A Lapsed Catholic’s Guide to Paris
Vitrail dans l’église de Saint Etienne du Mont, Paris, Camille McCarthy
I am a non-believer in the Christian God. Yet I do believe rather fervently in the emotional power of a church. The scale, the acoustics, and, if you’re lucky, the history of the building have a necessarily mystic effect on the visitor. This was how it was designed. One’s absence of faith is of little importance: the building itself demands a sort of whispered respect. There can be a purely secular beauty in this for anybody.
Those with even a mild fascination for churches or ecclesiastical architecture would be spoiled in Paris: every street corner you turn provides a new beautiful church exterior, often with an interior to match. Spared the ravages of the English Reformation, many of France’s catholic churches have stood the test of time, and the historical wealth of Medieval, Early Modern, and indeed modern France makes itself known. The church of St Augustine that stands next to my Sciences Po exchange campus is just one such example. It hosts a huge interior, with a grand domed roof with saints painted in blues and golds. The building serves as no more than a local parish church.
As a lapsed catholic and church-appreciator, I set about to sift through as much as possible of this mass of church and chapel. Listed below is my definitive and subjective list of the most interesting, moving, or simply beautiful churches that Paris has to offer.
Saint-Germain-des-Prés
I fell upon this church rather serendipitously as part of a menstrual disaster. In an urgent search for tampons, I had stumbled from Sciences Po into the nearby Monoprix on Rue de Rennes. As I stumbled out, I saw the big Medieval tower and went in like a troubled wanderer seeking respite. Its outrageously painted walls, columns, and vaulted ceilings are a delight, and it has historical credentials to match: the church dates from the 13th century but there has been a place of worship on the site since the 5th century. Indeed, many of the medieval gisants that were once in this church have since been moved to the Cathedral de Saint-Denis (see below). The building is one of the few left in Paris in Romanesque style.
Sainte Chapelle
After the fire of Notre Dame, Sainte Chapelle has probably inherited the title of Paris’s most visited church. It boasts one of the most extensive collections of medieval stained glass in France: the interior of this church is so richly colourful that it almost hurts your eyes to stay for too long. It’s a relatively small chapel, that is actually a massive reliquary, designed to house the “real” Crown of Thorns, that is now held by Notre Dame. Admittedly, it is a bit of a tourist trap and therefore doesn’t lend itself easily to contemplation or any quiet moments, but certainly a must-see.
St Etienne du Mont
This church has a rather eclectic interior that appears almost cluttered with lecterns, pews, and columns. Situated right behind the Pantheon, and next to an English-style pub, Le Bombardier, the church also has a completely asymmetrical exterior. Hidden in the back of the church, however, is a remarkable collection of stained glass that professes to be the second most important in the city after Saint-Chapelle’s. The claim is of course unverifiable, but the collection is fascinating. All Cambridge FR4 veterans will also be excited to hear that this is the final resting place not just of Jean Racine, but also of Blaise Pascal! You will find their names written on the two opposite pillars at the far end of the nave of the church.
Plafond de l’église Saint Etienne du Mont, Paris, Camille McCarthy
4. Chapelle du Palais de Versailles
Whilst not technically in Paris, Versailles is accessible on your Navigo pass and its chapel is genuinely perhaps the most ethereally beautiful I’ve ever seen. The height, the light, the white stone, the golden altar. For such a garishly wealthy palace, where the decor so often clashes and overwhelms, the chapel is actually masterfully tasteful. As part of a tourist attraction that you’re likely to visit anyways, be sure not to miss this part on your march around the site.
5. Cathédrale basilique de Saint-Denis
Historically speaking, this Cathedral beats all the other churches and chapels hands down. In its crypt, it houses the remains of numerous French kings, in the form of tens of marble gisants, (typically white statues of the deceased lying prone), as Saint-Denis was the official royal sepulchre from 639 A.D. up to the 19th century.
As concerns the mystic feelings of a beautiful church, however, this Cathedral was unfortunately lacking. Despite being the first iteration of Gothic architecture, it is undoubtedly less enthralling than many of its Gothic successors. Perhaps it was the tourist office guichet awkwardly placed in the middle of the nave, to separate worshippers from the attraction of the crypt, or perhaps it was the posters written in large tasteless Arial font, encouraging gifts to various saints that upset my reformed English sensibilities. Nevertheless, the Cathedral houses funerary monuments to King Dagobert, the Clovises, Catherine de Medicis, as well as Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI, so there really is an interest for everyone. One can even see the heart of Louis XVII, out on display in the Cave des Bourbons in the crypt.
Eglise Saintt Eustache, Châtelet, Camille McCarthy
6. La Chapelle de Marie Antoinette at the Musée de la Conciergérie
Speaking of Marie Antoinette, this Chapel is the perfect example of a place that is historically fascinating but totally lacking in aesthetic appeal. A chapel within a chapel, it was constructed on the alleged site of the cell that housed Marie Antoinette before her execution, during her stint in the Conciergérie’s revolutionary prison. Black walls covered with spermatozoid silver forms, supposed to represent tears, serve as the backdrop for gold-framed portraits that feel totally incongruent adjacent to the bare stone misery of the rest of the Conciergerie. Susan Sontag could only have had this very place in mind when writing her famous essay On Camp.
7. Église de Saint Eugène et Sainte Cécile
Small, quiet, and hidden away behind the historic BNP Paribas building of the 9th,. this Second-Republic era Church is designed in the style of Sainte Chapelle, except with a peculiar, walkable gallery. Unlike Sainte Chapelle, however, the tranquillity of this site allows you to take as much time to appreciate as you like. The stained glass behind the altar and the painted interior combine elements of medieval architecture that can be found in the more famous churches, but render them on a local and accessible level. The church is beautiful without the scuffling claustrophobia of Sainte-Chapelle, and the low lighting offers welcome respite from the bustle of Paris streets.