Holy Cross Church
New York City - February 11, 2010 The Church -- or I guess churches of Western origin be it Presbyterian, Episcopal, or Roman Catholic -- you may say is under fierce attack nowadays from science and atheism (not always one and the same). True, the early churches committed atrocities and suppressed free thought so I guess science today is simply saying it's payback time. But at some point I think this has got to end.

The day before the winter storm on Wednesday in New York, I discovered another church beside the Port Authority Bus Terminal on 42nd Street where I get off to work everyday. I didn't notice it before because I always faced east when I exited the terminal and never turned my head around to see the church behind me. So on Thursday, the day after the storm (I didn't make it to work during Wednesday's storm), I brought my camera with me and took pictures of the church early in the morning.

The front doors of the Holy Cross Church, however, were boarded up. Somehow I felt sad seeing that. I thought it was closed for good and maybe now abandoned as so many old buildings are.

Don't get me wrong. My motives were of a purely photographical nature. I would like all relics preserved so I can take pictures of them.

After taking pictures of the church's facade and I was about ready to leave, I saw a sign on the church's right side that said it was open. The church was simply being renovated. I felt a sense of relief. The church wasn't going to be demolished after all as I feared it might to make way for another skyscraper.

An arrow pointed to a side door past some construction equipment. The morning was particularly cold -- temperature was below freezing -- and needing to warm my body up before continuing on my mile-long walk to work, I decided to walk in. I also hoped that the door would lead to the church's interior where I can take pictures of the Romanesque architecture.

But instead I saw a makeshift chapel with a makeshift altar and an aging statue I suppose of the Virgin Mary in a bright, fluorescent-lit room. There were chairs neatly arranged and seated on some were a few devout in silent prayer. I thought maybe they did this everyday as a ritual before heading off to work.

When one devout rose from his chair and made his way for the door where I stood, I turned sideways so I and my camera won't be facing him. I didn't want to appear intruding. I pretended to read some church leaflets and pamphlets laid down on the table in front of me.

That's when I remembered some of the people I met while taking pictures of other churches -- the security bag-checker at Saint Patrick's who let me use his table as tripod for a clear shot at the nave, the lady at Saint Bartholomew's who thanked me for asking first before taking pictures, and the secretary (or so she appeared) at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian who very politely told me after taking pictures for close to an hour that she will wait for me to finish before she locked up the front door. Never once did she tell me to hurry up.

And so there I was seeking refuge from the cold outside inside a church. The church, I thought, is perhaps one of the few remaining places peopled by the gentlest of souls in this largely commerce-driven world where anyone who needed help, regardless of background, will not be turned down.

I picked up a cardboard bookmarker with a drawing of Jesus and some promises purportedly made by a St. Margaret Mary. I read the first few lines and thought, yeah, I'll hold on to that. I put it in my bag and continued on my mile-long walk to work.


#1. The Church of the Holy Cross is lined up with high rises on West 42nd Street.

http://www.billycarpio.com/photos/2010/MidtownChurches/DSC04157HM.jpg

#2. The front doors are boarded up.

http://www.billycarpio.com/photos/2010/MidtownChurches/DSC04341HM.jpg

#3. A sign says the church is being renovated and points the way to a makeshift chapel.

http://www.billycarpio.com/photos/2010/MidtownChurches/DSC04353HM.jpg

#4. Makeshift chapel.

http://www.billycarpio.com/photos/2010/MidtownChurches/DSC04360HM.jpg

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