On a hot and hectic Atlanta day — a possibility straight through October — there's nothing like the cool and calming interior of Sacred Heart Catholic Church.

Walking recently to the downtown church from the hotel where I was staying approximately seven blocks away, I had worked up a sweat. I found the comfortable interior a welcome respite from the bright sun.

The French Romanesque Church's red brick and terra cotta twin towers rise 137 feet above the street, making it easy to locate in Atlanta's Peachtree neighborhood even from a few blocks away.

There, gathered with hundreds of other journalists, editors and publishers who were attending the Catholic Press Association's annual convention, I was able to make time for prayer and join in a spirit-filled, bilingual Mass for those who serve the Catholic Church by working for its media.

The parish was originally founded in 1880, 12 blocks west of its present location. However, when that area became too commercialized, parishioners purchased a new site and commissioned Atlanta architect W. T. Downing to build a new sanctuary. That was in 1897. Today the church stands as a testament to the faith of its founders. On May 13, 1976, it was entered in the National Register of Historic Places.

In addition to a plaque noting its inclusion in the National Register, another plaque, near the church's entrance, tells of the parish's historic visit by a then-living saint. Soon-to-be beatified (Oct. 19) Mother Teresa visited this church during a visit to her Missionaries of Charity in Atlanta eight years ago. The order was established in Atlanta in 1992 to work with the homeless and those with AIDS. Today the sisters enjoy a special affiliation with the parish, attending Mass and teaching Sunday school there.

The church was a fitting place for such a gathering of religious writers. For, just as our writing informs the faithful, those gathered in the church were unable to sit inside without seeing some art, architecture, signs, symbols or other pictorial representations that educate about the faith.

The white interior is illuminated not only by bright and colorful paintings and numerous brass furnishings but also by 28 remarkable stained-glass windows.

The church's high arches down the central nave draw your attention toward the life-size crucifix beneath the baldacchino in the sanctuary.

There above the tabernacle in the dome of the apse is a full-figured painting of Christ manifesting his Sacred Heart. He stands on the globe of earth with two angels kneeling on either side.

Around the curve of the arch, which separates the nave from the sanctuary, are painted Christ as the Lamb of God in the center, with the symbols of the four evangelists on either side: the lion for St. Mark, the eagle for St. John, the bull for St. Luke and a man for St. Matthew.

On the left side of the sanctuary, facing the nave, an archdiocesan coat of arms is painted. On the right-hand side is the escutcheon of the Society of Mary.

The sanctuary contains an abundance of gleaming brass, from the intricately detailed brass pulpit to the sanctuary lamp to Victorian candelabras that flank the altar and the central tabernacle.

Sunlight on Scripture

Perhaps the most outstanding feature of Sacred Heart Church is its collection of stained-glass windows. The 28 stunning windows were produced by the Mayer Studios in Munich and installed in 1902. Fourteen windows are placed along the walls of the nave, and seven pairs of narrow windows are found in the curve of the apse above the sanctuary.

The seven pairs of windows in the apse portray various miraculous manifestations of God, such as Christ appearing to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the angel appearing to Christ at Gethsemane and Christ appearing to Mary Magdalene in front of the tomb. They are a reminder of Christ's presence in our daily lives and of his Real Presence in every Mass.

The 14 windows along the walls of the nave portray events in the life of Christ. I imagined how useful the windows would be for instructing children in the key events of the Gospel or the mysteries of the rosary. With the sunshine pouring in, they literally bring Scripture to light.

Beginning with the window nearest the front Chapel of St. Joseph, they progress to the rear of the church and then continue down the north side aisle to the Chapel of Our Lady. Along the south wall they include the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, the Presentation, the Finding in the Temple, the Wedding Feast at Cana and the Sermon on the Mount. Along the north wall, the events pictured include Jesus Welcoming the Children, Jesus Washing Peter's Feet, the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Ascension and the Descent of the Holy Spirit.

To the rear, the church's choir loft is dominated by the large Sacred Heart Rose Window and the 2,598 pipes of the Casavant Freres pipe organ, which was completely restored in 2002.

The principal celebrant and homilist at our Mass was Bishop Joseph Galante, coadjutor bishop of Dallas. Archbishop John Foley, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications; Bishop J. Kevin Boland of Savannah; and a number of other priests concele-brated, filling the sanctuary to overflowing.

Accompanied by the contemporary music of Catholic musician Ed Bolduc, praying in the “heart” of Atlanta proved to be the perfect place to reflect upon my vocation as a Catholic writer and the work of all those committed to spreading the Gospel through the written word.

Staff writer Tim Drake writes from St. Cloud, Minnesota.