Ma Vie in France

Now almost a month after the Charlie Hebdo attacks here in France, things are settling down.   I personally didn't learn about the attacks until the night of Wednesday, 7th. Two Muslim extremists gunned down cartoonists from the Charlie Hedbo newspaper in Paris. The cartoonists targeted were known for controversial political drawings, some depicting the prophet Mohamed.   In total 12 people died, the most violent shooting France has known for over 50 years. The reaction in France was immediate upon hearing the news. Rallies and vigils were held all over the country and the slogan 'Je suis Charlie' (I am Charlie) was and is still visible everywhere as the public tried to make sense of what happened. The news coverage and commentaries were non-stop. There have been a lot of comparisons with Sept. 11, and I have to say, the feelings the event provoked were similar to what I felt after Sept. 11. Fear, worry, and unfortunately, a fatalism that also tells me there is...

Did you know that today is Pentecost? Do you think anyone you know who is not Christian knows it? I can guarantee you almost every French person, Christian or not, knows that this weekend is Pentecost. Why? Because the day after, called Pentecost Monday, is a bank holiday in France.   France has, in addition to Pentecost Monday, five other Catholic bank holidays in the calendar year: Christmas, Easter Monday, Ascension Thursday, the Assumption of Mary in August, and Toussaint in November. Any tourist visiting France can also plainly see its ties to Catholicism in its magnificent cathedrals. And yet, in spite of this visible Catholic tradition in France, one of the most paradoxical things about living here is the effort the state makes to erase any signs or references to religion. Officially, the French state is laïque , a term which can be roughly translated to the (enforced) separation of church and state. Laïcité is technically a term used in the French constit...

This summer, I attended my first French wedding. In many ways it closely resembled what I would consider a typical American service: big white dress for the bride, ceremony at the church, pictures that seemed to take way too long… There was one major difference, however. Unlike the U.S., a wedding held in France outside of the town hall (our equivalent of a court- house) is not considered valid. Every couple must first proceed to the town hall to be married by a state-appointed officiant, and then can have a religious ceremony if they choose. For this particular wedding, the bride was from a small town where the officiant had known her and her family since she was little. Still, there was a slight ‘assembly line’ feel to the wedding, since we had to wait for the 3:00 wedding to leave the town hall, and after, had to make room for the 5:00 wedding. All huddled into the small ‘wedding room’ (standing room only for most wedding guests), we listened to what appeared to me as ...