Tales From The Crypts
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Posted on Saturday, June 03 @ 22:55:35 CDT
by Thomas Winterhoff for the Saanich News
Jun 02 2006
Deep beneath some of our best-known churches, the famous and not-so-famous
rest in peace. Whenever most people hear the word "crypt," there's an
association with dark and scary images from every bad horror movie they've ever seen.
The reality, however, is quite different.
The construction of elaborate edifices to safeguard bodily remains is a
tradition that dates back many thousands of years. The pyramids of Egypt are
probably the best-known examples from ancient times, but various cultures
throughout history have used similar practices to honour their dead - from the
native people of Mexico, Britain and the Roman Empire to 18th-century aristocrats
living in London or Paris.
A crypt (from the Greek word "kryptos," meaning "hidden") is any room or
standalone vault designed specifically to contain the bodies or bones of the
deceased. Often embellished with elaborate stone carvings or statuary, they're
most frequently seen as small buildings in graveyards (such as the Ross Bay
Cemetery), but they can also be found deep underground.
Older churches and other places of worship have had scores of people
interred under their stone floors over the centuries. Tourists who walk through some
of the more famous cathedrals in Europe may not realize that they're
constantly treading on graves of former parishioners.
A columbarium, on the other hand, is a depository for the ashes of those
people who directed their relatives to cremate their remains. Similar in
appearance to a crypt, a columbarium's walls are usually lined with small niches
where the ashes of hundreds of people are stored. A brass or stone plaque that
seals the front opening of each niche commemorates the person whose remains lie
within.
Although columbaria are being incorporated into modern cemeteries and
funeral homes more often these days, relatively few crypts or columbaria are found
within churches in the Capital Region. Three of the best known are located
within blocks of one another in downtown Victoria, at Christ Church Cathedral
(Anglican), St. Andrew's Cathedral (Roman Catholic) and The Church of St. John
the Divine (Anglican).
Although they're all located underground, have a faintly musty smell and can
be unnervingly quiet at times, crypts and columbaria are not the notoriously
creepy "enclaves of the dead" popularized by Hollywood. Instead, they're
places where people can go for quiet reflection and pray for loved ones who have
passed away. Even the smallest of them contains an altar from which
religious services are regularly conducted by resident clergy.
Each of these unusual places of worship also has its own tale to tell...
THE CRYPT AT ST. ANDREW'S CATHEDRAL
Perhaps the best-known underground burial chamber in the Capital Region, the
crypt at St. Andrew's Cathedral was built at the same time as the church in
1890 and contains the remains of three of Victoria's most influential
religious pioneers: The Most Reverend Modeste Demers (1809-1871, the first Roman
Catholic Bishop of Vancouver Island); The Most Reverend Charles John Seghers
(1839-1886, the second and fourth Bishop of Victoria); and The Right Reverend
John J. Jonckau (1840-1888, vicar-general of the local diocese).
The remains of the three men were officially entombed in the crypt in 1938
to honour their role in the construction of the church that now soars high
above their final resting place. The crypt also serves as a memorial chapel and
is located at the west end of the cathedral. It's accessed via a creaky spiral
staircase that leads down from the sacristy above. Thick round posts of cast
iron and wood support the arched ceiling of the small chamber that measures
roughly five by eight metres. A large carving of the Archangel Gabriel looks
down on about a dozen chairs, some of which are handcrafted of wood and have
seats covered in red velvet.
Fourteen carvings depicting the Crucifixion of Jesus adorn two of the walls,
but visitors are immediately drawn to the three lead-encased coffins and
headstones at the front of the room. They've been placed on a raised dais just
beside a linen-covered altar that holds candles and two antique cabinets
containing religious relics.
Jonckau was born in Belgium and during his time as a parish priest in
Victoria, he became renowned for the missionary work he did in the
pre-confederation colony of British Columbia. He was due to be appointed as bishop of the
diocese but died before he could be consecrated.
Born in Quebec, Demers preached in Oregon before taking up his duties in
Victoria and eventually became Bishop of Vancouver Island, from where he also
did extensive evangelical work amongst First Nations people. He was also
instrumental in bringing members of the Sisters of St. Ann religious order to
Victoria.
Seghers was also born in Belgium and served as the second Archbishop of
Portland-Oregon City, in between his two terms as Bishop of Victoria. He was also
informally known as the "Apostle of Alaska" because of his commitment to
spreading Christianity to the remote northern areas of North America.
His fifth excursion to Alaska ended in tragedy, however, when a "paranoid
madman" who was hired as a guide for the expedition pulled his gun on Demers
and murdered him.
THE COLUMBARIUM AT CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL
Christ Church Cathedral is the "Episcopal seat" of the Anglican Diocese of
British Columbia. It was built in stages during the early 20th century but the
nave (the main part of the church) was consecrated in 1929. The new
cathedral replaced two smaller churches that once stood close to where the law courts
are now situated on Blanshard Street. The first cathedral was constructed in
1856 but was destroyed by fire. The second, completed in 1872, was soon
overwhelmed by the size of its growing congregation and plans for the current
cathedral were therefore drawn up.
Unlike the crypt at St. Andrew's, the columbarium at Christ Church Cathedral
does not contain any coffins. Instead, three walls of the long, narrow
chamber are lined with hundreds of small niches for storing the ashes of former
parishioners.
The marble nameplates that cover them commemorate people who passed away as
long ago as 1915, while others mark the final resting places of people who
died just this year.
Small white cards indicate which spots have been reserved for other members
of the same family.
The room is only about three metres wide and the ceiling is low. Although
someone worshipping in the main part of the church just one floor above might
never realize it, the columbarium extends for 35 metres right under the main
aisle of the cathedral. A small staircase at the back of the church leads down
to a narrow corridor and the entrance to St. Michael's Chapel - as the
cathedral's columbarium is officially known.
Although access to the columbarium is only provided on request, it's clear
that the chapel is visited frequently by families and friends of those whose
ashes are interred there. Vases of fresh flowers stand in front of several of
the marble plaques and the prayer books and carved wooden chairs (some of
which are dedicated to the deceased) appear to be well-used.
Services are still conducted regularly in the chapel. Visitors may also
light candles in memory of the dead and pray before an altar situated halfway
along the underground chamber.
THE COLUMBARIUM AT THE CHURCH OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE
The steeple of the Church of St. John the Divine dominates the downtown
skyline at the corner of Quadra Street and Mason Street. Its columbarium was
established after the church was rebuilt in 1961, following a devastating fire
that destroyed much of the original structure.
The columbarium is located in the small All Saints Chapel on the lowermost
level of the church. It's only accessible by request, but it's used regularly
for special services throughout the Anglican calendar.
At the bottom of a spiral staircase on one side of the nave, a door bearing
a simple wooden cross marks the entrance to the chapel. Measuring
approximately four by seven metres, the underground chamber is lined with over 200
niches, many of which already contain the ashes of deceased parishioners and are
covered with engraved brass plaques. Two short pews are positioned before a
cast iron railing just before the altar. On top of the cloth-covered podium sits
a thick, leather-bound Bible, long candles and an elaborately carved
altarpiece with illustrations depicting King David at various stages of his life.
The echoing sounds of footsteps on the tile floor and a hum from the
overhead lights are the only noises one hears this deep underneath the church -
until the massive brass organ above roars to life at the touch of a talented
musician. The soaring strains of a hymn reverberate throughout the structure as
long-time parishioner Jim Luke returns to accompany a visitor back to the main
part of the church, turning off the lights and closing the door behind him.
Asked about the true purpose of crypts and columbaria (as opposed to the way
they're frequently portrayed on the silver screen), Luke pauses for a moment
before answering. People continue to visit these mysterious places for a
very simple and profound reason. They merely want to pay their respects to their
loved ones and say a prayer on their behalf.
"I think it's just a means of remembering someone's life," he says quietly.
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