World Youth Day 97

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Thursday, August 21
A Treasure in Stained Glass
On our fourth day in Paris we headed out of Paris for a side trip to an incredible place -- the cathedral of Notre Dame de Chartres. This French High Gothic cathedral, first built in the 12th century, has magnificent sculptures and incredible stained glass that all combine to tell a single story -- the story of salvation. For the illiterate peasant of the Middle Ages, the sculptures and windows became the catechisms and Bible commentaries of their time.
We took an hour bus ride out to the village of Chartres, praying the Rosary on the way. My first impression was amazement at how neat all of the public areas are. Every blade of grass, field of flowers, and hedgerow was perfectly manicured and maintained and there wasn't a bit of trash anywhere. In fact, I must say that the French people are the ten times neater than Americans. And as we traveled through the flat lands surrounding the village, we finally saw the cathedral as it dominates the surrounding countryside, because nothing else in the area is even close to being as tall.

Chartres at night
Chartres illuminated at night

Chartre and me
The author standing in the square before the cathedral

Shedding Light on Our Souls

Group shot in the transept doorway
Listening to Chartres expert Malcom Miller as we sit
in the doorway to the north transept.

Veil of Our Lady in Chartres
The veil reputed to have been worn by Our Lady when
she gave birth to Jesus and the reason for the cathedral The cathedral was originally built in the 12th century and was rebuilt after a fire destroyed the whole church except for the smaller, simpler tower and the whole crypt. A large, 16th century tower is evidence of further additions. It was built to house the Veil of Our Lady, a relic believed to have been the veil she wore while giving birth to Jesus and the object of pilgrimage from all over Europe since the earliest days. When the fire burned down the village and the cathedral, everyone thought the veil was lost. The cathedral burned for three days and no one was able to go in and see if the veil was lost. After three days, three priests emerged from the crypt, miraculously unscathed, and carrying the veil which they risked their lives to save.
Upon our arrival at the cathedral we were ushered inside for our Mass with Cardinal Law. The bad news was that we couldn't have Mass in the crypt as originally planned. The good news was that we were going to have Mass at the high altar. If I had thought Mass at Notre Dame was beautiful, this was even more so. Groups of pilgrims inside and outside sang hymns of praise and joy and it sounded like the song of angels as it floated around the soaring ceilings. I can imagine what it must have been like for a medieval pilgrim, never having seen a skyscraper or other building bigger than the local baron's castle coming to Chartre and standing in awe as he saw the sun streaming through the red and blue and gold stained glass and the soaring ceilings. He might have felt like he was standing on the threshold of heaven, much like I did.
After Mass, we were given a brief tour of the cathedral by the foremost, Enlgish expert on Chartres, Malcolm Miller. In his words, Chartres isn't just a building, it's a library with each window and each statue telling its own story. To give a tour in 45 minutes is like trying to show someone all the books in the Library of Congress in the same amount of time. So he showed us representative works and explained their meaning, including a window that is a commentary on the story of Adam and Eve, comparing it to Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan.

The lower half of the 13th century window depicts Jesus telling the Pharisees the story of the Good Samaritan -- a man who helped a Jew who had been robbed and beaten, even though he was considered a foreigner and outsider by the Jews. The poor victim had already been passed by a priest and a Levite, prominent Jews who should have helped him. The upper half of the windows depict the events of the Book of Genesis, chapters 2, 3, & 4, which are seen to relate to the parable, including the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the serpent, the eating of the forbidden fruit, God's punishment, and Cain's murder of Abel. It even shows Adam with the apple stuck in his throat (the Adam's apple!), a medieval innovation.
The man leaving Jerusalem represents mankind forced from Eden, the thieves attacking the man represent the temptations that plague man, the priest and the Levite represent the Old Testament unable to heal humanity's wounds, and the Good Samaritan is Christ while the inn where the Samaritan brings the man is the Church. His promise to return the next day represents Christ's promise of His Second Coming. And this is just one window in the cathedral!
After the all too brief presentation, John and I spent some time alone exploring the cathedral. I wandered over to see Mary's veil and pray there for a while. I guess I wandered around for quite a while too, just staring and being in awe of this amazing building. We didn't have too much more time in Chartres, since we had to get on our buses at 1:30 for the return to Paris, so John and I went down into the village, found a bakery, and ate some bread and cheese for lunch. Of course, most of the teens found their way to the local McDonald's. I was constantly amazed at the lack of a spirit of adventure and innovation. To most of them, their visit to France should be just like being in America for it to be perfect. I just don't understand.
We returned to Bagnolet and groups were free to do their own thing, including attending the welcoming ceremony for Holy Father at Champs-de-Mars. But I was too tired to deal with the crowds and the heat, so I decided to stay in the hotel, get over the last effects of the jet lag, and watch the ceremonies on television. Later that evening, I went into town for dinner with John, Krissy, Sarah, and Sue, and we dined at a Latin Quarter cafe. While we were eating a group of Italian pilgrims came by and sang a silly song to the assembled diners. It seemed like everywhere we went a group of pilgrims was singing or laughing or praying. The whole city was alive with the spirit of World Youth Day, which is in the fact the Spirit of the Church.
Day Five
Window of Good Samaritan & Adam and Eve
The 13th century window depicting the allegory between the
story of Adam and Eve and the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Copyright ©1997 Domenico Bettinelli, Jr. All Rights Reserved.
Comments to dom@bettnet.com
Revised November 15, 1997.
URL is: http://www.bettnet.com/wyd/dayfour.html

Thursday, August 21 A Treasure in Stained Glass On our fourth day in Paris we headed out of Paris for a side trip to an incredible place -- the cathedral of Notre Dame de Chartres. This French High Gothic cathedral, first built in the 12th century, has magnificent sculptures and incredible stained glass that all combine to tell a single story -- the story of salvation. For the illiterate peasant of the Middle Ages, the sculptures and windows became the catechisms and Bible commentaries of their time. We took an hour bus ride out to the village of Chartres, praying the Rosary on the way. My first impression was amazement at how neat all of the public areas are. Every blade of grass, field of flowers, and hedgerow was perfectly manicured and maintained and there wasn't a bit of trash anywhere. In fact, I must say that the French people are the ten times neater than Americans. And as we traveled through the flat lands surrounding the village, we finally saw the cathedral as it dominates the surrounding countryside, because nothing else in the area is even close to being as tall.	Chartres illuminated at night The author standing in the square before the cathedral
Shedding Light on Our Souls
Listening to Chartres expert Malcom Miller as we sit in the doorway to the north transept. The veil reputed to have been worn by Our Lady when she gave birth to Jesus and the reason for the cathedral	The cathedral was originally built in the 12th century and was rebuilt after a fire destroyed the whole church except for the smaller, simpler tower and the whole crypt. A large, 16th century tower is evidence of further additions. It was built to house the Veil of Our Lady, a relic believed to have been the veil she wore while giving birth to Jesus and the object of pilgrimage from all over Europe since the earliest days. When the fire burned down the village and the cathedral, everyone thought the veil was lost. The cathedral burned for three days and no one was able to go in and see if the veil was lost. After three days, three priests emerged from the crypt, miraculously unscathed, and carrying the veil which they risked their lives to save. Upon our arrival at the cathedral we were ushered inside for our Mass with Cardinal Law. The bad news was that we couldn't have Mass in the crypt as originally planned. The good news was that we were going to have Mass at the high altar. If I had thought Mass at Notre Dame was beautiful, this was even more so. Groups of pilgrims inside and outside sang hymns of praise and joy and it sounded like the song of angels as it floated around the soaring ceilings. I can imagine what it must have been like for a medieval pilgrim, never having seen a skyscraper or other building bigger than the local baron's castle coming to Chartre and standing in awe as he saw the sun streaming through the red and blue and gold stained glass and the soaring ceilings. He might have felt like he was standing on the threshold of heaven, much like I did. After Mass, we were given a brief tour of the cathedral by the foremost, Enlgish expert on Chartres, Malcolm Miller. In his words, Chartres isn't just a building, it's a library with each window and each statue telling its own story. To give a tour in 45 minutes is like trying to show someone all the books in the Library of Congress in the same amount of time. So he showed us representative works and explained their meaning, including a window that is a commentary on the story of Adam and Eve, comparing it to Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan.
The lower half of the 13th century window depicts Jesus telling the Pharisees the story of the Good Samaritan -- a man who helped a Jew who had been robbed and beaten, even though he was considered a foreigner and outsider by the Jews. The poor victim had already been passed by a priest and a Levite, prominent Jews who should have helped him. The upper half of the windows depict the events of the Book of Genesis, chapters 2, 3, & 4, which are seen to relate to the parable, including the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the serpent, the eating of the forbidden fruit, God's punishment, and Cain's murder of Abel. It even shows Adam with the apple stuck in his throat (the Adam's apple!), a medieval innovation. The man leaving Jerusalem represents mankind forced from Eden, the thieves attacking the man represent the temptations that plague man, the priest and the Levite represent the Old Testament unable to heal humanity's wounds, and the Good Samaritan is Christ while the inn where the Samaritan brings the man is the Church. His promise to return the next day represents Christ's promise of His Second Coming. And this is just one window in the cathedral! After the all too brief presentation, John and I spent some time alone exploring the cathedral. I wandered over to see Mary's veil and pray there for a while. I guess I wandered around for quite a while too, just staring and being in awe of this amazing building. We didn't have too much more time in Chartres, since we had to get on our buses at 1:30 for the return to Paris, so John and I went down into the village, found a bakery, and ate some bread and cheese for lunch. Of course, most of the teens found their way to the local McDonald's. I was constantly amazed at the lack of a spirit of adventure and innovation. To most of them, their visit to France should be just like being in America for it to be perfect. I just don't understand. We returned to Bagnolet and groups were free to do their own thing, including attending the welcoming ceremony for Holy Father at Champs-de-Mars. But I was too tired to deal with the crowds and the heat, so I decided to stay in the hotel, get over the last effects of the jet lag, and watch the ceremonies on television. Later that evening, I went into town for dinner with John, Krissy, Sarah, and Sue, and we dined at a Latin Quarter cafe. While we were eating a group of Italian pilgrims came by and sang a silly song to the assembled diners. It seemed like everywhere we went a group of pilgrims was singing or laughing or praying. The whole city was alive with the spirit of World Youth Day, which is in the fact the Spirit of the Church. Day Five	The 13th century window depicting the allegory between the story of Adam and Eve and the parable of the Good Samaritan.