As the church is decorated for the Advent Season, with the return of the Advent garland and wreath, and the reappearance of Ade Bethune’s banner in the choir, we also note the renewed emphasis on the altars in the upstairs gallery.

Adorned altar in upper narthex

The upstairs gallery in the Church of St. Gregory the Great is home to four small chapels. These echo the side chapels on the ground floor, and were originally used for Masses offered by each monk ordained priest within the monastic community. While the practice was not maintained after the Second Vatican Council, the altars remained, and the space remains dedicated to its patrons. Recently, Brothers Sixtus and Benedict undertook a kind of renewal program, visibly calling attention to these chapels and hopefully reminding all of the space as a house of prayer. Most visible from the nave is the altar placed in the upper narthex, above the main entrance. The space has housed the small statue of Saint Nicholas, somewhat hidden as it blends into the wall, and in years past the area contained a bureau with massive drawers designed to hold stoles, albs, and chasubles for use in the Masses held upstairs. With these items no longer used in the gallery, the furniture was moved. The space now is occupied by an altar, recently enhanced with candles, framed prayers, and a wooden tabernacle from the early 20th century. A note placed there describes it as a “Tabernacle for Sacred Heart Side Chapel, American 1915.” The piece is painted and gilded wood, with green silk lining, and was built for the Chapel of the Sisters of Loretto, Webster College (now University), Webster Groves, Missouri.

Place cards also note the patrons of the chapels: the North American Martyrs, Saint Augustine of Canterbury, and St. Bede the Venerable.

Tabernacle with candles in upper narthex, Church of St. Gregory the Great


Tabernacle of Sacred Heart (1915)


Altar in the gallery’s north chapel


Altar in chapel of St. Augustine of Canterbury, northwest gallery


Base of cross, chapel of St. Augustine of Canterbury, northwest gallery


Altar in chapel dedicated to the North American Martyrs, south chapel of the gallery


Cross behind altar of St. Bede the Venerable, southwest chapel of the gallery

This visual enhancement of these chapels within the church, like the seasonal decorations of Advent and Christmas, may serve to enhance appreciation for the space and reminders of it as an oratory, a place of prayer.