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Short Story Fiction
The Glass of San Sebastian
Scott A. Gese
A gifted stained glass window, hidden for years, is placed in a village church. A worker sees its image move, revealing a divine miracle that brings prosperity.
Aleviva Medlen/PixabayThe horse drawn wagon rolled into the small village and stopped in front of the little church under construction. Its cargo had been expected for several days. Two workers met with the wagons driver and began to unload its precious cargo. A very old stained glass window had made its way to the village. It came all the way from France.
It was a special gift from a dear friend of the new pastor.
The crate was unloaded and carried into the church. After the crate had been set down, the pastor began to tell the men a story about the new window.
“When I was a young boy in France, I was a shepherd. I had my own flock and I would let my sheep graze on the grounds of the remains of an old stone church.
“Many years before I arrived It had been set on fire by the enemies of Gods word. The roof was gone, the walls were crumbling and all the windows were missing. Even so, I still considered it holy ground. I would always walk to the front entry and say a small prayer thanking God for my safety and the safety of my flock.
“The owner of the land and I became good friends. We kept in touch over the years. Even after I grew older and moved away to study my vocation at a far off mission, we still wrote to each other. Once I had received my cloth and was sent to this small village, my friend sent me a letter congratulating me.
“When he heard we were building this church, he told me a story. Many years ago he had a dream. In his dream, he was told about a window that was very special.
“He was given a vision of where he would find it. He believed the dream and the vision. He dug in the very spot he was told. What he found was this very window carefully wrapped and buried beneath the old stone floor within the crumbling walls of the burned out church.
“The story told to my friend was that the pastor of the old church had gotten word that it was about to be taken. He removed the window and hid it from those who wanted to take it. He refused to tell them where it was. They destroyed the building and killed him because of his silence.”
“Why did these men want this window?” Asked one of the workers.
“The window was said to have certain qualities about it. Many believed it had miraculous powers. These men thought they could use these powers for their own evil purposes. They never got the opportunity to find out.
I haven’t seen the window myself. Lets unpack it and have a look.”
When they removed the window from the crate, they all marveled at the beauty of the glass and the craftsmanship of the ornate wood frame. They were surprised at how well the wood frame had been preserved after being buried for so many years.
The window portrayed the image of the Son of God standing next to the Tree of Life. The noonday sun shone brightly upon the colored glass. It was indeed a magnificent window.
Once it was set in place, everyone from the village came to admire the new window. They all considered it the town’s new crown jewel.
One afternoon, as one of the workers sat alone within the walls of the new church, he gazed upon the colorful glass. As he pondered its beauty, he thought he saw something move within the image. He wiped his eyes and stared at the window. Again there was movement. The image of the Son of God turned his head to look directly at him. The worker became frightened. He superstitiously made the sign of the cross, hoping it would protect him from anything evil.
He quickly left the building and went directly to the pastor to tell him what he had seen.
“This is the very reason the window was saved,” replied the pastor. “Consider yourself blessed. Very few people have seen this miracle.”
Over the years the “Glass of San Sebastian” became well known. People came from near and far to admire it. They prayed they might be blessed and see the Son of God look down upon them. The little village prospered as a result.
© Copyright 2021 by Scott A. Gese All Rights Reserved.
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