The Making of my Oratory

Linking to the HOST

I told you that I found my "spot" for the oratory.  For the record, I did not re-paint it because of the

oratory.  I was going to paint it first, and then the spot struck me, and it all coincided perfectly!

 I had to decide on a color in a room that gets terrible light.  I joked that this was the room "where color comes to die".  I'll have to keep it in mind when I cover "light" and "color" with my children in science class.  So, as I suspected, "banana cream" won out.  Thanks to one Amazing Woman (my mother), it was painted in one day; six hours to be precise.

I could envision the beauty even at this point!

Not pretty yet, but a glimpse at the color.

Thank you, Mom!!!  And smiling while she works…this woman proves that it takes the practical to facilitate the sublime.  My little room for prayer would never have become the haven it is without her time and talent.  She definitely gets a cut of the graces won in front of my little oratory.

Remember that blue couch? My brilliant mother came up with a solution: move in the outdoor wicker furniture!  She ran to World Market for me and found some bright and cheerful cushions (because of the dim lighting, this room needs illusions of warmth).  Isn't it pretty?!

Once the walls were done, it was time to make my oratory.  First, I collected a bunch of icons and statuary…we had a lot to choose from.

I became overwhelmed and decided all of our patron saints would go to the children's rooms where I'd make each of them a little prayer space with their own special icons. (That will be another day).

I brought in a hand molded lamp from Croatia, brought to me by my brother who lives in Eastern Europe, and the beeswax candle I had been saving.

The kids got in on the fun and tried different arrangements!

Then I began to arrange.  This was much more difficult than I had anticipated! (I had thought it would be the fun part!)  I tried to put into practice the guidelines laid out for me in The Little Oratory.  There had to be symmetry, a crucifix perhaps, the face of Christ.  Mary on the left, Jesus on the right…I tried so many variations!

I tried that large icon of the Mother and Child you see as the center image, but that left little room for anything else on the wall, and she fits beautifully on the side wall of this room.

I knew I had to have the icon of the Holy Family.

 I decided I would put my archangels up at the top of the altar, like the angels around the throne of God.  I chose the crucifix to be at the center, with the (only) two metal icons I have on each side (the Holy Family and the Trinity).

archangels above crucifix

Below, at the foot of the cross, I placed the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

  (I apologize for the awful photos, they're all from my phone. I'll work on getting better ones up.)  And that was it!

So, here it is! My Little Oratory:

by candlelight

I lit the candles for the first time this morning and I breathed a deep peace.