Description of the attraction
The popes' move to Avignon gave France a huge cultural and religious heritage. As a result of the fact that the papacy was in Avignon for a long time, this city received the Papal Palace, many churches and monasteries, a library with a collection of rare books, rich architecture.
The Carmelite Church is one of the sites of the religious heritage of France. This church at the old Carmelite monastery was built in 1267. It was later destroyed and then rebuilt for almost two centuries. Its full name is the Church of Saint-Symphorien de Carme, or the Carmelite Church of Saint Symphorien. It is located in the Carmelite Square.
The Carmelite Order was founded in the middle of the 12th century during the crusades undertaken by monks who arrived in the Holy Land from Western Europe and settled at the source of St. Elijah on Mount Carmel. The founder of the order is the crusader Berthold of Calabria, at whose request Patriarch Albert of Jerusalem compiled a monastic charter in 1214, which was especially strict - the Carmelites had to live in separate cells, constantly pray, observe strict fasts, including completely abandoning meat, as well as spend considerable time in complete silence. Later, the monastery's charter was softened by Pope Innocent IV.
The first Avignon monastery of the Carmelites in the 12th century was located outside the city wall. Reconstruction of the church began under Pope John XXII in 1320, but restoration work continued until the 16th century. The church was consecrated on April 10, 1520. During the Revolution, this church becomes a place for public meetings, then the Jacobins settled here. As a result, some of the monastery buildings were destroyed. In 1803, the church was renamed the parish of Saint Symphorien. There are many objects of art here: ancient sculptures, paintings, a wooden altar with gilding.
