Les Eglises de France

Oh dear!  Things were going so well with the blog and I have received some really nice comments to date.  However, I was given a rude awakening today when I was the recipient of a minor grumble regarding my dissitation on the night sky in the Drome.  It worries me even more in light of today's filing being on French churches but I will try and make it a tad more interesting.

For anyone who has visited France, virtually every city, town, village and even the smallest of hamlets usually contains a church.  It all stems back from the Country's wholesale adoption of the catholic faith which still holds strong today - well not as strong as you might think - and resulted in a cathedral and church construction boom, the likes that has never been repeated.

There are some wonderful examples from the Cathedral of Notre Dame to those in the Drome which are only large enough to handle a congregation of five and one of those includes the Vicar! 

I have attached three photos tonight, the most interesting one being La Chapelle Saint-Jean D'Ollon which is close to our base here and is situated on the top of a 500 foot cliff! You really do need to be a believer to attend the monthly service here as it involves a mile walk up a 1 in 4 gradient!

To end on a serious note, the Catholic Church is in serious decline here as more than 35% of the population profess to having no religion and only 1 in 20 attend Mass.  Many of the churches are now being sold off and converted into houses, restaurants and even clubs.  As far as the Chapel near us is concerned, I predict that if it is ever sold, the local base jumping club will be the purchasers!