First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta invites

First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta invited the public to contribute for short reflections in this year’s Advent Devotional. (Photo taken from First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta’s Facebook post)

First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta invited the public to contribute to short reflections in this year’s Advent Devotional.

In a Facebook post on Monday, Sept. 5, the church said this year, the topic will be called "Stay Awake."

First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta asked its members and friends to submit brief remarks on biblical passages that relate to the theme and to the Advent season.

Participants may get in touch with Chris Holmes by Thursday, Sept. 15, for those interested in contributing to the devotional: cholmes@firstpresatl.org.

Church’s Glass Windows

Since its founding in 1848, the First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta had a succession of two sanctuaries on Marietta Street, according to the church's website.

The church said it eventually relocated to 16th and Peachtree, which was "way out."

In 1919, the entire sanctuary was dedicated, the church said.

The church said a number of sizable windows were proposed by the architect "for light and ventilation."

Dr. Lyons, the pastor, came up with a strategy and ideas for the installation of stained glass windows, according to the church.

The ten windows that surround the sanctuary's floor depict the biblical narrative from Abraham to the apostles' work to promote Christianity following Christ's death and resurrection, the church said.

The church said Tiffany created the first six windows, and D'Ascenzo created the following four.

There are a total of twenty windows spread across four places. Nine Willet windows, four D'Ascenzo windows, and seven Tiffany windows are present, it continued.

The sanctuary has 12 large windows. These 10 windows, five on each side, encircle the sanctuary's floor, according to the church.

The church said 10 incidents, or stories, from the Bible's past are represented by these.

Each history window opens with a scene depicting a single, well-known narrative, it added.

First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta said each window's structure is actually fairly intricate.

Three windows (or panes) that collectively form the main scene are referred to as a "trefoil" or tripartite schema, according to the church.

Eight tall, thin panes that appear to be alike in all ten windows but are actually distinctive are located above the trefoil. For these panes, they now refer to them as the Octet or the Mansions, the church said.

The church said three smaller windows that people refer to as the Triplet are located beneath the trefoil. Each window in the Triplet is connected to the one before it by a primary element that is found in the middle window, it added.

The larger windows and the stained glass-filled ones on one side of the sanctuary are both lit from the outside. Mosaics have been utilized to fill the voids on the other side, according to the church.

Humble Followers of Jesus Christ

First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta said it is a group of humbly Christ-followers who have made the decision, by God's grace, to live by love, pursue ongoing change, and empower everyone to serve as servant leaders in Atlanta and around the globe.

The Women's Transformation Center on the church's property offers up to 12 women safe housing and support, while the First Presbyterian Church noted that it had a 35-year tradition of giving breakfast to 250 homeless individuals each Sunday.