Morning prayer today in Église Saint-Vorles in Châtillon-sur-Seine. I've decided to stay for the day, do the tourist thing for a bit, and regain a bit of energy before heading towards the Alps over the next few days.The church was delightful, with a tenth century foundation (there was a wonderful altar in a crypt that seemed to be part of the original building) and an amazing sculptural work of the burial of Christ featuring a collection of full-sized figures, superbly crafted, gathered around the prostrate body of Christ - and it was possible to walk among the figures, to become part of the scene. A lived Ignatian experience.
But for me the gem was this tiny window on the stairway down to the crypt. An old and delightful piece of stained glass which, as far as I can tell, doesn't show a scene from the Gospels or a gruesome moment from the death of a martyred saint (the French seem very keen on detailed and distressing depictions of martyrdom) or anything else particularly ecclesiastical. It looks to me for all the world like a lad heading off to school with his book or packed lunch, the dog waiting to follow him, and the mother saying a last farewell.
If you know otherwise, don't tell me. This little domestic scene made me smile.
///tramway.infects.trade
It is indeed a schoolboy - ‘A beautiful (modern) stained glass window shows us Aleth, mother of Saint Bernard, leading him to the school of the monks of the chapter of Saint-Vorles where he was educated.’
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely stained glass window, and you were right about the young boy. ( thank you Sally) Good idea to take some time out and look forward to learning more about this lovely place x
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