Saint Roch

Patron Saint of Dogs and those who love them. "The least we owe them is to live a life that is worthy of their devotion..."



As a dog lover St. Roch is one Saint I can relate to. His story is an interesting one. He was born with a privileged background but renounced his nobility and wealth to go to Rome to care for plague victims. While in Rome he contracted the disease himself. Not wanting to burden anyone with his own suffering he went to live in the forest. There he met a dog who brought him food daily and licked Roch's wounds until he recovered from the plague.



Unfortunately, all his family had died and no one recognized him when he returned. He was imprisoned for false impersonation where he died with his faithful companion 5 years later.

The picture of the painting was taken a St. Joseph in St. Joseph and the statue in St. Peter of St. Peter.

St. Joseph (Christ from birth to adulthood) Stained Glass

St. Joseph Catholic Church in St. Joseph, Ohio like most of the Cross Tipped Churches has some amazing Stained Glass Windows. I noticed that there were a good number that featured Jesus in varying stages of his life and decided to highlight them here.

The Nativity the Birth of Jesus.



The Holy Family's Flight to Egypt.



The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple.



Jesus Found in the Temple.



Jesus as a Young Man.



Jesus at his fathers Passing.

St. Joseph (Pulpit)

One of my unique finds in the Land of the Cross Tipped Churches is this historical pulpit in the St. Joseph Catholic Church in St. Joseph, Ohio. The Infant Jesus of Prague greets the priest as he ascends the stairs.



The base of the pulpit is surrounded by statues of the Four Evangelists with their associated symbol.



From left to right we have, John (Eagle), Mark (Lion), Luke (Ox) and Matthew (Human/Angel)



Jesus adorns the top, holding a tablet with Alpha and Omega.

St. Joseph (Crucifixion the Three Mary's)

I've posted a picture of this before, but I thought I'd try it again with a little more light (I brought a strobe). This is not an easy shot as it is located at the very top of the altar.



The Gospel of John places three women (The Three Marys), at the Cross. It states that Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. John. 19:25

Picture taken at St. Joseph Catholic Church in St. Joseph, Ohio.
There are various depictions of the Crucifixion, in this one Christ is nailed to the cross with 4 nails.

St. Joseph (Keys to the Kingdom) Stained Glass

The crossed keys are a symbol of the Papacy. This is because Christ said to St. Peter that he would give him the 'keys of the kingdom' and that whatever he bound on earth, would be bound in heaven, and whatever he loosed on earth, would be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 16,19). St. Peter was the first Pope and those who have followed share this power of the keys to bind and loose.



The stained glass windows of St. Joseph are just marvelous. They are so eye catching that I almost missed the medallions at the top. This one caught my eye because of the added symbolism in the keys themselves. If anyone can shed some light on the subject please leave a comment.

Picture taken St. Joseph Catholic Church, St. Joseph, Ohio.

St. Joseph (Altar Stained Glass Windows) St. Joseph

There are two stained glass windows to the left and right of the altar of the St. Joseph church located in St. Joseph. The one on the left (pictured above) is Jesus breaking bread. I am not sure on the one on the right (pictured below).



These windows are fairly high up on the wall. I could not truly appreciate the texture and detail until I looked at the pictures I had took.

Staint Joseph (St. Joseph) Archive

St. Joseph Altar

Below are two pictures are of the altar the second being a close up of the Crucifixion. I just love the night time effect and the arches.


Church Altars
Saint Joseph Catholic Church
Saint Joseph Ohio

Missing Boy Jesus Found in the Temple

Like so many of the churches this one is not without it's beautiful stained glass windows. This is just one of many. In this one Joseph and Mary have found Jesus in the temple after searching for him.

Stained Glass Window 

Saint Joseph Catholic Church 

Saint Joseph Ohio

St. Joseph - Spire and Cemetery

St. Joseph is located between St. Henry and Fort Recovery. The church does not set directly off of 119 but is not too far off the road. You can see the spire from 119 during the day. I have made several trips to this church but have not been all that happy with the pictures. I am publishing these but I do not feel that I have found IT. "IT" being picture or pictures that best represent the church. Not to mention some of these were taken at ISO 1600. In addition to these I also added another picture of the church to the Description Of The Byway post. I went ahead and published these because it may be a while before I get back out that way and a feature on this church was long overdue.

The church has a cemetery right behind it. This picture is one of my more interesting cemetery captures. I found the snake-eye view to provide a unique perspective.

Cross Tipped Spire and Cemetery 

Saint Joseph Catholic Church 

Saint Joseph Ohio

Name That Spire

The Land of the Cross Tipped Churches gets its name from the cross tipped spires we all see as we drive the country side. The Ohio Byway features eight churches.

The Sacred Heart of Jesus
St. Augustine
St. John
St. Rose
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
St. Henry
St. Joseph
St. Anthony

Without the spires there simply would not be a "Land of the Cross Tipped Churches" Ohio Scenic Byway.


Here they can be found dotting the skyline along with water towers and silos. There is a point on the byway that you can see three cross tipped spires at once: The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Rose and St. John.

Just like the churches themselves in that they they are similar but yet unique, these eight cross tipped spires are all different. Can you identify what Cross Tipped Spire goes with which church? You'll find the answers at the bottom of this post.

CHURCH 1



















CHURCH 2



















CHURCH 3



















CHURCH 4



















CHURCH 5



















CHURCH 6



















CHURCH 7



















CHURCH 8























1. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
2. St. Augustine
3. St. John
4. The Sacred Heart of Jesus
5. St. Joseph
6. St. Rose
7. St. Henry
8. St. Anthony