Chagall Windows in a Catholic Church

St. Stephan's Church in Mainz was originally built in 990 C.E. The current building was built between 1267 and 1340. It was damaged in the bombing of Mainz near the end of WWII. Between 1978 and 1985, the Jewish artist, Marc Chagall designed 9 windows for this church, depicting biblical scenes that were shared by both the Jewish and Christian traditions. Chagall, who fled France during the Nazi occupation, wanted to make some kind of overture toward reconciliation between Jews and Germans.

There was so much more we saw today: Roman ruins, castle walls, a cathedral made to look like a fortress on one side and an elaborate church on the other (to deter the Germanic tribes from attacking). We ate local specialties (schnitzel and egg) and drank local drinks (schoppe). But the most important story is the Chagall Windows. So I'll leave it at that, a story of extreme peacemaking in blue stained glass windows.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Political Graffiti and Other Random Shots

Image
Another travel day, this time from Dusseldorf to Strasbourg, France to meet another friend, Roland S. For today, I'll just drop a random batch of pics from all the places where we've been. Everyone together resisting fascism (Dusseldorf) Sea rescues are not crimes! Stop the deaths in the Mediterranean Sea (Dusseldorf) Bochum Nazi-free (Bochum) (Dusseldorf) We should all help the world and take better care of it and be kind to each other. (Dusseldorf) Morally backwards (Dusseldorf). Refugees Welcome (Dusseldorf) No justice (Ingelheim am Rhein) Window (Ingelheim am Rhein) Bicycle by a church (Verden, Germany)  Verden (Germany) church Window in Margret and Michael's home (Syke) Inside the water tower in Luneberg Detail from the Carnival Fountain (Mainz) In Mainz, the walk character is the Mainz man, from a local cartoon figure. Église St. Augustine (Mainz) Facsimile of a page from the Guttenburg Bible in t...
Read more

Notre Dame, the Left Bank, Another Really Old Tree, and Choux Buns!

Image
We were part of the sea of tourists at Notre Dame this morning. It was worth fighting the crowds to view the interior of the post-fire Cathedral. The beautiful rose window  St. Joan of Arc had a special place in the south transept of the cathedral. She led Paris in ousting the English invaders, then was killed as a "witch." With the benefit of hindsight they decided she wasn't a witch after all and beatified her. On the left side of the entrance is another sighting of Saint Denis holding his head. ______________ After a midmorning snack of crepes and coffee (with a marvelous view of Notre Dame), we wandered around the Latin Quarter where all the famous writers hung out in the 1920s -- Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, James Baldwin, and many more . ______________ We passed by the oldest tree in Paris. It was planted in 1602 by Jean Robin, the gardener of King Henry IV. Most trees in Paris live only about 80 to 100 years because of pollution, little water, and city life. But this...
Read more

Road Trip

Image
Before we get to Iceland, we're driving to Seattle. Gilda Radner-Tortuga is going with us, riding in her tank on the back seat. Gilda will become a Seattle resident for the next phase of her life. The car ride raised her anxiety level a little and she tried to crawl under her water bowl. The view of Mt. Shasta is always worth noting, no matter how many times we've seen it. Our California landscape has so many amazing variations. From the volcanic remnants of home, we're off to see the volcanic landscape of Iceland. 
Read more