Repurposed treasures: two sacred objects find new life
Father Joseph Moreno holds a relic of St. Maximilian Kolbe outside the confessional, which he plans to convert into a shrine for the saint. (NTC/Kevin Bartram)
Countless treasures of the Church’s history have been lost to time. Yet sometimes sacred art and structures are rediscovered, inspiring the faithful to give these holy objects new life.
Such is the case at St. Michael Parish in Bedford and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Keller, where antique items have found a new home while retaining a mission to draw people closer to Christ. Though separated by miles and history, both projects reflect a common desire: to preserve sacred objects not as museum pieces, but as instruments of evangelization for future generations.
Seat of mercy
God’s timing is evident in Bedford, where the faithful of St. Michael Parish will soon see an old confessional restored and repurposed as a reliquary for a first-class relic of St. Maximilian Kolbe.
The confessional, donated to the church by parishioners who own a moving company, originated in Puebla, Mexico, and is believed to be more than a century old. The large wooden structure features a central seat for a small priest and screened windows on either side where penitents may kneel and confess their sins.
Father Joseph Moreno noted that a curtain was sometimes drawn around the priest’s seat to provide additional privacy during the sacrament of reconciliation.
On a pilgrimage to Poland, Fr. Moreno received a first-class relic of the Polish saint while visiting Niepokalanów, the Franciscan Monastery that Kolbe founded in 1927.
Upon his return, he learned of the unusual donation, and “it all started falling together,” Fr. Moreno said, adding the timing gave him “the idea to turn [the confessional] into a little shrine display case, so to speak.”
Because the confessional’s size and age no longer make it practical for its original use, the pastor hopes “to put the confessional back in service — this time as a relic shrine.”
The relic is strands of hair from the Franciscan priest and martyr.
“The strands of his hair are the only thing that is left of Maximilian Kolbe,” Fr. Moreno explained. “When the Nazis killed him in Auschwitz, they knew he was going to be a saint. They didn’t want him to be venerated, so they burned his body and threw the ashes into the nearby river. They didn’t know that while he was in the monastery, a monk that was cutting his hair and trimming his beard was keeping the clippings.”
With some sanding and the addition of shelves to hold the relic and its accompanying documentation, the repurposed confessional will make an ideal shrine, Fr. Moreno said.
Although work has stalled while the parish searches for a skilled volunteer to complete the refurbishment, he hopes the shrine will be finished in time for the feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe on Aug. 14.
For now, the confessional remains in the parish chapel, where Fr. Moreno believes it can “really enhance [his parishioners’] prayer life, especially those who are going through really tough situations. I mean, St. Maximilian Kolbe saw the Nazis invade … but he kept the faith and he lifted the spirits of others around him.”
Fr. Moreno said he hopes Kolbe’s witness will inspire parishioners to persevere in faith and prayer, “regardless of what their situation is, especially when it
seems hopeless.”
Reflecting on the project and how “it just kind of fell in our laps,” Fr. Moreno said, “God just gives it to us sometimes.”
Restoring a sacred he(art)
Catholic youth attending The Pines Catholic Camp in East Texas this summer will have a new opportunity to deepen their devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
As campers enter the dining hall, they will notice a striking new addition: a large stained-glass window of the Sacred Heart housed in a nearly 10-foot-tall wooden display case illuminated with LED lighting.
“The majority will look up and wonder what exactly it is,” quipped Omar Holguin of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. The past Grand Knight of Knights of Columbus Council 759 led the restoration of the antique window, a project introduced to the council in 2024 by Holguin’s fellow Knight and friend of 73 years, Guadalupe “Marty” Martinez.
The undertaking was a dream on hold for more than 30 years, Holguin explained. Martinez purchased the former chapel window from Our Lady of Victory College and Academy in Fort Worth at a 1991 auction and stored it in his garage for decades.
“My intention was to help out the Sisters of St. Mary of Namur when I bought the window,” Martinez told the North Texas Catholic.
Martinez entrusted what Holguin described as “the meaningful piece of art” to Council 759, whose members quickly began raising funds and commissioned its restoration by a local stained-glass specialist. “It didn’t take us long to realize that restoring a Sacred Heart of Jesus stained-glass window wasn’t going to be a small feat — it’s both a preservation of history and a labor of devotion,” Holguin said.
The process took a year and a half to complete, and the final product was displayed at their home parish in December 2025 where its “beauty impressed and amazed all who entered,” Holguin said. After its transfer to the Catholic camp in Big Sandy, it was securely installed to inspire generations of campers.
“For some, it may just be stained glass,” Holguin admitted, “but what I hope is once they get over the initial shock of that big thing there in the dining room, I hope they will make a Sign of the Cross and pray to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”
Along with a $1,000 donation to the Sisters of St. Mary of Namur, the Knights council placed a plaque beside the window honoring Martinez and his wife, Deanna, thanking them “for giving us the responsibility and trust.”