The first photo of the year was taken outside the Basilica of Fourvière in Lyon and whether it may not be important where one's photo is taken, I can't help mentioning that this unique Romanesque and Byzantine Basilica was dedicated to the Virgin Mary who people believe saved Lyon from a cholera endemic spreading in 1823 and later from a Prussian invasion in 1870, having become the symbol of the city.
The upper sanctuary is richly ornate, with fine mosaics and astonishingly beautiful stained glass pannels.
The lower sanctuary, though much simpler as far as the decoration is concerned, is surrounded by Virgin Marys fom all corners of the earth, where her blessings have been recognised.
Among well known ones, such as the Virgin Mary of Fatima, whose statue was offered by the Portuguese community of Lyon, we came across one - The Virgin Mary of Vailankanni, I had never heard of, though intimately connected to the Portuguese Maritime History. It is said that a Portuguese mercant ship sailing off from Macao to Ceylan was caught in a storm and thanks to the prayers of its sailors reached the port along the coast of Vailankanni safely.
Apart from impressive Statue of the Italian Virgin Mary of Rome and the iconic figure of the Polish Virgin Mary of Czestochowa another mosaic panel caught our attention - the one depicting the life and legend of Saint James, as well as the halts on the way to Compostela.
As we walked out of the Basilica we stopped for a few moments admiring the view over Lyon, which was rather appeasing and as we made our way down the mountain I was wondering if all the Virgins'blessings will be enough to see us through the difficult times we have ahead ...
No comments:
Post a Comment