Ancient and Modern

After the cathedral I went for a stroll and found myself passing Le Temple de la Saint-Madeleine, a former Catholic church which is now Protestant. I put my nose through the door, not intending to stay - I was heading for a walk along the shore of Lake Geneva.

What a peculiar and wonderful church. There were pews and chairs, sofas, armchairs, even three deckchairs (I kid you not). The architecture was medieval but alongside a modern sound system, glass panels separating various rooms and chapels, a grand piano at the front, and a coffee area at the back. As if that weren't enough there was even aa fabulous collection of Orthodox icons in a side chapel, as the congregation had kindly offered to share the building with a Bulgarian congregation.

Staffing the coffee area I met Phillip, a deacon (on the right in the photo) and his friend Rudolf, a retired pastor who has been ministering in Geneva since the late 1970s. We chatted about the Reformation, the church, my pilgrimage, Edinburgh (where Rudolf had once lived for some time), and the weather. Phillip offered me an espresso coffee, which I don't usually drink but I accepted and enjoyed.

And for those who still have doubts, here are the deckchairs:

Go figure!

///spoken.limped.monkeys