A Guide
to St John's
For further information and colour pictures, please click on the images.

 

THE CHURCH stands on the High Street, its tower forming a landmark that can be seen for miles around.  The present Parish Church of St John the Baptist, Epping was built in three stages. The foundation stone was laid in 1889 and the Nave and Chancel were consecrated in 1891. The North Aisle was added in 1908 and the Tower was dedicated on April 29th 1909.

The Church replaced an earlier CHAPEL OF EASE built in 1832 which itself replaced earlier foundations.
The first place of worship to be dedicated to St John the Baptist is recorded in 1403 but there is evidence of an earlier building.

THE ARCHITECTS of the present church were Bodley and Garner.
G F Bodley was an eminent Victorian architect and the church who was a dominant figure in the 19th century Gothic Revival.
Much of the interior is the work of another of Bodley’s partners, Charles Hare and three of the windows are by C E Kempe, a major figure in Victorian ecclesiastical interiors.

THE  INTERIOR of the church is designed in the 14th century East Anglian  Gothic style.  It is lofty and airy, with an unusual, barrel-vaulted, painted ceiling.

We are in the process of renovating the interior.  Major work has been carried in recent years, including plastering and painting the interior walls. This work is ongoing.

THE FONT and BAPTISTERY AREA
Here generations of children have been received into the Church. The font is original to the Church.  The window behind it on the West wall is a fine specimen of C E Kempe’s work and was presented to the Church by the children of the parish. It represents the Baptism of Jesus by our patron saint, John the Baptist.

THE EPPING WINDOW depicts the granting of a Charter by King Henry II to the Abbot of Waltham.  It seems likely that this was the last stained glass window added to the church and is dedicated to Joseph Thomas Humphrey and his wife Jessie Oliver, who died in 1897 and 1909.  It was provided by their son Laurence Humphry.

THE PULPIT was given by the Trustees of St John’s Epping when they relinquished their oversight in 1888. It was made  in 1914 and is elaborately carved with Angels, figures from the Old Testament and the Evangelists

THE ROOD SCREEN which dominates the entrance to the choir is unusual in that as well as the figures of the Blessed Virgin and St John, there is also the kneeling figure of St Mary Magdalene. Along the tracery at the top of the screen (from left to right) are the five coats of arms – the Diocese of Chelmsford, The See of Canterbury, the Dioceses of St Albans and Rochester (Epping was at different times in both Dioceses) and that of Ernest Wythes, (a great benefactor of our Church and donor of the screen). The screen with the surmounting Rood Cross was added in 1909.

THE ORGAN was built by Wordsworth of Leeds, the organ was given by Ernest and Aline Wythes to commemorate their wedding in 1892. It was completed in 1894-5 and the first organ recital was given on it in the summer of 1895.
The organ case was designed by the eminent Victorian craftsman, C E Kempe, the designer of three of our windows. The organ was completely restored by Brian Bunting of Epping in 1976. It is considered by musicians to be amongst the finest in the County of Essex. It has four manuals (i.e. keyboards) and forty speaking stops.  It is listed on the National Pipe Organ Register, which lists its specifications.

THE CHAPEL OF TRANSFIGURATION  dedicated September 2008 has an Icon of the Transfiguration painted by Sœur Irène-Marie OSB at the Monastère Ste Françoise-Romaine at Bec-Hellouin in Normandy.  It seems likely that the dedication of The Chapel of Transfiguration, a hundred years after most of the church was completed, is a fulfilment of the architect's vision, as there are features within the space that suggest that this area was intended to be used as place of prayer or worship.

The chapel is a quiet place of prayer and contemplation created out of what had become a storage space.   It has seating around the panelled walls, focussing on a central plinth made from a tree felled in Epping Forest, linking the Chapel to the surrounding area.  It is regularly used for Morning Prayer on weekday mornings.

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Please remember us in your prayers; that we may be guided to continue to make our Church-building a fitting place for worship and a centre for Christian life in this parish of St John the Baptist, Epping.

Bless, O Lord our God,
the worship and work
of our Church,
that it may be
a house of prayer
and a witness to your redeeming love,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
AMEN.

   

THE HIGH ALTAR is the focal point of the church and the architecture of the church leads the eye towards the altar where the Eucharist is celebrated.

On Sundays the six large candlesticks and cross stand behind the altar. 

Some of our embroidered altar frontals are original Bodley designs. The White Frontal (shown on the altar above) was restored in 2003 by Tina Rumble and a new superfrontal was made for it to a designs by Piers Northam.  Some of our vestments - including a cope - were also designed by Bodley.

THE REREDOS, a magnificent carved and painted Triptych, was designed by Bodley's partner Charles Hare and installed in 1909.
Above the Triptych is the East Window, also by Hare.

THE LADY CHAPEL is to the right of the Sanctuary and is used for mid-week Eucharists, for 8am Holy Communion and for people to sit quietly. In 2003 an icon of St John the Baptist was commissioned for the chapel and given by Peggy Vicary in memory of her husband Peter.  The icon is set on the pillar to the left and shows St John pointing us towards the chapel and the Blessed Sacrament.  It was painted by Sœur Irène-Marie OSB at the Monastère Ste Françoise-Romaine at Bec-Hellouin in Normandy.

 THE AUMBRY is set into the left hand wall of the Lady Chapel below a white sanctuary  light.  The aumbry is a wall safe in which consecrated bread and wine - the Blessed Sacrament - is  kept so that it can be taken to the sick.  The sacrament also forms a focus for devotion and private prayer.

The window above the altar shows St Christopher bearing the infant Christ across a river. The two beautiful windows on the South Wall, showing St Michael and St George,  are by Kempe and are memorials to a parishioner killed in the Boer War.

THE WYTHES MEMORIAL - this simple plaque commemorates Ernest and Aline Wythes who were great benefactors of our Church and acknowledges the great debt we owe to them.

Next to the memorial is a niche which was once a door which gave direct access to the chapel and was originally reserved for the private use of the Wythes family who were so generous in giving funds for the church to be built and adorned.  Now converted to a niche, it holds a bas-relief of the Blessed Virgin and child by Josefina de Vasconcellos, F.R.B.S. given in memory of Liell Foskett, churchwarden from 1957-59.  Note the little cat curled up at the feet of the Virgin.

THE LADY CHAPEL SCREEN
The screen is another fine example of craftsmanship in oak.

Standing in front  of it is a votive candle stand.  this provides an opportunity for people to light a candle and say a prayer. The candle then burns on as a symbol of their prayer when they have left.  The stand was designed by Piers Northam and given to the church by the family of  Emmeline Doe (1905 – 2000) in her memory.

The Lectern was given to the church in 1946 by Mr Wythes to commemorate his 50th wedding anniversary.

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THE WAR MEMORIAL records the names of those who gave their lives for their country in the First World War. On the North wall opposite is a memorial to those who gave their lives for their country in the Second World War.  Each year, on Remembrance Sunday, the local British Legion hold a special Act of Remembrance in the Church.

Near the First World War memorial is THE CHANTRY BOOK where we record the names of departed loved ones. The pages are turned daily.

The TWEED WINDOWS in the South Aisle commemorate  Walter Tweed and his wife Mary Ann.  For the 13 years prior to St John's becoming the Parish Church in April 1891, Mr Tweed was churchwarden of All Saints', Epping Upland (the original 'Mother' church of Epping Chapel); he then continued as churchwarden at St John's.  He gave £500 for the provision of the clock on the bell tower, but also left £1,800 in his will for investment,  the income from which was to be paid to specific charities in January each year. Included in this was £20 for adult members of the church choir. This continued until the Charity Commission removed the Tweed Charity from their central register and the final distribution was in April 2000 when £525 went to the choir and enabled the purchase of new folders, psalters and music.

Most of his business life was spent as a banker - indeed he was the first manager of the first Barclays Bank in Epping around the turn of the 20th century. Tweed's wife, Mary Ann Tweed, died in September 1895 and a stained glass window in her memory (above the Great War memorial) was presented to the church  by her husband.

He himself died in December 1901 and in 1902, a stained glass window was placed next to the one in memory of his wife, and inscribed:

 'To the glory of God in memory of Walter Tweed of Marshalls, Epping'

THE PORCH was added to the church in 1909.
The figure of our Patron Saint, St John the Baptist, stands over the entrance holding a banner with the words ECCE AGNUS DEI - Behold the Lamb of God.

THE MEMORIAL CROSS in the Church garden and commemorates a former vicar, Canon H E Olivier (1919 – 1936).

THE TOWER, together with the vestries, formed the final stage of Bodley’s grand design. It was completed in 1909 and its building was made possible by the generosity of Mr Wythes.

It is 96 ft high and is a notable landmark, to be seen from many vantage points in the countryside around. On each side of the Tower buttresses are carved figures. On the North side: The angel Gabriel and Archbishop Laud; on the East: the angel Raphael and St Augustine: on the West: St Theodore and the Archangel Michael.

THE BELFRY houses a peal of eight bells. 
The bells are rung for all principal services and for special occasions.

On the High Street side of the Tower there is a CLOCK which dates from 1908.  It has a chiming mechanism and was the bequest of Mr Walter Tweed. It is maintained with the generous help of the Epping Council.  The Clock was restored in November 2004; the structure was declared sound and the wood refinished.  The date numbers were also re-gilded

On the outside of the Church, below the East Window are the carved symbols of the Passion of our Lord, and on each side of the window are two angels each bearing a scroll. On one is written “Apud Caput” and on the other “Apud Pedes”. These are the angels of the Resurrection, who sat one “at the head” and the other “at the feet” where the body of Jesus had lain.
On the wall of the Tower is the foundation stone.

ST JOHN’S HOUSE (next door to the church) was formerly a curate’s residence.  It is now the Team office of the Epping District Team Ministry of which we have been a part since 1997. The Team is made up of four parishes:  All Saints, Epping Upland (the ancient parish church of Epping); St Alban, Coopersale; All Saints, Theydon Garnon and St John the Baptist, Epping. 

Over the years the Church has been adorned and beautified by many gifts and benefactions - thanksgiving offerings from those who have worshipped here and found God speaking to their hearts in this place of prayer.

Our aim is to preserve and enhance this legacy and hand it on to future generations so that Christ may be glorified in hearts and lives for generations to come.

After you leave our web site please pause to offer God a prayer for your own pilgrimage of faith or for some particular need.

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