Vichy St Blaise and its Captivating Frescoes
Vichy St Blaise is actually two churches. Église St Blaise grew too small for the congregation. Thus, we have the building of Notre Dame des Malades against St Blaise. Église St Blaise dates from the late 1600s and Notre Dame des Malades dates from 1931.
The Virgin tops the outer dome of the church at 138 feet from the ground. A magnificent cross tops the adjacent bell tower, 220 feet up.
The frescoes in Notre Dame des Malades are absolutely captivating. I could have stayed all afternoon studying the details found in these beautiful images. The blue colors in Vichy St Blaise are almost as captivating as the blues you will find in the cathedral in Chartres!
Vichy Saint-Blaise
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What we know about Saint Blaise:
“We know that Bishop Blaise was martyred in his episcopal city of Sebastea, Armenia, in 316. The legendary Acts of St. Blaise were written 400 years later. According to them Blaise was a good bishop, working hard to encourage the spiritual and physical health of his people. Although the Edict of Toleration (311), granting freedom of worship in the Roman Empire, was already five years old, persecution still raged in Armenia. Blaise was apparently forced to flee to the back country. There he lived as a hermit in solitude and prayer, but he made friends with the wild animals. ” credit Franciscan Media
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