Inscription on the porch steps

The inscription ‘be welcoming to strangers; you may be entertaining angels unawares’ on the top step in the porch entrance is from the New Testament book of Hebrews, 13:2, and refers back to a story recorded in Genesis 18:1-15. This tells how Abraham offers great hospitality to three passing strangers before he discovers that they are in fact God himself, or, as the Hebrews verse suggests, angels in disguise – angels being messengers of God. Hence the idea, neatly conveyed in one sentence, that God can be encountered in anyone we meet.
The story is depicted in the famous 15th Century icon by St Andrey Rublev, entitled ‘The hospitality of Abraham, but frequently referred to as ‘The Old Testament Trinity’.
Images on Glass Porch Screen
The symbolism of the glass images reflects the continuum of the Living Water linking the ancient Christian Symbol of the fish of the sea and the wild goose in the sky, and the timeless link between Place and Spirit.
The Cross
The cross super-imposed on the East wall behind the communion table reminds us not just of Jesus’s crucifixion, but is also a symbol of rebirth and regeneration, a design of light and shade and a spiritual focus which varies with the light that strikes it.
Tapestry: Pieces of Light

It was named ‘Pieces of Light’, referring to a major series Bobbie Cox was working on, called ‘Pieces of Daytime’ and also to a quotation from Piers Plowman, where ‘pieces of light’ is an image of Christ’s power breaking through.
The whole composition centres on the altar top where a simple cross stands, to which point pieces of light fail in broad bands from the wall hangings supported from below by the stronger, red Devon earth colours of the frontal. The movement is not just inward focussing, but also outward pouring, breaking into ever smaller fragments of light towards the top where the colours are lightest. It can also be perceived as taking the form of a large cross or human figure with outstretched arms.
Royal Coats of Arms

