IN GRENOBLE

We are spending six weeks in Grenoble, to care for the Anglican congregation at St Marc’s Ecumenical Centre. We started with an easy journey from Axminster. We reached the Eurotunnel an hour early, which meant a comfortable arrival at our overnight hotel in Calais. Our long drive the next day, from Calais to Dijon, was in clear sunshine, with no problems on the roads. We had a break in Troyes – an attractive town, which we would like to revisit. And so to Grenoble the next day.

Grenoble is a very pleasant city, surrounded by snow-capped mountains. It is spacious, with wide roads and many open area with trees and greenery. Much of this is the result of hosting the 1968 Winter Olympics! The Anglican church meets in St Marc’s Ecumenical Centre, which was built on the edge of the Olympic village and houses a larger Roman Catholic congregation, and a small Reformed Church (now United Protestant) one. The chaplain’s apartment is a 5 minute walk from the church, on the sixth floor of a modern block. There is a good public transport network of trams and buses.

A large part of the city is modern; it has expanded considerably since the Second World War, with universities and a major nuclear science research complex. But the heart of the od city reflects its history as the capital of the Dauphiné, at one time a bridge between Italy, Savoie and France. There are some impressive galleries and museums – and the second oldest café in France (after Paris Le Procope – J. J. Rousseau seems to have eaten in them both.) Grenoble seems a calm and welcoming place. It’s one of the few towns in France where motorists stop for pedestrians before they reach the crossing. (In Bordeaux, you were lucky if they stopped when you were half-way across!)

It has been generally cold, but we had some good sunny days. (A week after we had driven down, there were atrocious weather conditions in the Pas de Calais and along much of the route we had taken. There was snow in Grenoble, but it caused no disruptions. We felt very blessed to have had such an easy journey.

We have taken two Sunday services now. The congregation is around 80, including children. AS in most Diocese in Europe churches, only a minority are of British origin. There are a large number of Nigerians (many of whom arrive anything from 10 to 20 minutes late for the 10.45 service.) There are some language problems; for many of the congregation, English is not their first language (and many who do speak English don’t use UK English!) There are no service or hymns books, so each service and sermon require Powerpoint slides to enable participation and to aid understanding. Though the service is in English, much of the liturgy and sermon points need to be in French as well. The church also has the problem, that over recent years it has lost some of its affluent American members, and so depends on a diminished number of earners (including some on UK-based pensions) to support its ministry and mission.

Grenoble has a very international population, including a sizeable Nigerian community (we have seen a shop called ‘Benin in Grenoble’.) And there are a growing number of refugees and asylum seekers (many from Nigeria), who are coming in more frequently now that Italy is refusing to accept them. The city is seen as welcoming, and has good resources to cater for refugees – but these resources are now severely stretched. So many are homeless, and rough sleepers and people begging are much in evidence.

This creates problems for the church, which rightly welcomes many of them, but does not have the resources to meet their needs. The joint churches’ group at St Marc’s have an ambitious plan, to re-order the building to provide a drop-in centre, with appropriate catering facilities. It makes demands on the church members both to finance the work, and to provide personnel to staff the centre, but if it works, it would be a great witness.

In our time off, we have indulged in some flânerie, and ventured into a wood on the lower slopes of the Vercors (accessed via Lenin Avenue and Karl Marx Park – reflecting the Communist presence in the commune of Fontaine!) We’ve visited one of the museums, which incorporates some remarkable Roman and early Christian remains – including a 5^th century Baptistery. We look forward to venturing further afield – when we have time.