On Sunday Nov. 10, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Silver Spring, Maryland, celebrated the installation of its first permanent crucifix and illustrative Stations of the Cross. Washington Cardinal Wilton Gregory presided at the Mass and blessed these sacred items, made possible through the generous contributions of the St. John the Baptist Parish community.
St. John the Baptist Church “was not originally built with a crucifix,” noted Father Andrew Wakefield, the parish’s pastor, in an interview later that week. “Our prior Stations were simple, plain crosses. Now, for the first time, we have a permanent crucifix and proper visual Stations that invite deeper contemplation.”
When Father Wakefield became the pastor there last summer, he saw an opportunity to enhance the spiritual essence of the church. His vision for a permanent crucifix and new Stations of the Cross began as a quiet hope shared during homilies. By spring, this hope had blossomed into a community-wide project, with parishioners raising more than $60,000 to bring it to life.
Father Wakefield and the parish council carefully approached the project, selecting designs that complemented the church’s architecture. The church features wooden panels behind the altar, with ovals carved into the wood to represent St. John’s parishioners. The pastor invited parishioners to offer their feedback and perspectives on the project.
The priest said he understood the importance of the Corpus’s body on the crucifix representing the diverse community of the parish, which has 800 registered households. He collaborated with artisans to choose a skin tone that accurately reflected this diversity.
Standing before the newly installed crucifix, Father Wakefield said, “Our faith is incarnational. Having Christ here, represented as the whole human person, reminds us of the unity of our humanity in Him.”
The Grant T. Orr Company helped procure the handmade crucifix and Stations of the Cross from the Demetz Art Studio in Italy, a family-run business that has created ecclesiastical art since 1872.
The Stations of the Cross, which hang on the walls around the nave of the church, depict the Via Dolorosa, the path that Jesus walked from His condemnation to His crucifixion. They are made from a combination of glass, stone, plastic and limestone fibers, creating a three-dimensional representation of Christ’s Passion.
The Saint Joseph Carpentry Shop of Poolesville, Maryland, led by Deacon Dave Cahoon, completed the installation of the sacred art in a single day. This included suspending the crucifix on wires hung from beams above the altar. The Corpus measures 60 inches long and hangs on a simple wooden cross that is 108 inches long.
Soon after the installation, students from St. John the Baptist Catholic School saw the new sacramentals for the first time. “The kids were so moved. They kept saying how beautiful it all was,” Father Wakefield said.
Reflecting on the moment, the priest expressed its significance for the parish, noting that “a big part of our faith” is sensory. Father Wakefield said the crucifix and the Stations draw worshipers into the mystery of Christ’s sacrifice and love in ways that words cannot convey.
Glenda Chauncey, a 16-year parishioner who serves as a sacristan there, described how the new crucifix stirs her heart. “Oftentimes, when I fix my eyes on Him, they get watery,” she said. “It’s a powerful reminder of Christ’s love for us.”
