The "Dorcas, Woman of Good Deeds" Stained Glass Window; St Jude's Church of England - Corner of Lygon, Palmerston and Keppel Streets, Carlton

            The "Dorcas, Woman of Good Deeds" stained glass window may be found in the southern wall of St Jude's Church of England in Carlton.  The window features Dorcas (also known as Tabitha in Aramaic), who was a disciple who lived in Joppa, and is mentioned in the Book of Acts.  Dorcas was referenced as a woman who was "full of good works and almsdeeds", who was raised from the dead for her deeds.  Dorcas and her servant have been depicted in classical Renaissance style as are some of the children, whilst the remaining beneficiaries of Dorcas' alms are more middle eastern in dress.  The city of Joppa can be seen in the distance.  

This window may have been created by Brooks Robinson and Company, who installed a similar window in St Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Williamstown.  The image of Dorcas, the woman with a headscarf clutching her child, and the man on his knees at Dorcas' feet appear almost identically in the St Andrew's window.   

In 1866 the original St Jude's Church of England was simply a temporary wooden structure erected for worship on a triangular block of land between Lygon, Palmerston and Keppel Streets in the busily growing working class suburb of Carlton, in Melbourne's inner north. However, between 1866 and 1867 the church's chancel, four bays of the nave, and vestry of the church that we see today were erected.  St Jude's Church of England was built to the designs of Melbourne architects Reed and Barnes. The contractor awared the building of St Jude's was John Pigdon. Between 1869 and 1870 the remaining four bays of the nave, balcony, narthex and crypt were erected. In 1874 the south porch and steps and area wall were erected, and the iron railings and Lygon Street gates were erected in the same year. 

Designed in Gothic style so popular with the Victorians, St Jude's Church of England is a beautiful polychromatic brick ecclesiastical building erected on a bluestone plinth with dark hawthorn brick walls and red and cream brick quoining, diaperwork and window surrounds. The plastered interior includes a western gallery, an 1868 George Fincham pipe organ, and stained glass by several prominent glass designers and makers, including Melbourne based stained glass window manufacturers Ferguson and Urie, Rogers and Hughes, Brooks Robinson, and William Montgomery. St Jude's Church of England is of architectural significance as it is an early example of Gothic-polychrome and one of the first fully polychromatic brick churches in Australia, and the building is heritage listed.

In 2009, after much fundraising from the parish, St Jude's Church of England went under a full restoration at the cost of one million dollars, which included painstaking picking out of the bricks with newly laid mortar and a renovated slate roof.  On the 18th of October 2014 in the wee hours of the morning, a fire was deliberately started in St Jude's basement.  The fire was noticed around four o'clock in the morning when flames were seen engulfing the roof, chancel windows and basement.  Fifty Melbourne Metropolitan Fire Brigade trucks were required to bring the blaze under control, which they managed to do in around an hour.  Whilst the fire was contained to the chancel and did not burn down the vicarage built against the chancel, St Jude's Church has lost several of its largest and most stunning original Victorian windows which were installed in the chancel.  The damage bill is still estimated to be around $500,000.00 and the congregation has been forced to temporarily give up their beautiful place of worship.  At the time of writing this, an appeal has been established to raise funds to restore the church and the congregation is meeting in various places within close proximity of St Jude's.    

On a personal note, I was very fortunate to have visited St Jude's Church of England on my birthday, just over a month before the fire, after being granted a special request to photograph their stained glass windows in detail.  I am very grateful to the staff of St Jude's for granting my request, even more so now that some of the windows are no longer there to admire.  It is to the staff and congregation of St Jude's Church of England that I dedicate this set of photographs of their beautiful church; both inside and out.

Taken in: Australia / Victoria / Melbourne / Carlton (show map)

Taken on: September 15, 2014

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Camera: Canon DIGITAL IXUS 80 IS, f/4.5, 1/80 sec, 14.3mm, ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon DIGITAL IXUS 80 IS
Aperture:	f/4.5
Exposure Time:	0.013 sec (1/80)
Focal Length:	14.3mm
ISO:	200
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Auto, Did not fire
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
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