Lifting the lid
Not quite 10 000 men but there was much interest from church and community members when St George's cupola was restored.
Photo John Janglois
Lifting the lid - Battery Point. Photo John Langlois
The restored cupola of the tower of Battery Point's historic St George's church has been returned to its position on top of the tower and the skyline of Hobart. With the assistance of a grant from the Hobart City Council, the former degraded lead covering has been replaced with copper more in keeping with the original.
Known as the 'Mariners' Church' because the tower was designed to be high enough to aid mariners navigating the Derwent estuary, the tower, topped by the brilliant stainless steel cross, continues to be a symbol of hope for the local congregation and the wider community.
The Rector, John Langlois, said that the building restoration goes along with a St George's church that is vibrant and growing, and developing new programs to serve both young families and seniors.
John continues the story
...and when it was up it was up,
and when it was down it was down,
and when it was only half way up
it was neither up nor down!
It was an exciting day on the ninth of May at St George's, Battery Point. We were prayerfully fighting the wind to remove the temporary cap on the tower, to reinstall the restored copper-clad cupola. With two cranes, a 40 tonne and a 60 tonne, supplied by Elliot's, media cameras, the roofers from Ashford Roofing (Sydney) and various members of the St George's church family and interested members of the Battery Point community, there were not quite 10,000 men, but a significant gathering none-the-less, to watch the event.
The operation was scheduled to start early to avoid the wind, with the cranes set up the previous evening, but having removed the cap and with the cupola virtually in place, the operation had to be abandoned. The wind had come up and was lifting the cupola like an exaggerated aircraft wing, making it impossible to secure it from the inside. The dogman (or dogwoman in this case), with one of the roofers swinging in a bucket from the other crane, started to be blown around and were in danger of crashing into the tower, risking personal injury and damage to the structure. The weather bureau suggested 7 pm to 9 pm as the calmest time that day, and the operation was rescheduled. However, by late morning the wind had dropped sufficiently to try again, this time successfully. Alleluia!
There are all sorts of parables in this operation.
The cupola is a symbol of renewal. Just as we are the same people physically, before and after turning to Christ, the cupola it is essentially the same. We were not permitted to simply build a new one to replace the old. All the original timbers are still there. Peter Spratt showed us the original hand-cut timber, with its uneven saw marks. There was newer framing cut with a steam powered saw, and more recent planks with different dates written on them. Much of the material was removed, cleaned and adjusted and returned to its original place. Yet the heavy old lead has been stripped away, like the sin that weighs us down, and the rotten wood was replaced (corruption removed). Places that were structually weak were supported by new structures reminding us that, like Paul, when we are weak, we are strong in our dependence on our Lord.
On the day itself 'the rushing mighty wind' demonstrated the power of God to lift us...
or conversely, our need to be anchored in Him, against the threat of a pending storm. And of course being close to the feast of Pentecost, the fiery reflection of the sun on the new copper cladding reminded us of the Holy Spirit's fire at Pentecost. Now above the tower designed to be a guide to mariners coming up the Derwent, the gleaming cross of Christ shines as a guide to all people.
Even though it is the same cupola, it looks new, and is stronger and more durable than it has ever been, just like so many of us who, with the weight of guilt removed and dependance on Jesus Christ established, look different and feel, as a friend who was totally un-churched once said 'I feel like ... like I've just been born all over again!'
Not quite 10,000 men but there was much interest from church and community members when St George's cupola was restored.