Stained glass is about to get a lot more expensive for churches

[TexasTowelie]

Three 18-foot holes stare out from the massive concrete structure that will become St. Stephen Catholic Church's new sanctuary in Riverview.

They were meant to hold images of the Eucharist, an elaborately decorated cross and St. Stephen clasping his hands in prayer as he readies himself to be stoned to death.

The church has never had stained glass windows before, and these were perfectly positioned to follow the trajectory of the sun as it rises and sets.

But now church officials don't know when, or if, they'll ever be filled with stained-glass depictions of those sacred images.

Read more: http://www.tampabay.com/news/religion/stained-glass-is-about-to-get-a-lot-more-expensive-for-churches/2281025

[DetlefK]

1. Here's a list, which metals create which colors.

http://geology.com/articles/color-in-glass.shtml

Cadmium Sulfide, Yellow
Gold Chloride, Red
Cobalt Oxide, Blue-Violet
Manganese Dioxide, Purple
Nickel Oxide, Violet
Sulfur, Yellow-Amber
Chromic Oxide, Emerald Green
Uranium Oxide, Fluorescent Yellow, Green
Iron Oxide, Greens and Browns
Selenium Oxide, Reds
Carbon Oxides, Amber-Brown
Antimony Oxides, White
Copper Compounds, Blue, Green, Red
Tin Compounds, White
Lead Compounds, Yellow


And gold is sort of a holy color in Christianity, so that has to be in there.

[struggle4progress]

8. "gold is sort of a holy color in Christianity" ???

[DetlefK]

12. Well, it's everywhere on christian religious imagery.

Plus, gold was one of the three gifts of the wise men, symbolizing royalty.

Compare this e.g. to Islam, where Green is present everywhere.

[trotsky]

2. Maybe they can use that money for something else.

Like, I dunno, just throwing this out there... helping the poor?

[840high]

11. They can do both.

[trotsky]

13. Yet if they skipped the expensive windows, they'd have more to help the poor.

Wouldn't that be better?

[JayhawkSD]

3. Interesting slant on the issue.

The article speaks at length about the effect of the EPA's ruling on the price of stained glass, especially for churches, but it says nothing, not one single word, about the effect on the health of people living near the glass works, what harm the cadmium was doing, and how eliminating it will improve the lives of people who live in the area where glass is made.

According to the writer the EPA is a government agency which has, as its sole purpose, harassing and persecuting businesses and making the prices of things bought by the consumer higher by imposing ridiculous regulations.

The Environmental Protection Agency, on the other hand, seems to think that its purpose is to, um, protect the environment, making it safer and more healthy for people to live in it.

[AtheistCrusader]

7. It's almost as if the author of the article might be a little pro-religion right-wingy.

Because that's always the focus for them. The inconvenience to them, not the damage to others that ZYX government agency is trying to prevent.

[cleanhippie]

4. No problem, they'll just take money from the victims-of-priest-rape fund.

and then tell the laity that funds are low so they need to fill those collection plates.

[struggle4progress]

6. "If I practice being ugly, I'll become good at that!"

[Fumesucker]

9. We have plenty of naturals at that, thank you.

[cleanhippie]

10. You giving lessons?

[NeoGreen]

5. From the article..

...I found the following quote:

The EPA crackdown on glass manufacturing regulations stems from a February investigation into high levels of cadmium — a heavy metal that can cause lung cancer — and other toxic heavy metals found in the air around two glass factories in Portland, Ore.

and then I stumbled across the following:
http://www.techtimes.com/articles/163995/20160609/high-levels-of-cobalt-cadmium-in-portland-detected-through-moss-study.htm

High Levels Of Cobalt, Cadmium In Portland Detected Through Moss Study

Portland has high levels of cobalt and cadmium, a new study has found.

The U.S. Forest Service conducted a moss study of trees and found that three Portland areas have high levels of cobalt, with the highest concentrations found in Pearl District and Southeast Portland.

The report is related to an earlier moss study in 2013, which also revealed the presence of six metals that are potentially dangerous. Through the study, the researchers were able to identify two glass companies as the source of carcinogenic cadmium in the air. As a result, the Forest Service has provided an interactive map to show areas with high levels of toxic metals.

Portlanders are worried about its effects on their health. Forest Service officials, however, said that the high levels of the metals found in the moss trees do not mean that its levels in the air are toxic. But the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will still conduct air tests to confirm.

I wonder if the two issues (i.e. heavy metals in Portland derived glass and heavy metals in the Portland environment) are related?