The Line – Haiku 2022 #ThursdayDoors

Posted bySuzette BenjaminPosted inPoetry
South Entrance – Église Saint-Sulpice à Paris. – Image credit: Chabe01 | Wikimedia CC 4.0

passing through fire

twin doors fanning out flames

holding the line

****

Note: I removed a photo I had in the original post showing these doors during a fire that occurred at the church

The second largest church in Paris, France, and built atop two earlier iterations spanning back to the 7th Century AD stands the Romanesque Baroque architecture of Eglise Saint-Sulpice, Paris begun in 1646.

Taking almost two centuries to complete Saint Sulpice Church has been plagued by damage, civil unrest (The French Revolution), and initial-construction funding woes.

Its only scientific instrument, a mysterious sundial featuring a brass line on the floor extended by a 4.8-meter marble obelisk, has rocketed Saint Sulpice Church to fame in modern times thanks to the book The Da Vinci Code and the movie of the same name.

The red south wood entrance doors featured above are approximately 4.8 meters (16 feet) high, and shield a set of interior glass-paned wooded doors.

On March 17, 2019, Eglise Saint Sulpice Church suffered damage due to a fire. As a result, the southern doors – both sets (featured above) erupted in flames from a blaze that began inside the church

Miraculously, no one was injured in the incident. Somehow, damage inside the church was confined to these two sets of doors, the circular stained glass window in the tympanum, and a lavishly ornate staircase.

As of 2022, the doors are still under repair/restoration (see Google Earth image below)

Doors under restoration – Saint Sulpice Door South Entrance – boarded up. Image credit: © Google Earth 2022

Trivia: The 17th-century construction of Saint Sulpice Church is rumored to have been funded in part by a lottery.

Wider angle Église Saint-Sulpice, Paris below:

Église Saint-Sulpice à Paris. Image credit: © Koba Samurkasov | Dreamstime

Written for #ThursdayDoors – hosted by Dan Antion – at No Facilities

Published by Suzette Benjamin

Positive thinker, inspirational, writer, faith

67 thoughts on “The Line – Haiku 2022 #ThursdayDoors”

  2. Oh nooo
    The haiku wouldn’t allow
    For the Rose Line

    Or do I interpret wrongly

    Thank goodness nobody was injured in that fire
    Such great snippets accompany your lovely haiku
    I can feel the presence of the soldiers and firefighters through the placing of your perfect words.

    It is so wonderful that a lottery funded the restoration of this fascinating Cathedral

    An exquisite gem, with a distinctive feature (the sundial) makes for interesting further reading

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Your interpretation is spot on! The doors took the brunt of the fire.
      The church has such a fascinating history and impact on modern culture
      The sundial is a fascinating place to delve into the mystery!

      The lottery was certainly a creative approach possibly not what was common back in the 17th century when they used that option but we have this beautiful legacy of a church.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thank you, these stories you bring are so inviting to further reading.

        I will delve. Cyber travel to Luxembourg. Would love to jump on a train rather, but alas.
        I believe the sundial was actually constructed to calculate the date of Easter each year. That is amazing.

        It can be a creative approach for so many good works, but ALAS, there too…

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I am happy that the stories spark further reading. Awesome!

        To calculate Easter. That is a very important reason. They went to great lengths to ensure accuracy.

        Your phrase “Cyber travel” made me smile…hehehe. I love it 👍👍

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Oh yes it does, thank you 🙂

        Yes isn’t that so wonderful how they awaited that Friday.
        Talk about science and religion coming together.
        Mind- blowing, these minds at work.
        So much energy invested in architecture, the arts in general and the sciences.
        The mind of this generation passed onto the next and the next.

        Lol, yes that is how I do most of my travels these days.
        Although I have visited many churches and cathedrals, for real.
        Also chapels.
        It’s something I love doing when I used to visit a city or another country.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. Good point. Science and religion working as one to count the days to the faith’s sacred days. Wow!

        Yes, a lot can be said of leaving history in books, but the stories that these preserved buildings (living works of art, really) are excellent tangible instructors, object lessons to the present and next generations.

        Travelling and visiting the churches is for me too, an enriching experience. I enjoyed those travels in the past.

        Liked by 1 person

      5. Yes although the two faculties had many disagreements, somehow they always found a path to each other.

        Oh that is awesome just the way you pulled those pearls together.

        Yeah, I miss that.
        So good that the internet can somehow quench my curiosity.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. Churches and fires, it’s such a frequent story, and it’s so sad. Especially when something that has survived so much over so many years is damaged in this modern era. I like the doors and the carved panels along the side of the entrance. I really like the large transom windows.

    You captured the spirit of these doors well in your poem, and I look forward to their eventual repair.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. You are so right Dan, church fires are not uncommon in any era.
      I too look forward to the repairs. The city is funding the work so funding is not an issue. I suspect the delay is in attempting to painstakingly recreate what has been lost to its original splendour, the splendour befitting this grand icon.

      Thank you Dan for your visit and generous comments. As always, much appreciated.
      Thank you for hosting Thursday Doors. Peace.

      Liked by 1 person

  10. I’ve actually seen those doors, many years ago prior to the fire. I did not know this happened and hope their beauty will be restored soon. I’ll try to find my pics of these same doors, Suzette.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. This beautiful poem reminds me of desire being fanned by the divine, and how we choose to hold the line of knowing, while also remembering who we truly are. Epic write, abs gorgeous doors, Suzette. Happy weekend!

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Pingback: The Line – Haiku 2022 #ThursdayDoors – jim kiriakopoulos

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