Chapel Statuary & Iconography Celebrate Church Triumphant

Shortly after Thomas Aquinas College acquired its century- old New England campus in 2017, the College began the careful work of transforming the erstwhile Sage Chapel — built in 1909 for Protestant worship — into a fitting home for our Eucharistic Lord and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Craftsmen cleared a central aisle between the pews; built an altar, tabernacle, and confessionals; and added holy-water fonts, kneelers, and Stations of the Cross. A mosaic of the Chapel’s patroness, Our Mother of Perpetual Help, was incorporated into the building’s facade, just above the main doors, and an icon bearing her likeness was placed just to the left of the altar. 

Since then — and thanks to the generosity of several benefactors — the College has also installed saintly statues throughout the building, bringing tangible signs of the Church Triumphant in Heaven to members of the Church Militant in the congregation. 

When visitors enter Our Mother of Perpetual Help Chapel’s narthex, they are greeted by a large statue of the young Mary with her mother, St. Anne, who explains the Ten Commandments to her daughter. The statue was a gift of the late Rev. Joseph Santos, pastor of the Church of the Holy Name of Jesus in Providence, Rhode Island. “Fr. Santos was an avid supporter of the College and visited the campus on multiple occasions,” says Patrick Ford, director of East Coast development. “He called me up one time and asked if we wanted a statue of St. Anne. We were happy to have her, of course!”

As if led by St. Anne’s guiding hand, visitors pass from the narthex to the nave, where they immediately encounter the baptismal font, above which hangs a print of Polish painter Eugeniusz Kazmirowski’s original depiction of the Divine Mercy, as described by St. Faustina Kowalska. The print was a gift from the family of Clara Ramos (’23), who was among TAC-New England’s first students. “This image has strengthened my family in tough times,” says Miss Ramos. “Kneeling and praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet has always been a source of strength and hope for me and my family.” 

In the back of the nave, one also finds a statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel holding the Child Jesus. Along with glass eyes, distinctive of European sculpture, both the Blessed Mother and Our Lord’s faces bear expressions of peaceful joy, as the Child reaches out His hands in love. “Our Lady was my gift to the school,” says Rev. Greg Markey, head chaplain in New England, who purchased the statue in Spain. In addition to greeting worshippers, the statue is used for Marian processions, carried around the campus on a custom-built platform. 

“We are reminded, first, of our duty as Christians to ‘preach Christ crucified’ and, second, of the College’s mission of Catholic liberal education.” 

Continuing down the aisle, visitors approach the resplendent sanctuary. Above the tabernacle hangs a large Gothic crucifix, flanked by carvings of the Blessed Mother and St. John the Beloved, recreating the scene at Calvary. On either side are two niches containing statues of St. Thomas Aquinas, patron of the College, and St. John Henry Newman, a champion of Catholic liberal education. “In the sanctuary’s statuary, we are reminded, first, of our duty as Christians to ‘preach Christ crucified’ and, second, of the College’s mission of Catholic liberal education,” says President Paul J. O’Reilly. “And we see how the latter flows directly from the former.” 

Beside the main altar stands a statue of St. Joseph, commissioned by the late Dr. Nancy Ann Faller, who served as the campus nurse for three years before dying of cancer in 2022, and who collaborated with Fr. Markey to create a custom effigy of Our Lord’s foster father to grace this place of worship. “We worked closely with the King Richard’s statuary company while it was being carved in Italy,” says Fr. Markey. “We wanted him to have the lily as a sign of his innocence and chastity, and to be holding the baby Jesus, who has a wooden cross in His hand, both as a sign of His father’s trade and foreshadowing Christ’s passion in the future.” 

But the statue features an additional symbol: St. Joseph stands above a replica of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Chapel. It is a venerable tradition that St. Joseph be depicted holding St. Peter’s Basilica, symbolizing his universal patronage of the Church. Deeming it presumptuous to replace St. Peter’s with the New England chapel, Fr. Markey and Dr. Faller opted instead to place the replica at his feet — symbolizing his paternal care. 

“There are just as many students who pray in front of St. Joseph as there are in front of Our Lady. I was happily surprised that so many students have such a devotion to him.”

Given both its unique symbolism and its association with the beloved nurse, the St. Joseph statue has become a favorite among students. “I just happened to put a kneeler in front of the statue when it was first set up,” Fr. Markey says. “There are just as many students who pray in front of St. Joseph as there are in front of Our Lady. I was happily surprised that so many students have such a devotion to him.” 

Now fully renovated, Our Mother of Perpetual Help Chapel is both a fittingly beautiful place for the worship of God, as well as a mosaic display of the dedication of the College’s many friends, whose generosity and prayers have brought Thomas Aquinas College, New England, to life.