Our response to God s forgiveness is to repent. This banner is divided into two parts. The dark left hand side symbolizes the darkness of sin. It contains red diamonds representing gambling with your life, and black, jagged bolts, which depict the attraction of a dissolute life. The right hand side shows the word Repent in reverse image to reflect the meaning of repentance to turn over, turn completely from sin and the past. The dove integrated with the word Repent symbolizes the assistance we need from the Holy Spirit in order to turn away. The multiple fish in rainbow colors represent the support provided by the company of many different believers. This right side is on a light background and is in pale colors to portray the washing away of sin.
Noel This banner is based on the French word meaning novel, new or more completely Good News. The Noel colors are the red and green of Christmas. There are four Noels, one for each of the gospels. They are linked together and to an anchor, which is a symbol of hope hope in the coming of Christ. Christ is depicted by the Christmas rose. Rejoice In response to the Good News of Christ, we rejoice. Music is used here as a representation of joy. The first musical phrase is from a hymn of the Church. The second is from Handel s Messiah. The text to both phrases is Rejoice! Even the letters have a giddy look to them, bouncing with joy and praise. The trumpets, lute and tambourine are all instruments from biblical times. The trumpets also represent a looking forward to the return of Christ.
Love The greatest gift offered us through Christ is love. That gift is symbolized here by a lamb. The lamb is a sacrificial lamb and is laying down, just as Christ laid down His live for us. The hearts are in shades of red and get lighter as they extend outward from the lamb. This represents the blood of Christ as it cleanses us from sin. The hearts cannot be fully contained in the banner, just as God s love overflows to us. Sup In responding to the love of Christ, we seek fellowship and communion with Him. This banner portrays the components of the sacrament of communion the wheat shaft and the bunch of grapes. The broken bread loaf and the goblet represent the broken body and shed blood of Christ and are a remembrance of the Last Supper. Within the cross are depicted wheat shafts in the arms and grapes at the center, reminding us that Christ was the One who instituted the sacrament. Copyright August 2000. Faith Lutheran Church. All rights reserved.
Sanctuary Banners of Faith Lutheran Church