This window presents important moments in our Lord’s public life. The first panel on the right depicts the scene of his baptism by John the Baptist with the waters of the Jordan River flowing around them. The Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descends upon Jesus. This scene recalls the important event found in all three synoptic gospels when a voice from heaven is heard to say, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Mt 3:17). The Star of David in the upper right hand corner signifies our Lord’s Davidic lineage.
In the center panel, you see Jesus changing water into wine at the marriage feast of Cana, his first public miraculous sign. Notice the rose, once again representing Mary who called the dilemma of the newly married couple to Jesus’ attention and instructed the servants to “do whatever he tells you.” The interlocking rings at the top of the panel symbolize marriage while the cross behind them links marriage to the bond of Christ to his bride, the Church (cf. Ephesians 5:25ff). The house with the seven pillars recalls the prophetic verses found in Proverbs 9:1,5: “Wisdom has built her house, she has set up her seven columns; …Come, eat of my food, and drink of the wine I have mixed!” The changing of water into wine and the miraculous multiplication of the loaves and fishes, represented in the bottom portion of the window, anticipate the institution of the Eucharist.
The left panel portrays the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain with his face as dazzling as the sun and his clothes as radiant as light (cf. Luke 9:28). Moses – holding the Ten Commandments, representing the Law – and Elijah are present below him; notice the mountain peak behind them. The ladder that extends from the middle panel through this one once again symbolizes the earthly realm reaching up to the heavenly realm.