Church History Work Near Paris
We left Frankfurt on Friday and bypassed Paris
to visit the Church History Specialist for France, Gabriel Mourier
in the suburb of Champs-sur-Marne.
Gabriel and his wife Françoise graciously invited us to stay
at their lovely home while they also identified key people
and places we needed for our assignments.
and lives near the Marne River.
On Saturday, Gabriel, Jonathan, and their friend Neil visited Argenteuil where
the Sacred Tunic of Christ was on display at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint-Denis.
This happens only for about 23 days every 50 years. See below for more photos.
the Sacred Tunic of Christ was on display at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint-Denis.
This happens only for about 23 days every 50 years. See below for more photos.
May 11 we attended the Nogent Ward
where we introduced members to the Unit History Tool
with a presentation they helped us create.
where we introduced members to the Unit History Tool
with a presentation they helped us create.
Gabriel and Françoise seem to know everyone in France!
They shared some important books.
They shared some important books.
and took us to nearby Torcy to visit Christian Euvrard
who shared histories he had written,
who shared histories he had written,
and we now have the task/privilege of reading and summarizing them
for the Church History Library.
Of course we enjoyed the food in Germany and France.
In both places they love pizza and have their own versions.
In both places they love pizza and have their own versions.
The Germans like to add Spargel (white asparagus)
while the French favor sliced eggplant.
Monday we drove through Blois in the Loire Valley,
where Jacques and Anne Marie Bize fed us a wonderful lunch.
Ann Marie accompanied Beverly to interview a woman leader,
and Jacques took Jonathan to visit the spectacular chateau.
CHURCH HISTORY MOMENT #1
We found a fascinating brief video about France, which the Church prepared a few years ago when the Paris Temple was dedicated. You can watch in French or English!
CHURCH HISTORY MOMENT #2
We have read many accounts of William Howell, the first LDS missionary to France. But we don't hear as much about his wife Martha and daughter Ann, whose stories are perhaps even more amazing.*
William left his home in Wales for his mission in France where he was frustrated with difficulty learning French. He met with little success in France, but he had one convert baptism before going home for a short visit to check on his family. His daughter Ann at only 9 years old was excited about missionary work and precocious so he asked her to return with him to France. He predicted correctly that she would be able to learn French more quickly and she soon became his interpreter and valiant mission companion.
Meanwhile back in Wales, William's wife Martha was also valiant and faithful to the gospel. She had come from a wealthy family and received monthly checks from her father, which she sent on to William to support his mission in France. 
However, Martha's father did not approve of their family joining the Church, and threatened to cut off all payments unless Martha stopped attending church. She was in despair, worrying what would happen to William without the monetary support, but she prayed about it and felt reassured that she would somehow be provided for. She told her father she would still go to church. In a rage he told her he would change his will and give her nothing. She told no one at church about it, but one brother announced, "there is a sister here who is worried about finances, and I feel prompted to tell her the Lord is mindful of her and things will work out for her good."
That night she was saddened to hear her father had suddenly fallen ill and had died. However later she learned that he never had time to change his will so her monthly checks would continue indefinitely. She was able to keep supporting William and Ann on their mission in France.
We keep learning more amazing stories about the first missionaries and members here!
CHURCH HISTORY MOMENT #3
The Sacred Tunic of Christ has a fascinating history. It is believed to be the seamless garment worn by Jesus during his passion and it is displayed every 50 years at the Basilica Cathedral of St. Denis. https://www.saint-denis-basilique.fr/en
A good summary of the history and evidence is here: https://1000raisonsdecroire.com/en/the-holy-tunic-of-argenteuils-fascinating-history
This year they expected around 400,000 people to attend during the 23 days it was on display.
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| We waited in line for over an hour to get into the cathedral. |
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| Crowd control with banners about the event |
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| Several posters explained the history of the tunic and the scientific evidence that supports the narrative. In this poster, they refer to the woman who touched Christ's robe as recounted in Mark 5:28. |
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| This is the tunic. |
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| This is what it looked like at the front of the cathedral. |
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| Gabriel and me outside the cathedral. I'm holding the book I bought about the history. |
The tunic is "without seam" as described in John 19.
23 ¶ Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout.
24 They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.
(John 19:23–24)
24 They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.
(John 19:23–24)
Latter-day Saints may recognize that when Moroni first visited Joseph Smith, his garment, too, was "without seam."
"The stature of this personage was a little above the common size of men in this age; his garment was perfectly white, and had the appearance of being without seam."
* Church History Moment #2 story source:
Vincenzi, H. (2023). Ann Howell: Le choix de la volonté de Dieu (The choice of God's will). Chapter 1 in Ulrich-Bichierri, O. and Euvrard, C. (2023). « Vous êtes les femmes qu’il a vues ! » Portraits de femmes de l’Église de Jésus-Christ des Saints des Derniers Jours en Europe francophone. (
To read other posts in our Mission Blog,
click on the arrow or 3 lines to the left of NEVILLES IN FRANCE
then click on ARCHIVE to see a list of all posts.
click on the arrow or 3 lines to the left of NEVILLES IN FRANCE
then click on ARCHIVE to see a list of all posts.
