The Hearts Around the Space
The Sacred Heart of Jesus with flames and rays symbolize His infinite love and mercy for each one of us. The Hearts going around are like an embrace of God’s love to each one of us, which He is always doing. “God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 1 John 4 8-12
The Verses Going Around the Top
“Peace be with you.” John 20-:21 Regardless of who we are, and where we are in life, we are all seeking peace and we truly find it when we can stand still with the Lord in the midst of all the chaos of the world in whatever the circumstance.
The verses are a subtle color to be gentle on the senses. We are so used to a world filled with bombarding us with advertising and trying hard to sell the latest and greatest thing. God is gentle, and the subtle verses are meant to be appreciated, observed and contemplated gradually as the Lord speaks to each one of us where we are.
Because the chapel is named The Padre Pio Chapel, it is fitting to use Philippians 4:6-7 as it is a more in-depth description of one of Padre Pio’s most well-known quotes, “Pray, hope and do not worry.” This was Padre Pio’s simplified way of telling us to surrender our worries in prayer and trust in God’s plans for each one of us. We should turn all of our worries over to the Lord in prayer and in return, he will give us peace. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
About The Saint Padre Pio Prayer Space at WholeLife Authentic Care
This chapel represents so much for all the people who enter into it! It is a much-needed space for peace, support and a lifting and refreshment of the heart, mind and soul. It is meant to be an awe-inspiring retreat from the world into a beautiful, wholesome and traditional space. The chapel and the space connect us more closely with our creator and the divine, which inspire and encourage us. We are all in different chapters of a life; some highs, some lows, and through it all we desire a place that we can profess and proclaim our gratitude in our highs, or in our lows, a place and refuge to find comfort, encouragement and a dialogue with the divine through prayer and presence in a time when we need it the most. Allowing God to be a part of our lives accentuates and elevates our spirit when we lift our spirit to the Lord! God is essential!
Contemplative, intentional and thoughtful creativity has gone into the vision, meaning, design, and execution of the design for the chapel. The goal for the chapel is to speak to hearts through traditional beauty that so many sacred spaces are missing and to commune with God through the reverence felt in this very special space called The Padre Pio Chapel at WholeLife Authentic Care!
The Stars on the Ceiling
The Stars instill a sense of awe and wonder and symbolize heaven. To walk into a space that transports and elevates our thoughts to something greater is significant in the sacred space held within the chapel. When we have had the privilege of looking up at a clear night sky, it is difficult not to contemplate heaven, God, and especially feel united with Mary, the mother of God, in her littleness and her humility in knowing just how small she was in this world, and through that pondering the grandeur of God and how much greater he is than us.
After
Before
Inspiration from Around the World!
About the Peruvian Art in Space
This style exhibits several of the distinctive features of the regional “Cusco School” of painting (Cusco is the name of this region—in the Central Peruvian Andes of South America). The Cuzco-School style developed as indigenous Andean artists adopted techniques imported by artists from Spain and Flanders. For example, they embraced the Flemish interest in detailed landscapes and atmospheric perspective, seen here in the use of light blue tones to suggest distant hills. Cuzqueño artists also incorporated local details, such as regional flora and tropical birds.
About the French Frames Used Around Stencil to Frame in Statues
Trumeau frames, pronounced troo-mo, originated in France during the 18th century. The tradition of these frames dates back to the earliest days of mirrored glass. Back then, the average person did not have access to mirrors. Because mirrored glass was so expensive at that time, the royal people who owned them wanted to show them off. Oftentimes, royal families would have large panels of mirrored glass built directly into the walls of their homes. They were typically all wood with ornate decorative elements.
This particular style frame caught my eye to be unique and have an antique and reverent feel to frame in the stenciling and to use to adorn the Saint Mary and Saint Joseph Statues, as we should always want to mirror the Holy Family and they holy and virtuous lives.
The Prayer Space is Donor Funded.
We are nearly done with phase 2, and we need you to get us to phase 3 for consecration and the final phase 4 for completion!
We need support! Anything helps! We hope you pray about this and see if you are feeling called to support in anyway that you can! All funds will go towards the final purchases of Altar, Ambo and Finishes!
To donate: https://www.wholelifeac.com/donatenow
The Symbology
The symbols of the Sanctuary wall are symbolic of the Holy Family and God our Father.
The Crown is representative of many things. It represents the reward awaiting in us each heaven. Jesus is the king of heaven and earth, and Mary, the mother of God, is the Queen of Heaven!
The Trinity symbol is symbolic of God our heavenly Father, God, the son, that came to us as a man through Jesus, and the “Holy Spirit that dwells in each one of us” (1 Corinthians 3:16)
The Fleur-De-Lis, literally means flower of the lily in French. It is representative of Saint Joseph the Earthly father of Jesus. He is often depicted with white lily flowers for his purity. The Fleur-de-Lis also represents the trinity.
Padre Pio
You will notice that Saint Padre Pio is wearing a violet stole. The color violet is symbolic of penance. The priest wears a violet stole as a symbol of the priestly authority to forgive sins through Christ, in Sacrament of Confession. The crosses are symbolic for the crucifixion of our Lord, the oath of the death the world that priests take symbolic of their black as well, and also the forgiveness we all have through the contrition and reconciliation fo a sinner with God that we experience in the confessional through the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord!
Saint Padre Pio was internationally famous. He was known for his piety, charity, the quality of his preaching and being an exceptional confessor. He was gifted with the ability to read minds and hearts, and used it for the greater good to assist in people making greater confessions, by recalling for them sins they had forgotten or omitted in the confessional. Saint Padre Pio spent most of his days hearing confessions. From 1918 to 1923, he heard confessions 15-19 hours a day. People would seek him out from all over the world. The Sacrament of Confession is one of the seven sacraments recognized by the Catholic Church. Jesus Christ himself instituted the sacrament on Easter Sunday, when Christ first appeared to the apostles after his Resurrection. He said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained.” (John 20:22-23) The purpose of Confession is to reconcile man to God. When we sin, we deprive ourselves of God’s grace. And by doing so, we make it even easier to sin more. The way out of the cycle of sin, is to recall and acknowledge our sins, to repent of them, and to ask God’s forgiveness through the sacrament of confession to thus restore our grace with God.