There are some truly beautiful parish churches up and down the River Road in southern Louisiana. These were built nearly 200 years ago, and they still retain most of their glory. St. Philip’s in… oh, dear, I forget which parish, but it’s between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, right there on the River – anyway, it’s kind of stale and musty, must not be used much any more. But it is as beautifully painted as the Cathedral in New Orleans. Regretably, the choir loft organ has been ripped out and the beautiful old choir loft has become a fake flower storage area, and a cheap electric organ and a piano are now down in the front of the pews.
Most of the churches, thankfully, have not been so desecrated.
My favorite is St. Michael the Archangel in Convent. The first time I walked inside as a tourist, I began to cry (and I don’t cry!) – it’s as if all the prayers and acts of worship that have been offered up in those walls since 1829 have lingered, sanctifying even the very air molecules. The interior or the church is dark cypress wood, and the Stations of the Cross are a startlingly brilliant contrast – painted. The Pieta is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen; Our Lady looks as if she’s heart-broken, not some semi-hippy beatific expression on her face as I’ve seen on some renditions of the Event.
Behind the Altar is a Lourdes Grotto, built in the 1880s. Artistically, I thought it was kind of twee, but spiritually it’s one of those sanctified spaces again. I walked in and started bawling all over again, just after having gotten control of myself from the crying I did out in the sanctuary! There are gifts of flowers and rosaries, cards where people have posted prayer needs and thanksgivings, a grotto with candles –
It’s an absolutely beautiful location. If you are visiting the area, I urge you to look for it.
