St. Rose Church Tour

	*St. Rose Parish* Clintonville, Wisconsin		St. Mary Parish Bear Creek, Wisconsin
"Yearning to Know Learning to Love Willing to Serve"

"Go up into the hill country; bring timber, and build the house that I may take
pleasure in it and receive my glory," says the Lord. Hague 1:7

Tour of St. Rose Church Click on thumbnails to view larger photos.
The new church of St. Rose of Lima Parish, completed in 1997, is the third church to be built by the parish on this same site. The site overlooks Olen Park and is a landmark with its tower able to be seen for miles around. It is for this reason the tower, built in 1893, was kept and a fitting place to begin to describe the new church building. Viewing the new church and the connected tower strikes the eye by reason of the contrast...the old tower standing now for over 100 years and the new church marking another milestone in the life of St. Rose Parish. The tower, which stands 120 feet high, is the highest structure in Clintonville. One of the bells in the tower is from 1882 and was used in the bell tower of the first St. Rose Church, which was built in 1875. A second bell was added to the tower in 1932. Entering through the north tower doors, one is immediately struck by the beauty of the original stained glass windows above the outer and surrounding the inner doors. Stained Class Window Above North Tower Entrance From both the north tower entrance and the south entrance, one enters into a gathering space. The north wall of this space is the exterior brick from the old church. The empty 1893 corner stone, from the old church, is mounted into this wall. In this space, the members of St. Rose faith community will gather and greet one another in anticipation of praying and worshipping together and will gather after each liturgy for fellowship. A statue of St. Rose of Lima, created by a local artist, is located in the gathering space to recall that our patroness is part of our faith community	St. Rose Church View from Olen Park
	St. Rose Church North Tower Entrance
	South Entrance With People's Cross
The Gathering Space Viewing the North Tower Entrance	Statue of St. Rose In Gathering Space
	Corner Stone From the 1893 Church

A door in a corner of the gathering space leads into the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. This chapel allows people access to private prayer and devotion without having to enter the worship area. The tabernacle from the old church was designed by the husband of a long time St. Rose parishioner. The quatrefoils on the tabernacle and the pedestal, called the altar of repose, are replicated in all of the liturgical furnishings throughout the church. The stained glass window above the tabernacle is taken from the old church. Light shining through the glass reveals that it is the burning bush where Moses had his first encounter with the living God, Yahweh. The burning bush reflects the presence of God, like the presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.

Blessed Sacrament Chapel

Entering the worship space through the center glass doors, one is drawn to the baptistery that reminds us of the sacrament by which we entered into life in Christ. The water wells out of the font and flows under a moveable "bridge." The font lends itself to infant baptisms; and the 27-inch deep pool, beneath the moveable "bridge," makes baptism by immersion an option.

Baptismal Font

Entering the Worship Space

The Worship Space

The 45-foot ceiling of the worship space is made of southern yellow pine. The strong fir trusses suggest the power and immensity of our loving, caring God. The pews from the old church have been refinished. Chairs have been added to complement the seating arrangement and give worshippers a choice in seating. Overflow seating is available on the far sides of the worship space, as well as in the gathering space. The windows in the worship space are of clear glass to remind the worshipers they are part of the world and to go from here to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to that world. Above the windows, on both sides of the worship space, are the Stations of the Cross, also from the old church. The Stations of the Cross depict fourteen Biblical events of the passion and death of Jesus Christ and are used by Catholics for devotion, especially during the season of Lent.

The Sanctuary

In the sanctuary, stands a new altar flanked by matching ambo and processional cross. These pieces, along with the altar of repose, located in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel, and the ambry, which is used to store sacred oils, were custom designed and hand-crafted for St. Rose Parish. The refurbished presider's chair was used in the old church. The quatrefoil designs on it inspired the design of the other liturgical furnishings. The curved wall behind the sanctuary gives worshipers a sense of togetherness.

Ambry	Statues of Mary and Joseph	Crucified Jesus
One of the devotional spaces contains statues of Mary and Joseph, which have been restored and repainted. These same statues can be seen in a 1905 photo in the history section of St. Rose Parish on this website. In the opposite corner of the worship space is another devotional space. It contains the crucified Jesus which hung over the altar in the old church. The kneeler before the cross was found in the basement of the old church and it has been refurbished.

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