The Sanctuary of the Main Chapel



The High Altar


The altar, like all the altars in the chapel are of unvarnished Flemish oak designed by Fr. Biolley, OP, and hand-carved by M. Peter Dens in Ghent. Other works of M. Dens are in the Cathedral of Saint Gudule in Brussels.

The altar is the focus of the chapel and the life of the friar; it honors Mary, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary. The Bible tells the history of salvation, which is the object of the Dominican's study and preaching. In the chapel this great mystery in prayed and contemplated in the divine liturgy and in the choral recitation of the Rosary. The Dominican's life is not only one of study and action; it is also a life of praise which is fired by the prayerful contemplation of the mysteries around which he focuses his life.

On the gospel side of the altar are the five Joyful Mysteries; on the epistle side, the five Glorious Mysteries; beneath four Sorrowful Mysteries, the fifth being the crucifixion placed above the tabernacle. The crucifixion is the chief salvation event, so it is at the top of the reredos to remind the friar that he preaches Christ crucified, while the sorrowful mysteries are at the bottom, revealing the pain which achieved salvation, and underpinning the joyful mysteries, the promise of salvation, and the glorious, revealing the prize that awaits us. Salvation history is culled from the Bible and expressed in the Rosary -- the great Dominican devotion. A carving below shows Mary presenting the rosary to Dominic.





On the tabernacle doors are carved a lamb (of sacrifice), chalice, host, and grapes: the offerings of the Mass. The text above the altar mensa is from the Feast of the Holy Rosary and says: "Take up the joyful psaltery, praise the Virgin, our Helper."



Below the table is an image of Christ as Alpha and Omega. On either side are the four evangelists: Matthew, John, Mark, and Luke. At the six uppermost points of the altar are angels with musical instruments floating on the boundary between heaven and earth. The Dominican choir is united to our sainted brothers and sisters in prayerful choral praise. Not only does the friar praise God in choir, he offers his entire life of prayerful study and studious prayer in praise of God.

The altar penetrates heaven, straddling the two worlds of earth and heaven through the Word of God, the Eucharistic presence, contemplative prayer and the praise of the choir. All this links the friar to heaven, even while he is still on earth. The altar mensa, therefore, is flanked bottom and top by symbols of praise. At the bottom, Scripture says: Sumite psalterium iucundum exaltate virgini adjutrici nostri (Take up the joyful harp; praise the virgin, our help) speaking of the Blessed Virgin Mary who supports the mystery above.



On the Gospel side of the main altar, out of view of most, is a small inscription in gold lettering that reads: In memoriam Brigidae McMahon, obiit 25th Aug. 1906 dedit conjux Thomas McMahon (In memoray of Brigid McMahon, died 25th August 1906 given by her husband Thomas McMahon). Please continue to pray for the souls of Mr. & Mrs. McMahon in thanksgiving for their generous donation so many years ago.



The Painting Above the Main Altar


The painting above the main altar was also created by Adolph Tassin. He painted the mural on a fine grade of canvas in three sections. He accompanied the panels and personally cemented the mural to the wall in July, 1910. It is approximately 28 feet wide, 15 feet high.

The inscription applying the Magnificat Antiphon to the whole order at the base of the mural is, as it were, the boundary between heaven earth: Fecit Ordini magna qui potens est, suscepit Dominicum puerum suum benedixit illi et semini eius usque in saeculum. "He who is mighty has done great things for our Order. He has come to the help of Dominic, his Servant; he has blessed him and his children for ever."



The icons of the Latin Fathers, a Pope, two bishops and a priest, also instruct the friar regarding his ministry. All are depicted with a book because each is an expounder of the word of God, a theologian like the Dominicans who are theologians by vocation. With the Latin Fathers, Dominicans today try to plumb the depths of the mysteries of God.

Augustine with one of his major works, De Trinitate, shows the friar how he studies and contemplates the word of God in order to be a true Doctor and doctrinal preacher. Gregory, shown with the dove, the symbol of the Holy Spirit, reminds the friar he needs to be filled with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. Ambrose's symbol of the beehive teaches that theology is not cold reason alone. It is flavored with the sweetness of persuasive rhetoric and love. Finally, Jerome, garbed in the robes of a cardinal, has a lion as his symbol to suggest the solitude of the desert, for in solitude and silence the friar contemplates the Word before he preaches it.

There are also two groups of martyrs. East: Martyrs of Avignon, killed by Albigenses heretics: William, Bernard, Garcia, OP, and others, contemporaries of St. Dominic. West: John, OP, of Cologne and his companions, killed by Calvinists for defending the doctrine of the Real Presence The martyrs are the ultimate witnesses of following Christ. They preach by the total dedication of their lives and especially by their deaths. As such, they are, like the Apostles who were martyred, also apostles and model for the friar the meaning of the apostolic life he has embraced. Thus, Dominican study, contemplation, worship and praise can never be narcissistic and ingrown; rather, these actions always go out to serve others, even to the sacrifice of the friar's own life. There are, of course, martyrs from other orders in these two plaques, and they are depicted here to remind the friar that he serves not just the Order, but the whole Church.



The center shows St. Dominic receiving the Rosary from the hands of the Blessed Mother. The Christ child is on her knee. The rest of the canvas is filled with the saints (identified by a gold disk called the "nimbus") and blesseds (identified by a gold circle called the "aureole") of the Dominican Order, all looking at the central figures. The name of each is inscribed in their nimbus or aureole. More saints and blesseds have been added to the glory of the Dominican order since the mural was first painted. Because the physical appearance of the saints is not generally known, there is no attempt at portraiture; they are identified by the distinctive dress of the ministry or dignity and by certain symbols traditionally associated with them.



Saints Depicted in The Mural