After Fontenelle, we wanted to visit both Solesmes and Fontgombault a few hours south and west of Paris. Again, here we could have resolved the great chant wars of the recent years, but forgive me reader, I’m just a singer.
We had to prioritize, and we wanted to attend the Traditional Mass, so Solesmes (Novus Ordo) would be a shorter visit in the mid-day.
(1) But first you have to understand a little bit about my dreams. All of my life I wanted to visit Mont-St.Michelle. If you recognize the name, you’ll understand why. This island was in my heart in special way, probably because of pictures I saw growing up.
Then it was in my homeschooled-kids’ hearts because of the Halliburton book. The traveler has one entire chapter devoted to the island fortress and when I read it with my children, it was a done deal: we had to see it with our own eyes.
A homeschool mom’s dream come true.
This just to explain that we visited Solesmes on the drive south starting from Avranches and ending up in the Loire Valley near Tours and Poitiers (Note 1).
(2) Like many monasteries, Solesmes rests near a river.
It was mid-day, so there was very little activity in the local town.
If you’ve ever used Dom Guéranger’s books for prayer or reflection, it’s a bit of a shock to see the street name sign outside and this vintage portrait inside.
Twenty-years old! And a reflection of my hand holding my phone. This is why you should visit, to see all of this clearly and in person.
Future relics?
When in 1831 he heard that the priory of Solesmes was about to be demolished, he thought of buying it himself to live Benedictine life there. Helped by some friends and encouraged by his bishop, he scraped together enough money to rent the monastery and moved in with three companions on 11 July 1833. The small community was penniless, lacked prestige to attract vocations and, above all, had no experience of monastic life. Guéranger was its superior for twenty-eight years even though he had never received a monastic formation. Had the undertaking not been an act of faith, it would have been utter madness. But the young Prior Guéranger had a very sound sense for all things Benedictine, for the liturgy, and for the spiritual life. He was therefore a living example for his monks.
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NOTES:
(1) A Catholic – Sacred Music pilgrimage would visit the manuscripts in Avranches, the monastery at the top of Mont-Sant-Michel, visit St. Martin of Tours, visit Hilary of Poiters, and walk across the street from the cathedral in Poitiers to an ancient Roman-era baptistery. Each site is of historical importance not only to the faith, but to Sacred Music specifically.
