Report from the Warden...Structure…

It is surely impossible to imagine Bray without the church tower overlooking the village or to picture the church at Christmas without the glorious hues of the stained glass windows glowing on a cold wintry night. It was therefore not without shock that we recently learnt that if St. Michael’s, as we know and enjoy it, is to last for even another winter, then a serious commitment is required to rescue and restore both the windows and structure of the church.

Time and the frost damage of many winters have taken its toll on the exterior stonework of the church. Areas of especial need are the northwest walls, and the distinctive church tower. Further problems have been revealed in this project due to the unfortunate use of cement mixes in past repairs. This has led to the walls holding excess moisture; expert repair using traditional lime based mixes will be needed to restore the walls. The chemical processes involved in these methods require time, known as ‘curing time’, and must be completed when there is no threat of frosts. Ideally this work would commence in the spring of 2008.

These details should not be dispiriting; indeed the opportunity to have skilled conservators and restorers working in the church is a rare opportunity to rediscover the history of St. Michael’s, and to see expert craftsman at work. A fund-raising committee is already in place and will be supported by a body concerned with the building, structure, and contents of the church – to be known as the Fabric committee.

We are not alone in facing these problems with an old building; I recently spoke to a vicar who had supervised a similar project in his parish. He was kind enough to suggest the following verse as significant to our proposed project:

Yea we know that thou rejoicest
O’er each work of thine;
Thou did’st ears and hands and voices
For thy praise design;
Craftsman’s art and music’s measure
For thy pleasure all combine.
Angel Voices

Francis Potts, 1832-1909
(Common Praise, 337)