A new sacred space in the Diocese of Madison is now filled with the Presence of Jesus Christ, laying a rich foundation for the seeds of faith to blossom among the students at St. Ambrose Academy.
On September 5, Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison solemnly processed with the Most Blessed Sacrament for the first time into the St. Joan of Arc Oratory, located within the new halls of St. Ambrose Academy at Holy Name Heights in Madison.
Though the larger, iconic Holy Name Heights Oratory will be the site of regular all-school Masses, having a sacred space just for the school community was an essential component of the Academy’s new home.
“Students, faculty, and staff give thanks that we can now visit Our Lord, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, any time we pass by the St. Joan of Arc Oratory,” explained the Academy’s Executive Director Joan Carey.
Whether it’s a faculty member praying between classes or students who’ve finished their work in study hall coming to pray, “Our freedom to rest awhile with Jesus during the school day will draw our entire community closer to Jesus,” said Carey.
Invoking the Holy Spirit
It is through the abundant gifts of the Holy Spirit and a St. Joan-like determination that the Academy has opened the doors in its beautiful new home for its 22nd year of educational instruction.
This home — made possible by the sacrifices, prayers, outstanding volunteer work, and financial generosity of hundreds of benefactors, parents, alumni, students, and board members — ushers in a new era of Catholic classical education in Madison.
Before reserving the Blessed Sacrament in the St. Joan of Arc Oratory, Bishop Hying celebrated the inaugural Mass of the school year for students, faculty, and parents.
During the homily of this Votive Mass to the Holy Spirit, Bishop Hying expressed his joy and gratitude that Holy Name Heights, originally founded as a school, would once again be filled with young people. “Your presence here is evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit,” he said.
Just as the apostles left the Upper Room changed at Pentecost, he challenged students to allow themselves to be transformed in the Spirit, to see with the eyes of God, and they too will leave at the end of the school year “wiser, better formed, and you will know Jesus in a more perfect way.”
A powerful teenaged patron
After prayerful consideration of a number of saints, school leadership chose Joan of Arc, a teenage girl of extraordinary courage and faithfulness and one of the most beloved saints of all time, as patron of the new oratory.
God called St. Joan at 14, about the average age of the students at the Academy.
Like no other saint in history, this teenage girl has inspired saints, painters, writers, statesmen, and historians and is an abundantly fitting role model for young people of the modern age.
She reminds us to persevere bravely at the tasks God gives us and to trust in Him to guide the outcome: “The soldiers fight the battle,” she said, but “God gives the victory.”
“In choosing St. Joan as the patron of our oratory, we recognize St. Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 6 that our battle is with principalities, powers, the rulers of this present darkness, with evil spirits,” shared Carey.
“We must put on the armor of God to resist evil and hold our ground. Children love metaphors. They need role models. Joan shows them visibly and historically what Ephesians 6 calls us to do inwardly each and every day. May our students learn to rely on her as we honor her glorious life in this beautiful way.”
As the oratory patron, the students of the Academy will become better friends with this young girl who obeyed God’s will with such determination. “I am not afraid,” she said. “I was born to do this.”
Extreme Makeover: Oratory Edition
As the renovations progressed throughout 2024, school leadership weighed options for turning an office into an oratory.
Carey shared the Academy’s design dilemma with her friend Michael Berlinger, owner of Heritage Restoration, a six-generation, Illinois-based company that specializes in interior design, churches, and historical buildings.
With a few simple suggestions to start, Board Treasurer Diane Marsland swiftly took ideas for floor coverings, crown molding, and paint to Iconica, the Academy’s construction partner responsible for the design and renovation.
Meanwhile, Berlinger shared a more robust rendering to show what could be possible, including a beautiful, marbled onyx floor tile for the sanctuary, a custom-fit wooden altar with a reredos, ambo, and matching kneelers, stained glass for two small side windows, a blue ceiling with gold stars, new lighting, and some special plaques representing the Holy Spirit and the Blessed Sacrament.
Most incredibly, and without question a work of the Holy Spirit, Berlinger offered to build the reredos, ambo, two kneelers, the Holy Spirit plaque, and the Blessed Sacrament plaque at no cost to the Academy.
While Heritage Restoration began its work, more members of the Academy’s community sprang into action to bring the space to life.
Among them was alumni parent Beth Ptak, who had previously offered her creative skills to enhance the beauty of the Academy’s former home.
Ptak began painting the ceiling design in a traditional deep blue field with gold stars that signify Heaven and offered other consultations on creative elements.
The Academy’s board president Rick Mills was another key to the success of the project.
Mills journeyed to Peoria, Ill., to pick up the Heritage Restoration-made pieces and a custom-made stain.
He brought the pieces back to his shop where he spent a few weeks carefully sanding, staining, and sealing the beautiful woodwork in preparation for decades of prayerful use.
The Diocese of Madison also generously contributed loaned items to the space.
Among them, an altar stone containing the relics of two saints, St. Blanda (wife of St. Felix of Rome, exemplars of the vocation of marriage), and St. Verecundus (a bishop known for establishing schools) is a centerpiece of the new oratory.
A beautiful, historic tabernacle, Stations of the Cross, and several other suitable oratory furnishings complete the space.
Joy for years to come
The plans came together beautifully thanks to the rapid response of skilled, dedicated volunteers and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Reflecting on the collaboration, Ptak shared, “I truly feel we were a ‘chosen’ blessed few who were given this incredible opportunity to honor Our Lord in this task and express our thanks to Him through our efforts for all He has given the Academy through the years.
“Sacred beauty: That was our inspiration, our goal, our fuel for artistic Truth in designing a humble space for our staff and students to come to for Adoration and refuge in Jesus. Our aim was to erase ‘the classroom’ feel and render it as unmistakably Sacred.”
As one of the first families who came to the Academy at its founding, Ptak hopes that this new home is one that invites students, “like the woman at the well, to come and meet Jesus,” and from there, “leave with an insatiable urge and need to tell someone else to ‘Come! Jesus is here!’”
And now that the school year is underway, new traditions are being forged, clubs are meeting, teams are practicing, and students are being equipped with the tools they need to succeed.
Most of all, they are continually invited by Jesus Christ to know, love, and serve Him.
As Bishop Hying told the students and faculty during that first school Mass, “I pray you feel welcome here. We will be filled with joy for years to come because you will fill this place.”
Thanks to the prayers, sacrifices, and hard work of many, and the blessing of God Almighty, the joy of the Lord is now filling the new halls and the St. Joan of Arc Oratory of St. Ambrose Academy.