Not All Churches In Paris Are Old!

The other day we were on our way to a large public market in a part of Paris that was new to us. We rode the bus to the area; then, following the map with some help from a couple of Paris citizens along the way, we got on the right track to the market. However, as we walked towards our destination, we saw this beautiful, new looking building. It is sort of rose colored. It did not take us long to identify the building as a beautiful church, with a magnificent tower and entrance way.


We discovered that it is the Church of Saint-Odile, and it was actually completed in 1946. The church was built on a parcel of land that was reconquered from Russian troops which had occupied this area beginning in 1814. When the land was repossessed by France, strong fortifications were built that were deisgned to withstand artillery fire. These fortifications remained until the 1920's. Gradually the wall was removed, and the land area became a wasteland. In 1934 the Catholic diocese was offered a part of this land upon which to build a church.

The building project began in 1935 following a period of fund raising. Construction was interrupted as World War II began during what was called the "Phony War." This was a period of time after the declaration of war before much fighting took place. Then, Paris was occupied by the Germans, and work on the church actually resumed during the occupation. The beginnings of the tower suffered fire from the onslaught of people who sought refuge there during this time. The bells that were to be installed were hidden near the town of Chartres. Following the end of the occupation, the church became a part of a newly established parish in April 1953. It is a beautiful church.

The church was named for the patron saint, Odile, a young blind man who recovered his sigh following his baptism as a Christian. The church has beautiful, very large and colorful windows done in the Art Nouveau style.

We discovered a beautiful city park next to the church. Of course, it was beautiful. All of the many, many parks in Paris are beautiful. This one also had a well designed and colorful playground for children, and it was well populated with "little ones" - with parents looking on - when we were there.

By the way, the market was very large and extremely crowded with local folks. We bought a few things and then enjoyed lunch at a Thai Restaurant that was on our way back to catch #92 bus. Paris is filled with adventures just waiting for us to appear to enjoy them. And, we never know what all we will find when we go looking for a new market to visit. Much fun!

Today was a great Saturday

Today was a great Saturday. It was neither too hot nor cold and the clouds didn’t look like rain. Don has a wedding this afternoon, but we decided to “cut loose” in the morning and go to another street market and take a look around the area.

We headed to southwest Paris on the metro to an area that was part of the old hamlet of Vaugirard that became a part of Paris in 1860. After strolling down a few streets we headed to Parc Brassens which is a rolling, landscaped city park about 22 acres in size. The park area formerly was the vineyard for the hamlet and there is still a small vineyard of pinot noir vines included within the park area today. Then the vineyard area evolved into a market gardening space, and about 1894 it became an abattoir….. which is the French word for slaughterhouse!!!! It remained such for 80 years.



There are several remnants from the slaughterhouse establishment that are still visible today. One, the large stone entry gate with a carved horse head is still in place. Another is the belfry which is surrounded by a freeform lake with several families of ducks paddling around. A third is the steel framed open“horses hall” which today was being used for a used book sale. They also used many of the stones from the old buildings in a large climbing wall for the younger people to enjoy.


At the new entrance to the park there are two magnificent bull statues in place by two pavilions. One structure is used as a senior citizens center, while the other can be rented for cultural events. The planners for the park really used their imaginations as there are a couple of creative play areas for smaller children plus a marionette theater, several miles of jogging trails, a herbal garden, a “scented” garden, a bee hive and benches on several levels to enjoy the views. All in all, this park named for a famous singer who lived nearby, was a refreshing enjoyable experience.

Afterwards we meandered on down the way to the market where we had a hard time choosing between all the beautiful fruits and vegetables. Later, with backpacks loaded, we arrived home a bit late for lunch, but with great anticipation of sinking our teeth into one of the juicy peaches we had purchased.

Massacre of Protestants in 1572

Saint Germain was the first bishop of Paris, and the 6th century basilica of St. Germain des Pres, named after him, is probably the oldest church in Paris. We often get off of bus #63 in front of this church in its present form in order to cross the street to a Monaprix Supermarket. The St. Germain community became a Benedictine Abbey during the 7th & 8th centuries and the center of intellectual life and learning in Paris for centuries to come. It was in the 16th century that Jacques Lefevre translated the first French Bible and in the process, became sympathetic with the Protestant cause. Through Lefevre's teaching Guillaume Farel and other intellectual Christians were captivated by the Protestant ideas. The bishop of St. Germain invited Lefevre to come and teach at the church. Over time, in the neighborhood of St. Germain, many French Protestants, called Hugenots, lived. In 1555, in the basement of what is now an art gallery, the first Parisian Protestant baptisms took place, and the first Reformed Synod met in 1559.

Protestant history in Paris took a dark turn, however, with the infamous St. Bartholomew Day Massacre on August 24, 1572 Thousands of Protestants were killed. Over a thousand corpses were thrown into the Seine River, and they washed up along the banks of what were then islands and marshland outside the city, but where now is located the American Church in Paris.

It is humbling and a bit startling to realize that our church here, a Protestant Church, is built upon the site where the bodies of so many Protestant Christian martyrs drifted ashore after an ugly and tragic death! The commemoration of St. Bartholomew Day is coming up on Monday, August 24th.

(researched by our senior pastor, the Rev. Dr. Scott Herr)

Marco Polo in France?

The other day as we rode from the church to China Town on the bus to meet some friends for lunch, we passed a very large and explosive fountain. So, on the way back home, we hopped off the bus to explore it. Much to our surprise we discovered the fountain, which is located just south of Luxemburg Gardens, is in the Garden Marco Polo!!! It is right next to the Garden Robert Chavelier de la Salle which contains several very nice sculptures. The land that the two gardens are on was previously occupied by the Castle Vauvert in the early 1200s. This castle was said to be inhabited by the devil, so King Robert le Pieux gave the land to the monks of Chartres in 1257. They kept it until they were driven out during the French Revolution, and it has now been developed as parks…

Most of us know that Marco Polo, the great explorer from Europe through Asia to China, was an important character, even in France. But do you know that Robert Chavelier de la Salle was the Frenchman who stomped around the Great Lakes, sailed down the Mississippi river into the Gulf of Mexico and claimed that watershed for France before 1687? (This area was later known as the Louisiana Purchase.)

The fountain in Garden Marco Polo Park, named “Fountain of the Four Parts of the World” is actually one committee assignment that turned out great! It was built between 1867 and 1874. There were four different artists involved, plus a different fellow managing the foundering.



The fountain in the Garden Marco Polo Park, named “Fountain of the Four Parts of the World” is actually one committee assignment that turned out great! It was built between 1867 and 1874. There were four different artists involved, plus a different fellow managing the foundering.

At the top of the fountain is a ribbed sphere decorated with the signs of the zodiac. Supporting the sphere are four dancing women representing four parts of the world. The woman with the thick curly hair and a chain around her leg represents Africa. To her left is the American woman with a pseudo head dress of feathers….a Native American. She is standing on the end of the chain of the African woman. To the American’s left is an Anglo-Saxon woman for the Europeans. To her left is a pigtailed Asian woman.




They are placed on a base decorated with beautifully carved garlands. Below the garlands, the fountain spreads out to contain four dolphins who spout water into a larger pond. Between the dolphins are eight spirited looking horse/fish. While the front end of the sculptures are beautiful horses that you can almost hear neighing, instead of back legs there are fish tales and fins to tie the front and back together.



To complete the fountain are eight tortoises standing on their hind legs spewing water over the entire sculpture. The first time we saw the fountain there was tan/greenish water going up and onto the whole fountain. Two days later when we went back for more pictures, the fountain had been emptied, totally scrubbed and was in the process of refilling. Because of this, the tortoises were only “spitting” a little clean water but we were able to get much better pictures of all the parts of the fountains.

[NOTE: You can enlarge the pictures to view. They are large files for better quality, so you can scroll up and down and sideways as desired. When finished viewing the enlarged picture, use the backup arrow to return to the blog page)

Wedding Ministry Ongoing

The wedding ministry of The American Church in Paris is going well. What a wonderful time I am having sharing with these couples. It is hard to even begin to explain how exciting it is to be able to focus so much of my time on weddings. The couple in this picture, for example. Jxxxxx, is of Dutch, French, and American background in his immediate family. Sxxxx, his bride, is Chinese American. We had over 100 people from the U.S. who flew over to share in this wedding, plus people from Bejing, Hong Kong, Tiwan, Holland, France, and more. On top of this, the Wiffenpoofs, the famous male chorus group of 14 selected Yale seniors, made their way to Paris while on a world tour to sing at this wedding. In addition, we had a solid Christian centered wedding.

This couple, Mrxxxx & Msxxxx, was also a delight for me to work with. The bride's father is from Peru; her mother is from Spain. They live in Paris. They also lived in the U.S. for a number of years, so Ms Mxxxx grew up in Spain, the U.S., and in France. Mr xxxx is an American. He has a European background but a couple of generations back. He presently lives in Arizona where he is learning to be a pilot. He and Ms Mxxxx met on Facebook! They both worked on the Obama campaign. Ms Mxxxx was also studying at a U.S. university at the time. As active workers, they were invited to attend the inauguration. Mr. Mxxxx put the question on Facebook inquiring where other student attendees were going to stay in Washington. Ms Mxxxx answered with the name of the hotel where she and some friends were planning to stay. Needless to say there was more correspondence. They finally met in Washington, hit it off, and went to one of the inaugeration balls together. On August 1st they shared in the Blessing of Marriage service at The American Church. Again, we had people attending from the U.S., from Peru, Spain, and from France.

Of course, every couple has a story. Don't we all?

This picture is one of the numerous Japanese weddings that I have had so far. I believe the number of family and friends who flew to Paris from Tokyo was 35. We shared 5 bottles of champagne in toasts, and only a couple had refills. Both sets of parents were present, and the bride's father walked her down the aisle. Her parents speak very good English, so I had a good visit with them. I believe that this is the largest group that I have had come from Japan. Usually it is only the couple or, perhaps, half a dozen family members. Most all of the Japanese weddings are read in English and in Japanese.

The Paris Beaches

Paris is crisscrossed with many streets and avenues of course, as any large city would be. If you were driving along the Seine there are streets above the river, some under ground bypasses and also some roads along the Seine itself. In the month of August, the vacation month, the city “fathers” provide a beach along the Seine for the Parisians who can not go away on holiday.

In two places along the banks of the Seine they close off traffic on the street and create a beach there. They bring in tons of sand, potted palm trees and literally change the road into a beach with a walkway to stroll. There are swimming pools, beachside café’s, a concert stage, beach games, lounge chairs and, of course, sand to lie upon. With 3 kilometers in the main centrally located one, a lot of people can enjoy this area.

The other Seine beach is considered a bit more intellectual with free newspapers, wifi connections and art classes. There are boats anchored along the shore that offer musical shows at night, along with community dancing.

The third beach, located in a wide spot of a canal in Paris, offers more water sports with the beach. There are boats to row, kayaks to paddle, and pedal boats to use. There are even boules courts (a sort of outdoor bowling game) to try out.

As of yet we haven’t spent time on the beach, but I did take a few pictures to give you an idea of the layout. Where ever you are this summer, we hope that you are enjoying your “beach”, relaxing, and having a good time!!!!

Yet Another Independence Day - Liberia

Yet another Independence Day. The 26th of July is the date of this special holiday for Liberia, which celebrated the 162nd year of its Declaration of Independence this year. One of the fascinating things about living in Paris for a while is the opportunity to mix with folks of a multitude of cultures. Because of my position as one of the pastors of The American Church in Paris, I have the opportunity to be right in the middle of this mixture, and it often includes Nancy.
Nancy and were invited to attend an all night party sponsored by the Liberian Association of Paris on Saturday evening, 25 July. No, we did not stay all night as I was scheduled for preaching at 3 services on Sunday.
It was very interesting. I was actually invited to the event so that I could give the opening prayer for the program. The man from the Liberian Embassy (and a member of the American Church) who invited us said that he hoped that I could offer a “powerful prayer” on behalf of his people and his nation. Well, I tried my best. Even so, it was much shorter than the following speeches.
The actual program was late in starting (not unusual in France and certainly not unusual for Africans). By the time that the program started an hour late, about 10 p.m., the large room where the celebration was held was full, mostly with people from Liberia. We were about the only “white” folks there. The Ambassador was the main speaker, and he did a good job of speaking to the history of his country, including what he called the senseless civil war of recent years. His main emphasis was on the courage needed for his people to overcome the problems and challenges that face their country. He reminded his listeners that Africans have as much ability to organize and manage their affairs as any other people on earth. I would agree with that. Of course, having the ability and actually doing it can be two different things!
Later in the evening the Ambassador came over and talked with me for several minutes. One thing I learned is that he was an architect for many years, and he lived and worked in Oklahoma City, OK for a long time. I was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, not far from Oklahoma City, so this common experience of geography broke the ice for our conversation. The most interesting thing is that he went through my prayer almost line for line. He talked of the fact that Liberia, initially settled by former slaves from the U.S., was based on Christian teachings and principles. The national anthem, which was later sung, has several references to God including “Long live Liberia, happy land, a home of glorious liberty by God’s command” and “In union strong success is sure. We cannot fail with God above….”
We were served an authentic (as possible in Paris) Liberian dinner with roasted chicken, fried fish heads, three rice dishes of varying “heats”, salads, and honey cakes for dessert. There were several sauces to add to the dishes starting with hot and ending with “smoke comes out your ears”. I finally met my match after trying the last one!!!
We joined the parade of dancers for a while as the music from Liberia overcame most of our ability to converse. About 1:30 a.m., one of the ambassador’s personal drivers gave us a ride home. I set two alarm clocks to make sure that I got up for my first preaching opportunity at 9 a.m. Actually, I awoke before the alarm clocks went off.
[Pictures: Liberian Ambassador to France: (1) talking with Don (2) with Liberian flag]

Wallace Fountains & John Adam's Home

Several times as we have been walking around in neighborhoods, we have seen these very interesting, dark green statue like objects with water trickling down the center. After doing some research we discovered that they are officially Wallace Fountains. After the Franco-Prussian War which ended in 1871 there was almost no clean drinking water for the people of Paris. A wealthy British philanthropist financed the installation of 50 of these fountains in each section of Paris so that people could have pure drinking water.

The first fountains were nicknamed the “Brewery of the Four Women” because it had four women in a circle holding up the top of the fountain. These women were draped in scanty tunics which showed a knee. Between the women was a shelf like connection which had a frogs mouth with a cup attached. You were almost invited to take the cup and catch a drink of the water flowing down from the top of the fountain (and behind the women).

These fountains were so popular and necessary that more than 100 more copies have been built and almost all of them are still in use. Most are located in a small park or city square. While I would hesitate to drink from the fountain, our three grandchildren had a great time on a warm day splashing the water and rebaptising each other.

Near the fountain in northwest Paris that we last visited, we also saw the residence of John Adams and John Quincy Adams when they lived here in Paris as diplomats. John Adams first came to Paris in 1778 to negotiate the Treaty of Paris which was signed in September of 1783. This officially ended the Revolutionary War. Young John Quincy had been only 10 when he came with his father to France, but he had been enrolled in a French school. He learned French very well and he used it quite often when he was older as it was the official language of diplomacy at that time. The residence is now doctor’s offices.

If August Is the Month...........

If August is the month for vacation in Paris, then July must be the month for moving!! As we travel to different parts of the city, we keep seeing indications that people are moving “lock, stock and barrel”. Now, I know that there are people who have only small amounts of things to move and they will call a friend who has a vehicle, or rent a small van for a day. But, what we have seen a lot is something unique to Europe.

In the inter city of Paris most of the more expensive apartments buildings will have an elevator. However, it seems that it is easier to remove a window, put up a conveyer type ladder and then haul everything down to a waiting truck. The conveyer/ladder contraption is interesting as it arrives all neatly folded within itself on a small truck. Slowly it just unfolds and grows until it can reach up at least 7 floors. On this ladder is a metal box about a meter square with sides that can fold down to make a flat platform that glides up and down the ladder. Sometimes the box is left formed as a box to transport things, but more often boxes are carefully balanced on the flat platform to descend to be taken off and packed into the moving truck. At least two, but usually three men work at this job with one loading the platform at the top, one hydraulically moving the platform and removing the boxes at the bottom and one person packing the truck.

The French seem to pay no attention to all this, while we tourists stop and gaze at the scene. So far, I haven’t seen nary a box fall off the platform midways down.

Jesse Jackson at American Church in Paris

Sunday, August 9, 2009 From Paris
Dear Family and Friends,
There was excitement here at The American Church in Paris this morning as we welcomed Rev. Jesse Jackson as a guest preacher for our 11:00 a.m. service. The church was packed as we shared in a great worship experience that included an adult baptism as well as the special sermon. Rev. Jackson preached on the topic of Peace-Making. It was a powerful sermon in content and was delivered in a powerful way as well. He talked of the dream for peace, the difficulty of actually working for peace. To paraphrase: We so often give in to strategies of war and violence rather than peace-making, though war does not ever lead to really winning peace. He spoke of Jesus’ words regarding peace-makers in the Beatitudes. He drew applause as he repeated again and again “We must work for peace every day.” He gave examples of places where peace is so desperately needed now. The 20 minute sermon was challenging and certainly relevant.
Following the service he shook hands with many people, did an interview for a Paris TV station, then went to the senior pastor’s apartment for a light lunch. Nancy and I, along with other pastoral staff and a few others joined in for the lunch. He left in order to get some rest before departing tomorrow for Africa. He will be involved there in some peace negotiations. We are not clear about the details.
His schedule this morning was interesting. His plane landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport at 9:00 a.m. from his flight from the U.S. He was met by a news crew and interviewed for 15 minutes at the airport. Then he was driven as quickly as possible to The American Church, arriving at 10:55 a.m. He was ushered in to the senior pastor’s office, where we greeted him, had a picture taken, helped him into his robe, wired him with a cordless mike. The senior pastor gave him a worship bulletin pointed out the sermon, and asked if he would like to give the benediction. We entered the sanctuary at exactly 11:00 a.m. with the organ prelude in progress.
Even though we had a very full service, we recessed out of the sanctuary at just about 12:05 p.m. with a whole host of folks who hoped to be able to shake Rev. Jackson’s hand.
It was a great day!!!!! Our 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. services continued as scheduled, and I conducted a memorial service in the church library for about 35 people at 2:00 p.m. I was ready for a nap – and took it.

[Note on pictures - (1) I helped lead worship, so included a picture. (2) Jesse Jackson during his sermon (3) Picture before the service. On the right is our senior pastor, Scott Herr, the Rev. Jackson, then me, then our associate pastor, Laurie Wheeler] - photos by Nancy & Fred Gramann

Peace! Don and Nancy