Dormitory c . 1924
tragedy into opportunity . Construction scaffolding soon filled the chapel from floor to ceiling . Directed by Father Robert Spezia , moderator of the liturgy , workers began sealing leaking windows and deep cleaning soot-coated walls . Art glass specialists washed the chapel ’ s 51 stained glass windows , while preservationists refurbished the oak Stations of the Cross and the reredos , the decorative oak panel behind the altar . Artists repainted the canvas ceiling panels , all 522 of them , and delicately re-stenciled the barreled panels above the side aisles .
It also seemed a good time to repair the chapel ’ s exterior : repointing brick mortar , relining copper gutters , and replacing broken roof tiles . Building Administrator John Duncan oversaw this work .
By year ’ s end , the goal of rector Msgr . Monforton , “ to bring the precious chapel to its original pristine condition ,” was complete .
Even an Armadillo
Msgr . John Nienstedt , Sacred Heart ’ s rector , decided to break from the traditionalist mold during the refounding renovations . He chose a thoroughly nontraditional window designer to decorate the seminary ’ s two student chapels .
Margaret Cavanaugh was perhaps Michigan ’ s premier stained glass artist when the seminary hired her in 1988 to design the windows of the newly constructed graduate dormitory chapel . In a style unmistakably contemporary , her “ Windows of Creation ,” a multipaneled interpretation of the creation story from Genesis , soon exploded from the chapel ’ s three walls .
Cavanaugh ’ s windows feature her
Parlor
specialty : swirling bands of color that leap across the window panels . Abstract images , such as a eucharistic sunburst and shooting stars , represent God ’ s creative power . Whimsical animal figures — birds , fish , even an armadillo — tumble across the windows , representing God ’ s generous gift of life . Moon-faced angels dance around a highly stylized Holy Family .
Satisfied with her exuberant work , in 1990 Msgr . Nienstedt once again commissioned Cavanaugh to design the windows of the chapel in the undergraduate dormitory .
Her six “ Life of Christ ” windows continue her signature “ curvilinear ” design method . Flowing waves of blues , greens , and reds surround the figures of Jesus , Mary , John the Baptist , St . John , and Mary Magdalene . Cavanaugh depicts the Gospel figures nonliterally , with elongated bodies and barely visible facial features . Here , she clearly is influenced by European Cubists such as Picasso .
The “ Descent of the Holy Spirit ” window is almost entirely abstract . Spirals whirl around floating images looking like embryos , representing the Apostles , with a rose representing the Blessed Virgin . The beak of a haloed dove , the Holy Spirit , penetrates the womb-like spirals .
Old Is New Again
What are the more recent improvements to this beloved seminary building ?
As part of a multi-phase expansion plan , the seminary purchased seven acres of deserted streetscape from the City of Detroit and , in 2017 , cleared it of a crumbling 1930s-era apartment complex . It now became “ green space ,” a grassy overflow parking area . It would supplement the seminary ’ s main parking lot while improving the safety and attractiveness of the neighborhood .
Perhaps the capstone of Msgr . Lajiness ’ rectorship is finishing the final phase of the plan , in 2020 . Decorative iron fencing now runs along the new property facing Chicago Boulevard , matching the fencing of the main campus . Eighty new trees planted along Chicago Boulevard visually connect the two properties .
The original “ old ” main entrance facing the boulevard — little used and usually locked — has a new walkway leading to the sidewalk . Guests from the overflow area enter the building here through a welcoming ornamental gate . What was old is new again .
Additionally , fencing along Linwood Avenue now jogs closer to the famous Black Jesus statue . Sacred Heart ’ s neighbors can now draw nearer to and be inspired by this precious icon and city landmark .
Future enhancements to the building are now under the custodianship of rector Father Stephen Burr . One plan is to modernize the 300-seat auditorium , practically untouched since 1924 . The goal is to make it a fully equipped conference hall .
The Mission Advances
When Sacred Heart ’ s building was finally completed in 1924 , rising from the rural landscape like a medieval cathedral , its architects made a bold pronouncement . Because its foundation was so solid — built as a single edifice at a single time instead of piecemeal through the ages — the structure could last , they claimed , 300 years .
Well , here it is at 100 years old . It is more beautiful and more secure than ever .
God willing , may the spiritual mission of Sacred Heart — forming holy priests , deacons , and lay ministers to serve the Church in a new evangelization — go on another 300 years as well , and beyond .
Dan Gallio writes from Ann Arbor where he is a member of St . Francis of Assisi Parish .
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