Stairway to Heaven
Building Upward
Published: 6/3/2020
By: Gordon Dawson
Work should be elevated, honorable, memorable, more than a paycheck.
Work should be more than who can take advantage of whom.
Galatians 6:10 says, “Whilst we have time, let us do good work to all men, but especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
In 1881, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the Loretto Staircase was built by unknown craftsmen, out of unknown wood species, with no nails and only a saw, a hammer, and a t-square, then vanishes without receiving payment.
It was dubbed “The Miracle of Wood” like that of the cross.
An unfinished chapel, built in New Mexico, needed a staircase to reach from the floor to the choir loft. Outside builders and architects argued one could not make a staircase because of the current floor layout. Nun’s began praying to St. Joseph, the great carpenter and foster parent to Jesus. On the ninth day of “The Novina,” a man arrived (by donkey) and took on the task of completing the chapel’s staircase. He created a miraculous curved spiral staircase, made without any center support, using no nails and a small set of tools. It took six months to complete, whereby the craftsman disappeared without any payment or accolade for the excellent work.
Architects today still reverence with awe the construction method and its ability to stay standing after all the years of use.
Source: Bishop Dolan, Wikipedia
Context
Loretto Staircase, Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Loretto Chapel Staircase, Bishop Dolan (Traditional Catholic Sermon)
Thoughts
– Who built it?
– How does it stand?
– What are you building off the clock?
