Discover Oklahoma: Pawhuska, Osage history reflected in church's stained glass windows
Recently I attended an advance screening of the film “Killers of the Flower Moon” with other members of the media. I would strongly encourage you to see it! It is indeed powerful on so many levels, and it will stay with me for quite a while.
While I was researching my next newspaper article, I kept thinking about the film and the city of Pawhuska. And for full disclosure, I did work 15 days on the film as a background extra when they were shooting in Pawhuska. In talking with some of the crew members, they asked me on occasion for ideas and suggestions of must-see destinations in the state. And I was more than happy to give them a rather long list of suggestions.
More: What does the Oklahoma state flag have to do with 'Killers of the Flower Moon?' A lot.
And one of those ideas was right there in Pawhuska, I told the crew members, and it would be easy to visit on a day off. That destination was the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, also known as the Cathedral of the Osage.
A few years ago, I did a story on the Cathedral of the Osage for "Discover Oklahoma," and it is one that also has stayed with me. The church has been a fixture in Pawhuska since 1925. The Osages are the ones who built the church, and at that time, the church was probably 85% Osage. About that same time is when the Osages were considered the richest people per capita in the world.
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So, Osage oil money built a beautiful church with 22 stained glass windows. The windows in the tabernacle are American-made and quite beautiful. The other windows in the church were made in Munich, Germany, and their construction was halted for a time by the World War I. They are very special: The brilliant red color comes from gold dust. There is one window, though, that is exceptional. It’s one for which they are most famous — the window of Father John Schoenmakers when he brought Catholicism to the Osage Nation. They were in Kansas at the time. Schoenmakers was so instrumental that the word that the Osages use for priest is "Shouminka."
The window depicts real people, including Osage Chief Bacon Rind. Others in the scene were also Osage tribal members. Many of them were alive when the windows were made, and that was a problem. People from the church had to get special permission from the Vatican to do that, because it didn’t allow living people to be depicted in the windows.
While doing the story on the church and taking photos and shooting some video, I found myself on more than one occasion just standing and admiring the artistry in the Osage window. The figures are considered extremely life-like, and remember that this was a project that even a world war could not stop and Vatican rules did not hinder. These are considered to be some of the finest stained glass windows in America. It is my sincere hope you take time to visit this truly beautiful destination very soon.
For a list of other destinations in and around Pawhuska, just go to Travelok.com.
Dino Lalli is the co-host and one of the feature reporters for the weekly television travel show "Discover Oklahoma."
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Church's windows reflect Osage, Pawhuska history
