Along Rue Saint-Denis in Chatelêt-Les-Halles

La Fontaine des Innocents and Église Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles

From Métro Chatelêt, you pass by the Tour Saint Jacques on Rue de Rivoli on the way to Rue Saint-Denis. It is quite a long, narrow street whose present neighborhood belies its past grandeur. Rue Saint-Denis was historically important as part of the pilgrimage route to the Abbey of Saint-Denis, built on the tomb of Saint Denis, Bishop of Paris. It was the route taken by the kings of France after their coronation when they made their entry into the city of Paris and was also used by the royal funeral processions, bearing the bodies of kings for burial in the Abbey. Nowadays, the street is lined with  numerous clothing shops, restaurants, hotels and a few strip clubs.

On the way from the métro to the church, you can pass by the Fontaine des Innocents, the oldest monumental fountain in Paris. You can also take a short detour on Rue Rambuteau, which crosses Rue Saint-Denis,  to visit Église Saint-Eustache, a much grander but less intriguing church than Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles. At the opposite end of Rue Rambuteau is the Pompidou Center, the Doll Museum and the Jardin Anne Frank. It is a very lively neighborhood with constant foot traffic, and the distances are all easily walkable.

La Fontaine des Innocents

Fontaine des Innocents was named for the cemetery that was originally situated at the site.The name of the cemetery was taken from the name of a nearby church, “Église des Innocents.” The church was named after the innocent children killed in Judea by King Herod. According to the gospel of Mathew in the New Testament, Herod, alerted to the birth of the “king of the Jews” by the three magi, intended to kill Jesus so that he wouldn’t usurp Herod’s throne. Searching for the Christ-child, Herod had all baby boys 2 years old or younger in Bethlehem killed. The event was known as the “Massacre of the Innocents.”

Fontaine des Innocents on Rue Saint-Denis

The architecture of Fontaine des Innocents was inspired by the nymphaeum (a monument dedicated to nymphs) in ancient Rome, with decorations of statues of nymphs, water deities, and tritons (sea gods.) Fontaine des Innocents is a type of monument that may be found throughout the Roman Empire and was also originally called Fountain of the Nymphs. It was constructed between 1547 and 1550 by architect Pierre Lescot and  Jean Goujon, court sculptor for Henry II, in the new style of the French Renaissance.

Fontaine des Innocents

Fontaine des Innocents

Two nymphs on each side are in the act of pouring water. 

Underneath each nymph, you can see the sail of a little ship, the symbol of Paris. 

The top of the fountain shows putti (cherubs) playing water games, a traditional subject popular with the late-Renaissance upper classes. The royal coat of arms is on each corner at the top of the fountain.

A laurel wreath (of sorts) has an “H” for Henry the II in the middle. It is located between the tops of the 2 pillars on each side, high above the head of each nymph.

Fontaine des Innocents 

You can see the arm of a crane in the background, operating in nearby Les Halles, half of the namesake of this neighborhood.  Les Halles, the central fresh food marketplace of Paris, was demolished in 1971 and replaced with a modern shopping mall. Since 2010, the mall has been undergoing a major renovation and is set to reopen in 2016.

Église Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles

Rue Saint-Denis is like a canyon, with walls of tall buildings flanking each side of a narrow street.

Rue Saint-Denis 

The two spires on the right are those of Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles. 

Rue Saint-Denis is home to an eclectic group of businesses.

Love Hotel Boutique on Rue Saint-Denis

Église Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles is located at 92 rue Saint-Denis, in the first arrondissement of Paris. The entry to the church opens up directly on rue Saint-Denis.

Looking up at the façade of the church 

The Abbey of Saint Magloire, established in 1120,  once stood between numbers 84 and 92 of the Rue St-Denis--near the present location of the church. As early as the 12th century, a chapel dedicated to Saint Gilles was located within the monastery for the use of the local people. Saint Gilles was a 7th century hermit from Provence, whose feast is celebrated on September first. In 1235, it was decided to build a church in his honor outside the monastery itself. The name of Saint Leu, Bishop of Sens, whose feast also falls on September first, was added. Construction began on a new church around 1320. Since it was built, the church has undergone frequent remodeling and new construction over the centuries. Apart from some details on the church façade, little is left of the original building. 

The façade of the church with an inscription above the door 

The letters in gold say, “Domus Dei et Porta Coeli,” translated, “The House of God and the Gateway to Heaven.” These words were spoken by the Patriarch Jacob, in the Book of Genesis,  after he had a dream of a stairway to Heaven. Above the inscription is a golden triangle with the Hebrew letters for “God.” Passersby have been known to inquire if the church is a synagogue.

Main entrance

Placard of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre 

The order is one of the 5 original orders of knights who fought in the Crusades in the Holy Land. Their mission was to defend the Holy Sepulchre (tomb of Christ) and other  Holy Places.

Knights of the Holy Sepulchre coat of arms on the exterior of the church

The interior of Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles

The altar

The vaulted ceiling of the apse

The pulpit

The organ

St Joseph’s side altar

A painting of St Leu laying hands on a child

A painting of Sister/Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690), who had visions of Christ relating to the Sacred Heart

Crucifix

The Pieta

Saint Anne and the Blessed Virgin as a child

Money box for the poor

It was the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre who enabled the relics of Saint Helena, formerly in the Abbey of Hautvilliers near Épernay, to be brought to St-Leu and housed in the reliquary in the crypt below the altar. Empress Saint Helena was the mother of Constantine the Great, a Roman emperor, and responsible for the spread of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire.  She is traditionally credited with  finding the relics of the True Cross of Christ. 

Part of her body was stolen from her sarcophagus in Rome by a monk and brought back to France in 840. Instead of ordering its return, the pope allowed the relic to stay in France, since the item itself hadn't prevented the theft by miraculously stopping it (as other relics reportedly had). After the French Revolution, the Pope allowed the relic to be transported to St-Leu-St-Gilles parish under the protection of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, where it has been since 1820. 

I visited the crypt where St Helena’s reliquary and shrine are located, and there is also a sculptured representation of a knight in a recumbent position, placed there by the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. Are the relics of Saint Helena genuine? There is no doubt in the minds of church members that the relics are those of St Helena. No matter, they are inspirational all the same, and I lit candles at the shrine for a seriously ill friend. Catholics in Paris are either unaware of or maybe skeptical of  the authenticity of the relics. However,  the relics are still venerated by the Russian Orthodox community, which explains the Orthodox cross and icons around the reliquary.

The Crypt

You must ask an attendant to unlock the door to the crypt to go down to see Saint Helena’s shrine  and reliquary. You can also get candles to light for special devotions, accompanied by donations. The stairs going down to the crypt are reflected in the glass door.

The stairs down to the crypt

 

The recumbent knight, a life-sized sculpture of a deceased knight

The recumbent knight

The shrine to Saint Helena with reliquary

The shrine to Saint Helena  

To light a candle for someone indicates your intention to say a prayer for that person, and the candle symbolizes that prayer. The prayer is a plea for help for the person the candle is lit for.

  

The reliquary containing Saint Helena’s relics

I lit the 4 tall candles for our dear friend, Laurie

The base of the reliquary

Saint Helena with the cross

“Saint Helena, as important as the apostles” 

“The knights of the Holy Sepulchre, having been far away from Saint-Leu-Saint-Gilles for a century, have returned to this holy haven thanks to the unanimous consent of its revered parish priest,  Father Panel and his council.” 

Since 1820, the church of St-Leu-St-Gilles has been the gathering place of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, who continue to assemble there. To this day, the Knights meet to pray at the church on a weekly basis.  

“Salle des Chevaliers” Meeting room of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. Notice the coat of arms on the tunic draped over the chair and the knight in full armor on the column on the right.  The Order is now primarily honorific. Its principal mission is to reinforce the practice of Christian life by its members; to sustain and assist the ministrations of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land; and to spread the faith in the Holy Land and conserve the rights of the Catholic Church there.