Another of the impressive Churches of Paris which has been recently renovated is that of St Germain des Pres which is on the Boulevard of Saint-Germain on the left bank of the Seine.

Originally there was a monastery of the same name on this site.  The monastery went back to the 5th century.  Its grounds covered most of the present surrounding area of Paris.  The title ‘des Pres’ means ‘in the fields’ which indicates that this area was originally outside the city of Paris as normally the case with monasteries. 

The monastery as such came to an end with the French Revolution.  Eventually the present church occupied the site and became the parish church of the immediate area. 

Until a few years back the whole church was covered with the accumulated dust etc. of the ages, but the renovation has brought the church back into its colourful splendour.

In the first photo, we can see the full colour of the nave looking down towards the sanctuary.  The second photo shows the main altar with the original sanctuary area behind it.  The third photo shows the immediate sanctuary area.  The fourth photo shows the chapel for weekday Masses built on to the side of the main church.  Its simplicity is a great contrast to the colour and complexity of the main church.  It is also beautiful in its simplicity.  The fifth photo shows some of the images attached to the Stations of the Cross in the same weekday chapel – again, great simplicity.

By Fr Frank O’Loughlin