Eglise Saint Theodule Church

Eglise Saint Theodule Roman Catholic Church
Gruyere, Switzerland

"Gruyères ... is a town in the district of Gruyère in the canton of Fribourgin Switzerland. Its German name is Greyerz.

"The medieval town is an important tourist location in the upper valley of the Saane/Sarine river, and gives its name to Gruyère cheese. The medieval town is located at the top of 82 metre-high hill^[3]overlooking the Saane valley and the Lake of Gruyère.

"Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks French (1,398 or 90.4%) as their first language, German is the second most common (60 or 3.9%) and Portuguese is the third (18 or 1.2%). There are 7 people who speak Italian and 2 people who speak Romansh

"A major tourist attraction is the medieval town of Gruyères with its castle, containing a regional museum and an arts museum. There are cultural activities in the castle (concerts, theater). There is a cheese factory in Pringy which is open to visitors

"From the 2000 census, 1,261 or 81.6% were Roman Catholic, while 92 or 6.0% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 10 members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.65% of the population), and there were 43 individuals (or about 2.78% of the population) who belonged
to another Christian church." (Link 1.)

Sanctuary and Altar

Rear of Sanctuary

"Before taking the left hand cobbled road to the castle, my spouse and I veered to the right in the well-preserved medieval village and found this lovely church. It is unfortunate that it is not listed in any travel guides, and as such, many miss it.

Side Chapel

Painting in Sanctuary

"Inside, one finds a series of medallions running around the walls above the arches that depict the stations of the cross. A gorgeous wooden pulpit and staircase is worth a photo or two. The altar features reddish marble. Turn around and look up to the back of the church to see a series of stunning silver organ pipes trimmed in wood and gold.:(Link 2.)

Nativity Display

"The church was built during 13th century when Count Rudolph III took permission for a parish church on the left bank of the Saane covering the needs between Treme and Marivue villages, until then most villagers of the area had to go to Bulle), and was dedicated to St. Theodul in 1254. 

"The church destroyed by fire 2 times, in 1679 when a lightning stroke the tower and burnt the bells and again in 1856 with only the tower and the choir surving. It was renovated again 4 years later, in 1860."(Link 3)

"While modest in scope, this lovely church is worth a visit."( Link 2.)

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Photos: Taken with iPhone  in January 2018 by Richard Wilson who lives and
                 works in Basel Switzerland.

Link 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gruy%C3%A8res
Link 2: https://www.tripadvisor.ca
Link 3: http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMP8EA_StTheodul_Church_Gruyeres_Switzerland

                                                                            Prayer

God, be with persecuted Christians throughout the world. Amen (SW.)