Statue of (Saint) Louis IX in Sainte-Chapelle, constructed by his commission.
After visiting two different churches and the Middle Ages museum, I think it’s fair to say we’ve seen a lot of religious art in the past two days. But more than just within church walls, Catholic tradition is pervasive in French culture, no matter who you are. Dr. Smith told us about how she absorbed knowledge of Catholic holidays and feast days, saints, figures, and customs just by simply existing in Paris. However, France is not a country where people talk about religion. Smith told us that even the most devout don’t talk to other people about their beliefs. “While the U.S. has freedom of religion,” she explained, “France has freedom from religion.” France tries to be as secular as possible, even banning religious symbols in public schools and government buildings (leading to a whole new slew of issues concerning Muslim head coverings, but I’m not qualified to write about that issue).
But I think its interesting that even though religion in the United States is so widely and openly talked about, it doesn’t dramatically impact day-to-day life. Most Catholics in the U.S., don’t celebrate saint’s feast days, or Epiphany, Holy Days of obligation, or go to mass on Sundays—what you may call “Christmas and Easter” Catholics. And that’s not to mention everyone else in America, the majority of whom are protestant.
Notre-Dame de Paris, an iconic French symbol, often referred to as the heart of Paris. The grief of the 2019 fire was felt throughout all of France.
Of course, it’s because France is a historically Catholic nation, with deep historical ties to the papacy, saints, bishops, and Catholic kings. Christian iconography, churches, abbeys, and history is literally all over the country. Paris is no different. There are dozens of churches everywhere you look. It’s literally built in to the culture, standing tall for all to see—believers or otherwise.
The Pantheon, a temple to the people, is a prominent example of French attitudes of secularism.
It’s a bizarre juxtaposition: secularism, and freedom from religion, set against the underlying religious background to French culture. Saint Louis, Saint Genevieve, Saint Joan d’Arc, Saint Jacques and his scallop shells built into the facades of buildings on the roads to Spain, the list goes on. All of these people, and the places associated with them, have intense connections to France and to Paris. And while Parisians are by no means a monolith of creed or belief, the importance of Catholicism in the city’s environment can’t be denied.
Dr. Smith mentioned being surprised when she learned Americans don’t buy a king cake for Epiphany. Most Americans don’t celebrate Epiphany at all. But she did, and she’s not even Christian—she’s Jewish. And I wouldn’t turn down an extra holiday if it meant I got to eat cake either, but it raises the question: can France really be as free from religion as it claims?