Heart of Europe: Belgium, a Nation of Contrasts

Jean-Marc Defays welcomed us to the University of Liège summer program and introduced us to this small and relatively young country, founded in 1830 at the end of the Napoleonic era as a sort of buffer zone, with a hired German aristocrat as King, to satisfy the English that the French were not on their doorstep. The country has 3 Communities and Regions, the northern Flanders, southern Wallonie, and Brussels, and a small German-speaking minority. This land has historically been controlled by (are you ready?) Holland, France, Austria, Spain, Burgundy, and in the earliest times, by the Germanic invaders, the Romans, and the Celts. You’d still be ambivalent about your national identity, too, with that heritage!

Dr. Wéry flies in like a Mistral wind and never slows down, animated and fluent and expert in the linguistics of the francophone Belgian Community. She teaches us some oddities of French “Belgicisms,” like “guindailles,” which are student parties or “bourgmestre” for mayor, and takes us on a tour of the pronunciation nuances of Belgian French.

Our morning classes, which take place from 9-11 and 11:30-1:30, give us a running start on the week. We meet at 3pm again for our afternoon excursion, an overview of the architecture of the Liègeois churches.

We crossed the Meuse River, flanked by buildings dating to the 16th century and plied by barges hauling wares to the commercial seaports.

Our hike also took us past this inviting stair up to the ruins of the citadel. Some of the group were inspired to come back and run the stairs: I made a mental note of the bookstore of antique books with a WWII newspaper in the window.














The church dedicated to St. Bartholomew has an unusual painted exterior and hosts this early 12th century baptismal font as well as this ancient sculpted remnant of the medieval origins. It is somehow a comfort to see this figure of the communion, a ritual that ties me to the ancient past in a long tradition of hope.







In several places the floor covering dissolves into a window into the foundations of the church, archeological glimpses into the ancestry of this place.








This saint with a book is my idea of devotion.


















Saint Paul’s Cathedral soars heavenward with a graceful disdain for its age, though the fascade stone is blackened with modern pollution. The devout come to meditate beside the Christ crucified sculpted to grace a tomb or to pray at the foot of Our Lady Of Banneux, a site near Liège. The Sacred Heart that invites the faithful to contemplate the host in this altar has a singularly arresting expression. Those who come to this altar bring flowers and light candles, touching the foot of the Lord as they bow in prayer.

There is a plaque near the crucified Christ in repose that honors Bishop Kerkhofs for his work for the persecuted during the War 1940-1945, a reminder that Belgium has been Europe’s battleground in spite of its neutrality.



























The St. Jacques Church dating to the 15th century has a Jacob’s Ladder sculpted above the main door and a flamboyant gothic interior, including a painted vaulted ceiling, a spectacular organ, and this Madonna from the 16th century.





The relics of Saint James the major and the minor are preserved in this extravagant reliquary dating from the 19th century.

Until the French Revolution, the city of Liège boasted over 200 churches and monasteries. Those that remain are a treasure of art, of architectural wonder, but a high maintenance burden to a city plagued with 18% unemployment. Most American cities have little experience with the budget dilemma of renovation and protection of antiquities. Imagine managing the budget of the city of Venice!