Faith and Transformation: The Baptismal Font of Trinity United Methodist Church
- ashleymingus1
- Mar 18
- 5 min read
At the corner of 18th and Broadway, one of downtown Denver’s most bustling hubs, it might be easy to overlook, amongst all the glass fronted high-rises, a more modest building of brown rhyolite. Look closer, however, and you’ll soon see the hidden gems of Trinity United Methodist Church, including the way the light filters through its amber stained glass rose window. Perhaps, if you’re lucky, you might hear the powerful notes of the massive Roosevelt organ nestled deep within its sanctuary issuing into the streets.
Step inside its welcoming doors and you’ll see that you must climb a flight of stairs to reach the sanctuary on the second floor, an act reminiscent of the Christian imperative to “look up” to God, to aspire and strive to reach a state holier than man’s alone. Once you have ascended, rich jewel-toned red and blue glass dances across your eyes from the high stained glass windows and symbols of the Holy Trinity abound. Enclosed within an architectural map of the cosmos, your eye continues to light upon soaring arches and architectural details drawing the gaze ever upward while images of Biblical scenes lay out the march of theological time, past, present, and future.
Against all this color, the white Carrara marble angel of the baptismal font stands in stark clarity. With outstretched arms which have baptized hundreds of children over the past one hundred and thirty-seven years, this angel kneels before the pulpit with its sea-shell bowl, looking up through the high window above towards the light. Dedicated to the memory of one small child, this sculpture speaks of the bonds of family, community, and the Body of Christ in dialogue with the other elements of the church to become an active site of transformation and growth in the Christian faith each time it is used to welcome a new little congregant into the fold.
The font’s first use was on December 23, 1888 to baptize twenty-four infants and children with holy water collected in the angel’s scalloped seashell bowl. The shell is a common motif in baptismal fonts, meant to call the disciples of Jesus, many of whom were humble fishermen, to mind. By receiving the baptismal rite from this font, young children are inducted into the congregation as new disciples, in their turn becoming “Fishers of Men,” as Christ instructed his followers to become.
The angel itself wears flowing robes with the cuffs drawn up, as if it is the one dipping its hands into the baptismal water and anointing the children of the church. Its face is turned upwards to gaze through the window high above. When the lighting is just right, on the days right around Christmas, the sun shines directly upon the angel’s face. It is difficult not to be moved by such a sight, especially when considering that the little girl to whom this font is dedicated died tragically young.
Ellen Amelia Eddy was sent to live with her aunt and uncle after the death of her mother, Ellen, in childbirth. Her father, William Sampson of Georgetown, Colorado, was a poor miner who could not afford to take care of his newborn daughter, and so sent her to live with her kind guardians. Edward Eddy’s occupation as an ore buyer had afforded him great wealth, one thousand five hundred dollars of which had already been donated to Trinity Church for its construction. He and his wife Amelia took her in, but only a few years later, on January 1, 1885, little Ellen passed away at just five years old. They commissioned a beautiful marble font from J&R Lamb Studios, New York - still active today - in 1888. As the Eddys commissioned this piece, it is easy to wonder if the angel is in fact a portrait of little Ellen Amelia, although it is far from easy to answer this question. Although the angel is androgynous in form, the members of the church always refer to it as “she.”
Located directly in front of the main door to the church, the angel font serves as a point of entry into this space, a fitting visual representation of the baptismal ceremony as the point of entry into the congregation and the greater Body of Christ in the Christian tradition. Physical placement reinforces the theological concept. A look at the inscriptions on the font, as well as archival photos, reveal that the angel did not always face the southern window, but used to face into the sanctuary, looking at the congregants themselves. Since it was decided that rotating the angel to look into the light was more befitting of its symbolism, only two of the three inscriptions can still be read on its sides.
The first, carved into the top rim, is a passage from the Bible: “He shall gather the lambs with His arms and shall carry them in His bosom.” Lambs are a symbol of the innocent, often used to describe Jesus when He sacrificed Himself on the cross. In this case, it references the innocence of children, and God as the shepherd of all people. Another inscription, which cannot be currently seen due to the angel’s placement, states, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved,” alluding to the ceremony itself. The last is not a universal declaration, but draws our attention to the specific circumstances of this artwork’s creation: “In memory of Ellen Amelia Eddy who entered into life eternal Jan. 1, 1885 in the fifth year of her age. Erected by her foster parents Edward and Amelia Eddy, 1888.”
This beautiful piece stands as a testament not only to the memory of one small child, but the thousands of children and young adults eager to receive initiation within the Christian faith. This font is the site of transformation of these souls from the ranks of the uninitiated into new disciples, and reminds the congregants already in the fold that their job is not yet done. As they follow their Shepherd, so too must they shepherd newcomers and instruct them in the ways of faith for the next one hundred and thirty-seven years and beyond.
A special thank-you to Lynn Willcockson for his time and gracious tour of Trinity United Methodist Church.
Resources and Further Reading
J & R Lamb Studios website
Kirby, Linda K. Heritage of Heroes: Trinity United Methodist Church 1859-1988 (Denver, Colo.: Trinity United Methodist Church, 1988).
Trinity United Methodist Church website
Trinity Methodist Church Collection (MSS #1150), History Colorado, Denver, Colorado.
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