Tucked-Away Place to Pray

In trying economic times like these, it wouldn’t surprise me to hear about people using credit cards to pay their bills. After all, when you have more month at the end of the money you do what you must to stay above water. But it’s a bit of a fool’s game isn’t it, creating one debt to eliminate another?  Its what we call robbing Peter to pay Paul. And speaking of the Christian apostles, let’s talk about robbing John to pay Peter.

St. John

As promised when I began construction of the LEGO model of Notre-Dame de Paris last month (read about how I started this project in Highest Chair), I’d like to pay homage to a few of the world’s prominent cathedrals along the way.  These magnificent structures are places of worship at heart but oh-so-much more besides.   Each can be completely different in look and location.  My goal here is to not have you walk away from Notre-Dame thinking “seen one, seen them all”.

What better place to start than at the most significant cathedral in the world?  I’ll give you three hints.  It’s located in the middle of Rome.  It serves as the seat of Rome’s bishop (who just happens to be Pope Francis).  And it’s named for one of the most influential figures in the Bible.  Okay, time’s up, let’s have it.  Did you guess St. Peter’s?

Cathedral of Saint John Lateran

If St. Peter’s was your guess, you’d be… incorrect, and in fact, incorrect three times over.  The St. Peter’s you’re thinking of – the “largest and greatest” church in the world – is not even a cathedral (but merely a basilica).  St. Peter’s is not even in Rome, since the Vatican is technically its own country.  Finally, St. Peter’s is not the seat of the pope (or any other bishop), even though Francis does live close by.  Instead, the award for most significant cathedral goes to Saint John Lateran.

The Lateran cathedral is about a 5K jog from St. Peter’s Square.  In fact, if you were to make the walk from one church to the other you’d pass by several of Rome’s highlights.  The Pantheon.  The Trevi Fountain.  Piazza Venezia.  The Forum.  The Colosseum.  Eventually you’d be standing in front of the imposing facade you see above.

Click the photo to see the tiny tourists!

Saint John Lateran is old – even by Rome’s standards – first established in the mid-300s.  It sits on the site of the former Lateran family palace.  The cathedral survived several fires, earthquakes, and periods of deterioration, eventually retreating into the shadow of the grander St. Peter’s.  In the 1700s the Lateran received a complete overhaul, including the facade you see today.  But it has always served as the cathedral of Rome.  In fact, a plaque near its ancient bronze doors deems (in Latin): “… mother and head of all churches in the city and the world.”

Apostles guard the cathedral

Like Notre-Dame de Paris, the Lateran boasts a lot more than just the structure itself.  Giant statues of the twelve apostles line the interior of the sanctuary.  Six popes are buried here.  The ancient Egyptian obelisk in front of the church is the world’s tallest.  Finally, the Lateran claims to have hosted significant relics of Christianity over its many years, including the Ark of the Covenant, the wooden table where Jesus hosted the Last Supper, and (for the less faint of heart) the skulls of St. Peter and St. Paul.

St. Peter’s Basilica and Square

It goes without saying; a trip to Rome isn’t complete without a visit to St. Peter’s and its surrounds.  The sheer size and elegance of the basilica is unparalleled and worth several hours (if not days) of your time.  But now you know; Saint John Lateran also deserves your attention.  It’d be a shame to travel all the way to Italy and back without claiminng a visit to the most significant cathedral in the world.

LEGO Notre-Dame de Paris – Update #6

(Read about the start of this “church service” in Highest Chair)

The model-building word of the day, boys and girls, is structure.  Bag 9… of 34 bags of pieces, brought us face-to-face with the finished look of Notre-Dame de Paris’s iconic flying buttresses, installed carefully around the walls of the cathedral’s east end.  Most of those “pasta bits” I showed you in our last visit amounted to fourteen (or about half) of the cathedral’s buttresses. They look like tiny cannons, don’t they?

before
after

Remember, the structural support of this cathedral is on the exterior, allowing for tall, thin walls, and more uninterrupted open space inside.  Someone could come up with the ten coolest structural elements for buildings and I’d have buttresses “fly” to the top of the list.

If Notre-Dame’s parishioners felt a sudden sense of security and stability, it’s because the giant hand of Dave was buttressing the very walls around them as they worshiped.  And if these structural elements aren’t elegant enough, they also house horizontal pipes to drain the water from the cathedral roof. 

Chancel w/ flying buttresses
Side buttresses w/ low drainpipes

I keep referring to the cathedral’s “east end”, but now that we’re starting to see the finished product we should use proper terms for church architecture.  We’ve effectively completed the chancel, which is the altar and surrounds to the east of the transept.  Picture a giant Christian cross laying on the ground.  The top of the cross is the chancel and the crossbar is the transept.  The lower length of the cross, where most of the parishioners sit, is the nave.  At the very bottom of the nave will be the bell towers.

Gotcha!

Today’s build was not without its adventures.  A small black piece escaped to my home office floor early on, prompting a prolonged hands-and-knees search.  I swear I heard the piece clatter to the floor yet neither hands nor knees made the encounter.  I was perplexed.  Finally, with the aid of my handy-dandy iPhone flashlight, I found the crafty little devil way, way back in the dark central recess of my desk.  This little guy was clearly making a move to freedom.  Sorry, bud; it’s time to come home.

Are you lost?

Finally, I thought the adjacent photo was worth including.  Pretty much every single LEGO piece of Notre-Dame de Paris is unique in size and shape.  Except this one.  How does a singular “trademark” LEGO block end up amongst thousands of irregular pieces?  Sadly, this piece was installed one level below the dark gray roof line of the chancel, which means you’ll never see it in the finished product.  So I figured it deserved its moment of glory here instead.

Running build time: 5 hrs. 32 min.

Total leftover pieces: 23

Some content sourced from Wikipedia, “the free encyclopedia”.

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Author: Dave

Five hundred posts would suggest I have something to say… This blog was born from a desire to elevate the English language, highlighting eloquent words from days gone by. The stories I share are snippets of life itself, and each comes with a bonus: a dusted-off word I hope you’ll go on to use more often. Read “Deutschland-ish Improvements” to learn about my backyard European wish list. Try “Slush Fun” for the throwback years of the 7-Eleven convenience store. Or drink in "Iced Coffee" to discover the plight of the rural French cafe. On the lighter side, read "Late Night Racquet Sports" for my adventures with our latest moth invasion. As Walt Whitman said, “That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.” Here then, my verse. Welcome to Life In A Word.

24 thoughts on “Tucked-Away Place to Pray”

  3. Speaking of more month than money – some French people are asking “is it justifiable to allow Notre Dame’s spiritual purpose to come at taxpayers’ expense when the rest of the country’s cultural heritage does not receive the same subsidy?”

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    1. That is fair criticism, considering the expanse of France’s cultural heritage in Paris alone. I can’t imagine what that subsidy would amount to if applied everywhere it should/could be directed.

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  4. Well thank you for the lesson Dave and I would have stated St. Peter’s as well. We have a local high school marching band that applied for the opportunity to play at the Vatican and play for Pope Francis and they won, so they played four songs for the Pope on New Year’s Day. The 70-member band were asked to play American songs. Maybe next time, you have to walk barefoot or reach down with your bare foot to feel any wayward Lego pieces – ouch.

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    1. The closest I got to the pope (John Paul II) during my college year in Rome was at a special mass for the American students who were there at the time. That felt pretty darned special considering we were studying in a foreign country. The LEGO pieces are hard enough on my fingers so I think I’ll spare my toes 🙂

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      1. Yes, that is special indeed Dave – you were lucky. I see videos of all the people outside the hospital (and around the world) praying for the Pope’s speedy recovery and that he bounces back for this Jubilee year. Yes, ouch for the LEGO pieces underfoot!

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      1. Mine is working now, though I have had issues when putting together a post, when the post closes down. I didn’t realize I left out a whole paragraph in my Sunday post because of that. I wondered why people kept asking me about the “ghost bikes” when I had mentioned the reason for them. My posts are long, so I never missed that paragraph when I do a final proofread. I draft my posts in Word and transfer them to WordPress.

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      2. I think WordPress is changing, slowly but surely. Last week I couldn’t get into the Classic Editor for the first time (been ignoring Block) and the Happiness Engineer gave me a back door, but also said be aware; Classic is slowly being phased out. Time for me to learn Block, sigh…

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      3. Sad. I keep waiting for an e-mail from the Happiness Engineers that I have to change my “Twenty-Ten” theme because they are phasing it out as it is obsolete. When I began the blog in 2013, I chose the easiest theme. I have used the Block Editor since its inception, but that was primarily because I could have justified text which I prefer. I had to upgrade from Windows 7 (which I loved) because last July WordPress introduced AI features and I could no longer compile a post without it freezing up. You finish school and think that is the end of learning – nope, it is a lifelong experience. My “likes” button is on the blink again.

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  7. I’ve not heard of Saint John Lateran church so this is news to me, she says with a trace of irony. Beautiful photos, btw. There’s a peacefulness just looking at them from afar.

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  8. Most Catholics don’t know that St. Peter’s is not the Cathedral for the Pope/Bishop of Rome, so you deserve a big salute!

    The Lego Cathedral is becoming more impressive.

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  9. Is there such a thing as an UNimpressive European Cathedral?! The builders of old knew how to design and execute a church-construction that stirs awe, wonder, and reverence. They displayed great patience as well as some cathedrals took decades to build. Many workers died before their work was finished. The Cologne Cathedral in Germany takes the prize for longest-to-build: 632 years, begun in 1248 and completed in 1880!

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    1. The Cathedral in Cologne is jaw-dropping Nancy, as much for the sheer size of its spaces as for the decor. We toured it on a stopover on a Viking River Cruise down the Rhine and didn’t have nearly enough time to take in all of its wonders. Must go back!

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  10. I enjoyed this history lesson! I have been to both that cathedral and basilica. And Notre Dame, if we’re keeping track. Look at you using proper terminology. Those pieces left over would be infuriating. This line is brilliant: when you have more month at the end of the money. Ha!

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    1. You’ve hit the cathedral/basilica trifecta! (and come to think of it, so have I). Most tourists miss the significance of Saint John Lateran and spend their time elsewhere in Rome. Not that there aren’t plenty of great options…

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