June 24th, 2012
Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church, The First Church, In the First Town, In the First State, The Graves, The Labyrinths at St. Peter’s, Lewes, Delaware
My friend, Susan, and I were out and about in Historic Lewes, Delaware, just a couple of weeks ago, when almost at the end of our stay we decided to visit Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church. Saint Peter’s is located in the heart of Lewes at 2nd & Market Streets. Tel. 302-645-8479. Website? www.stpeterslewes.org.
The Church was open, which is a rarity these days. It was so quiet. We sat down to absorb this small and beautiful church, whose parish was established in 1681. The original church building was completed in 1724, and sat in front of the current one. A second church was built in 1808 and had a small bell tower. The bell that rings every Sunday is from that bell tower. The third and present building was built in 1854.
The Church is surrounded by stained glass windows; “The Story of God in Pictures”.
All of a sudden someone came out and sat in front of the organ and proceeded to play. At first we were the only ones there. A concert for us only. He was probably the director.
If you would like to check the choirs and music at Saint Peter’s, please visit http://www.stpeterslewes.org/#/worship-music/st-peters-organ.
Saint Peter’s has a beautiful Parish Hall that offers school, nursery and also a store with books and gifts.
Saint Peter’s owns the oldest cemetery in the state of Delaware. This particular cemetery is visited all the time. There were people walking, reading all the stones.
I don’t think many of my friends like to visit cemeteries. To me, they are a snapshot of time.
At Saint Peter’s there are about 18 noteworthy graves. They are marked and easy to find.
The two oldest ones are somewhat together, near a wall by the Church.
The oldest stone had inscriptions that were hard to read; Here lyeth ye body of Margaret ye widow of James Huling who desert Febry ye 16th in ye 76th yeare of her.
The second oldest one is also from the Huling family. A portion of the stone is broken so the whole inscription cannot be read. It said: Huling Martha his wife decest Febry ye 1708 in ye 8th year of her age.
We were fascinated with the fact that when reading the dates, we realized some of them lived really full lives.
The grave marked as 8th was the tomp of Caleb Rodney, the 23rd Governor of Delaware, born in 1767 and died in 1840.
The 9th Grave was from Hon. Caleb S. Layton, sometime Associate Justice of the Superior Court of the state, born in 1798 and died in 1882.
The 10th belonged to Dr. Henry Fisher, born in Waterford, Ireland in 1700. He was probably the first physician of eminence in the territory now known as Delaware.
If you are visiting Lewes, please do stop by. They are so interesting.
Labyrinths at St. Peter’s
The labyrinth is an ancient symbol found in many traditions around the world. It is different from a maze; it has only one path with no tricks or dead ends. It does not create anxiety; you are not solving a puzzle. It does lead us to the Source of our solutions, creating peace.
Susan and I decided to walk it. The winding path becomes a mirror for where we are in our lives, touching our sorrows and releasing our joys. It is to be used as a form of walking meditation to help find inner peace, manage stress, make decision and heal physically, emotionally and spiritually. I was following Susan and was trying to follow what she was doing. I don’t think I meditated much. They say that each walk is unique for each person.
After we reached the end…there were offerings left by other walkers.
St. Peter’s offers 2 Labyrinths to the community. There is the outdoor Path of Peace, the one we took. And, then there is the 30 ft. circular Chartres design Labyrinth which is used for indoor guided walks and special events. For more info., regarding presentations, retreats and other special events, contact Mary Van House at 302-684-1652.
Our visit to Saint Peter’s Church was the perfect ending to one pretty day. Susan and I had not seen each other for many years, so spending the day with her was just priceless!!
Have a good one!!
Tags: Delaware, Delaware Beaches, Discovering Historic Lewes, Discovering Lewes, Episcopal Church in Lewes, Lewes, Saint Peter's Episcopal Church, Sightseeing in Lewes, Sussex County, The Graves at Saint Peter's, The Labyrinths at St. Peter's, Things to do at the beach, Visiting Lewes
Hi Gloria,
It was a wonderful day!
It really was a lot of fun; catching up was the best.