Saint-Esprit () is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

in the

12th arrondissement of Paris The 12th arrondissement of Paris (''XIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. Situated on the right bank of the River Seine, it is the easternmost arrondissement of Paris, as well as the largest by area ...

, France, in the southeast of the city.

History

The population of the 12th arrondissement had been growing since 1860, creating a need for a large church. The triangular parcel of land the church now occupies between avenue Daumesnil and rue Claude Decaen was purchased in 1927 by the Archbishop, Cardinal Dubois, and his auxiliary Mgr Crépin. The Église du Saint-Esprit was built between 1928 and 1935. The crypt was inaugurated in 1929 and served as a chapel while the upper part of the church was being built. The work progressed slowly due to lack of funding. When Cardinal Dubois died in 1929, he was replaced by Bishop Verdier, who resumed construction in 1932. His bust is above the main door. The interior decor of the church was protected as a ''

monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

'' by the

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) * Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) * Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)Ministry o ...

on 17 August 1979. The entire edifice was designated a historical monument in 1992.

Architecture

The architecture of the church—with its juxtaposition of Byzantine influence and reinforced concrete—is 'absolutely unique.' The architect,

Paul Tournon Paul Tournon (b. 19 February 1881 – 22 December 1964) was a French architect. He was born in Marseille and died in Paris. He was an architect in chief of many French civil buildings and national palaces, and a member of the Académie des Beau ...

, designed and built the church, following a plan inspired by that of the

Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia (; ; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque (; ), is a mosque and former Church (building), church serving as a major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The last of three church buildings to be successively ...

in Istanbul. The church has a huge dome — in diameter with a summit at above ground level. The use of reinforced concrete for the vertical supports and the dome was a major technical feat at the time of construction. The dome was designed to allow light to enter through the row of openings at its base. Nevertheless, some experts contend that the darkness of the interior interferes with the appreciation of the rich interior décor. The reinforced concrete of the exterior has a facing of red bricks from Burgundy.

Interior

The interior was elaborately decorated (frescoes, mosaics, sculptures and stained glass windows) by the artists of the

Ateliers d'Art Sacré The Ateliers d'Art Sacré (Studios of Sacred Art, 1919-1947) was a collective of artists based in Paris, France in the first half of the 20th century. It aimed to create religious art that was both modern and accessible to the general public. For ...

, an association of Catholic artists dedicated to creating art in the service of God. The interior is generally dark, giving the church its unique atmosphere. The decoration illustrates the history of the 'church militant' and of the 'church triumphant' from the

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 49th day (50th day when inclusive counting is used) after Easter Day, Easter. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spiri ...

to the 20th century. One of its main themes is the influence of the Holy Spirit on human history. The frescoes are organised chronologically into 7 periods: 1. the

, including the intercession of the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

and the descent of the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

upon the

Apostles An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary. The word is derived from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", itself derived from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to se ...

; 2: the first to the fourth century, including the martyrdom of

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

and Saint Jean's vision of the

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre originating in Judaism in the centuries following the Babylonian exile (597–587 BCE) but persisting in Christianity and Islam. In apocalypse, a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a ...

; 3. the fifth to the eleventh century, including the baptism of

Clovis Clovis may refer to: People * Clovis (given name), the early medieval (Frankish) form of the name Louis ** Clovis I (c. 466 – 511), the first king of the Franks to unite all the Frankish tribes under one ruler ** Clovis II (c. 634 – c. 657), ...

and

Pope Gregory I Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Ro ...

defining the rules for

Gregorian chant Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainsong, plainchant, a form of monophony, monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek language, Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed main ...

s; 4. the twelfth to the thirteen century, including

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, Cistercians, O.Cist. (; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, Mysticism, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templar, and a major leader in the reform of the Benedictines through the nascent Cistercia ...

's founding of the Cistercian monasteries and the construction of the first

Gothic cathedrals Gothic cathedrals and churches are religious buildings constructed in Europe in Gothic style between the mid-12th century and the beginning of the 16th century. The cathedrals are notable particularly for their great height and their extensive u ...

; 5. the fourteenth to the fifteenth century, including

Catherine of Siena Caterina di Jacopo di Benincasa (25 March 1347 – 29 April 1380), known as Catherine of Siena, was an Italian mystic and pious laywoman who engaged in papal and Italian politics through extensive letter-writing and advocacy. Canonized in 1461, ...

in front of the papal palace in Avignon and the precursors of the Renaissance; 6. the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, including Henry IV with the

Edict of Nantes The Edict of Nantes () was an edict signed in April 1598 by Henry IV of France, King Henry IV and granted the minority Calvinism, Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was predominantl ...

, marking a step forward for religious tolerance and an end to the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion were a series of civil wars between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants (called Huguenots) from 1562 to 1598. Between two and four million people died from violence, famine or disease di ...

; 7. the nineteenth and twentieth century, including an image of the

overseeing the work of both the

Holy Family The Holy Family consists of the Child Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. The subject became popular in art from the 1490s on,Ainsworth, 122 but veneration of the Holy Family was formally begun in the 17th century by Saint François de La ...

and contemporary workers. Most of the frescoes were painted onto wet cement and mistakes could not be corrected. To enhance the unity of the interior decor, the architect imposed a standard height for the depiction of all major characters, and red as the color of all the backgrounds. Murals and frescoes were the work ''inter alia'' of

Maurice Denis Maurice Denis (; 25 November 1870 – 13 November 1943) was a French painter, decorative artist, and writer. An important figure in the transitional period between impressionism and modern art, he is associated with '' Les Nabis'', symbolism, ...

, Georges Desvallières, Robert Poughéon, Nicolas Untersteller and Elizabeth Branly. Carlo Sarrabezolles sculpted the statues and the stained glass windows are the work of

Louis Barillet Louis Barillet (1880 – 1948) was a French artist, known for his work in stained glass. Among those with whom he collaborated were Théodore-Gérard Hanssen and Jacques Le Chevallier. His windows may be seen in the church of Notre-Dame-des- ...

, Paul Louzier and Jean Herbert-Stevens. Raymond Subes undertook the metalwork and Marcel Imbs made the mosaic and stained glass boxes of the crypt.

Organ

The choir organ was built by Gloton-Debierre after plans by

Albert Alain Albert Paul Alain (1 March 1880 – 15 October 1971) was a 20th-century French organist and composer. Biography Born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye to Clarisse-Alphonsine Fouquet (born 1859) and Paul François Alain (born 1851), he entered in adulth ...

, and was inaugurated by

Jehan Alain Jehan-Ariste Paul Alain (; 3 February 1911 – 20 June 1940) was a French organist, composer, and soldier. Born into a family of musicians, he learned the organ from his father and a host of other teachers, becoming a composer at 18, and compos ...

in December 1934. There were also plans for a second, large organ, but it was never built due to lack of funding. The church's first organist was the prodigious Jeanne Demessieux who worked there between 1933 and 1962.

Gallery

File:Église du Saint-Esprit en construction (1928).JPG, Under construction in 1928 File:Jean Verdier, Église du Saint-Esprit, 1932.jpg, Dedication by Cardinal

Jean Verdier Jean Verdier, PSS (; 19 February 1864 – 9 April 1940) was a French Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Paris from 1929 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1929. Biography Jean Verdier was bor ...

in 1935 File:Église du Saint-Esprit (Paris) 1.jpg, The church spire seen from Place Felix Eboué File:Glise du Saint Esprit entrée avenue Daumesnil.jpg, The entry way at 186, avenue Daumesnil File:L'église du Saint Esprit bricks.jpg, The facing of red brick from Burgundy on the facade File:Paris - Église du Saint-Esprit (29157222394).jpg, A supporting half dome File:Paris - Église du Saint-Esprit (29159554033).jpg, Detail of interior File:Paris - Église du Saint-Esprit (29785111365).jpg, Another view of the interior File:Paris - Église du Saint-Esprit (29785109635).jpg, Detail of decoration File:Paris - Église du Saint-Esprit 41.jpg, The gilt pulpit against a backdrop of concrete File:Paris - Église du Saint-Esprit (29492702340).jpg, Detail of a fresco depicting the 3 faculties of the soul: intelligence, will and sensitivity

References