The visit of Bishop Billard (1897)

The work [i.e Saunière's upgrading of the Church] is concluded just in time to receive the bishop's visit: Sunday, June 6, Pentecost holiday, Monsignor Billard celebrates confirmation for the children of the village. On the same occasion, Saunière summons a lazarist priest from Notre Dame de Marceille, R. P. Mercier, to preach the missions. 

During the mass, Saunière reads a welcome speech to the bishop₁; after a very long introductory thank you, Saunière complains that he was hindered in his work by some country-man: 

"I had bad experiences because of perfidious opponents who ranging against everything I had undertaken for the glory of God and the beautification [embellishment] of his temple. In days of darkness like these, they have not spared any means, even the violent ones. Fortunately, Heaven has watched and Providence has caused their fatal plans to backfire against them"

But the priest does not harbour, at least apparently, feelings of revenge: 

"My heart as a priest and father has suffered a lot, because these souls, Monsignor, are even more close to my heart than those of my children. Nor have I ever stopped asking my Divine Master to forgive them just as I have already forgiven them in the depths of my heart, and to bring them back on the right path".

Saunière then goes on to describe the work that he has recently completed: 

"Since my arrival in this Parish I have set myself only one goal: to make this church a temple worthy of those who pervade the infinite cosmos with their presence, and to put into practice the adage 'audacem fortuna juvat' [Fortune favours the bold]. I bravely got to work and God wanted my efforts not to be in vain."

Citing Billard's last visit, which took place in July 1889, Saunière lists the various modifications made in the church: two new windows, one of which is the rose window at the back, illuminates the church much more than before; two "very finely executed" statues, those of Mary and Joseph, have been fixed to the sides of the altar; the arches of the central nave have been stabilised, the side walls were restored and the vault was completely repainted; the pulpit, the baptismal font, a new Via Crucis and five statues were installed; new ones were added to the old pews; the confessional was replaced by a new one; a large bas-relief was erected in place of the old tribune. "And even at the risk of going on too long, I will allow myself not to keep silent about the beautiful and original holy water stoup, the restoration of the sacristy, the Presbytery and the many works on the square. All this, Monsignor, I owe a little but very little to my parishioners, a lot to my savings and to the devotion and generosity of some souls outside this parish".

This is an official speech that is not without its polemical undertones: To learn more about the day, we must instead refer to a letter from Saunière to Giscard:

"Our splendid celebrations for Pentecost, which were accompanied by a temporary interruption of our activities and by the visit of His Eminence the Bishop, prevented me from letting you know beforehand that I had received all the pieces – as sumptuous as they were varied – that your company had kindly provided us, and from describing the effect that it had on the many people who saw them. Even before the crowd, too large for the small church, it was His Eminence who laid eyes on all the splendid works collected in the House of God: statues, bas-reliefs, pulpit, Via Crucis, the baptismal font – nothing was ignored. What, however, struck his eyes most were the font and the bas-relief; he particularly appreciated the latter, and spent a long time admiring it down to the details. He asked me in front of everyone who was the artist who had created the scene of the ’Come to me, all of you’. Of course I mentioned your name. Then, probably without ever having met you, he began to sing your praises with the most beautiful words in front of all my many confreres. The next day, Monday, we had some visitors, not only from the nearby parishes but also from very far away and, according to many, the news of these splendid works had spread throughout the region. Deo gratias! I am especially happy for you, Mr. Giscard, since your name – passed from mouth to mouth among my many confreres who concelebrated the rite of Pentecost – is certainly destined to become famous. I thank God: may your firm prosper more and more. I pray that Heaven grant you all this. Signed: B.Saunières (sic), priest". 

The letter follows the issuing of invoice ₂ by Giscard, dated June 30, 1897, for an amount of 2920 francs divided as follows: 

With his visit, Billard gives an implicit imprimatur to the works installed by Saunière: if these, as some scholars maliciously suggest, were full of references foreign to the Catholic tradition, the bishop would have taken immediate action. It was he, in fact, who had compiled a regulation for the priests of the diocese, writing – regarding the purchase of objects of worship:

ON THE PURCHASE OF OBJECTS OF WORSHIP – 

It is hoped that the religious do not purchase new objects or objects of an unusual shape without being certain that these objects comply with liturgical prescriptions and, in case of doubt, without having consulted the Authority.

In confirmation of the analysis proposed in these pages, Monsignor Billard recognises in them a symbolism that is entirely consistent with the Catholic tradition of France at the end of the 19th century.

1. The speech appears on Claire Corbu, Antoine Captier, L'héritage de l'Abbé Saunière, Bélisane, Nice 1995, pp. 105-110.

2. Invoice 6/1897 in the name of Manufacture Giscard in the amount equal to Fr. 2920.

With thanks to Mariano TOMATIS, for permission to translate this panel from his Historical Study.