Holy Communion Episcopal Parish, located in

Ashe County, North Carolina Ashe County is a county located in the United States state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 26,577. Its county seat is Jefferson. History Historical evidence shows that Ashe County was inhabited by Native Americ ...

, is a small parish of the

Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina The Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina is a diocese in the Episcopal Church. It consists of 28 counties in western North Carolina and its episcopal see is in Asheville, North Carolina, seated at Cathedral of All Souls. The first recor ...

. The parish consists of two small historic

Carpenter Gothic Carpenter Gothic, also sometimes called Carpenter's Gothic or Rural Gothic, is a North American architectural style-designation for an application of Gothic Revival architectural detailing and picturesque massing applied to wooden structures ...

churches that are both decorated with

frescoes Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

by painter Ben Long and his students.The Episcopal Church and Visual Arts , Art/Community/Story
/ref> The two churches have become popular destinations for

Christian pilgrims Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to sit ...

St. Mary's Episcopal Church

St. Mary's Episcopal Church, located on Highway 194, in West Jefferson, was built in 1905. In 1972, the Rev. Faulton Hodge became priest in charge and later agreed to let Ben Long, a young artist newly returned to North Carolina from studying in Italy, paint wet plaster frescoes on the interior walls of St. Mary's.

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, located twelve miles from St. Mary's at 120 Glendale School Road in Glendale Springs, was built in 1901. Holy Trinity closed in 1946 and stood empty and neglected for 30 years, until Fr. Hodge began a drive to restore it in the late 1970s. In 1980, Ben Long and 20 assistants began painting frescoes on the walls of the church as it was being restored. Later, a chapel named ''Christ the King'' was built in Holy Trinity's basement. It is named for a large mosaic done in 1920 by

John Joseph Earley John Joseph Earley (1881 in New York City – November 25, 1945) was the son of James Earley, a fourth generation Irish stone carver and ecclesiastical artist. A skilled artisan, architect, and innovator in the use of concrete Earley is best know ...

, sometimes called John Early, which was donated to the church. A wall fresco was done in 1984 by

Jeffrey Mims D. Jeffrey Mims is a painter, educator, lecturer, and muralist working as a classical realist. Biography Mims attended the Rhode Island School of Design (1972 - 1973) and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts(1973 - 1976). In 1976, he rec ...

, a student of Ben Long.

Ministry of the Frescoes

The popularity of the frescoes has required the parish members to start a ministry to keep the two churches open for visitors under the supervision of parishioners who have been trained as docents. The two churches are also part of the Ben Long Fresco Trail.

Worship services

Worship services are alternated between the two churches on a monthly basis.The Episcopal Church and Visual Arts , Art/Community/Story
/ref>

References

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External links

Anglican pilgrimage sites Carpenter Gothic church buildings in North Carolina Episcopal church buildings in North Carolina Churches in Ashe County, North Carolina