France
In secular France, Christians work to bring new life to old monastery
MARSEILLE, FRANCE — At the northern edge of this seaside port…
Roadblocks and roller bags
Behind the scenes of a memorable reporting trip to France.
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CHARTRES, FRANCE — It’s 4:45 a.m.
It’s still dark outside in this medieval French city, famous for its Gothic cathedral.
In fact, I’m exploring the sidewalks around the cathedral right now. As I do so, I’m rolling a 50-pound suitcase and toting a lighter computer bag.
Faith in France: Read all the stories in the special series
I’m a bit frazzled because this early-morning walking tour is unplanned. I don’t normally wander about a foreign city — where I don’t speak the language — in the middle of the night.
At least I have company: My wife, Tamie, is with me and maneuvering an equal amount of luggage.
After a 10-day reporting trip to France, we are flying home on this recent Friday morning. We spent an enjoyable final night in Chartres, about 60 miles southwest of Paris. We arranged for a rideshare driver to take us to the airport.
The view in Chartres, France, as Bobby and Tamie Ross searched for their rideshare driver.
But the old part of town where we stayed is undergoing street repairs. It’s full of roadblocks. Each day new sections are closed, seemingly without warning.
“Hello, I am your driver,” reads the text I received earlier. “I inform you that I have arrived. I am on the main road. I do not know where you are exactly. See you soon.”
Twenty minutes later, we still can’t find him.
In moments like these in my Christian Chronicle travels, I often ask myself: How in the world did I end up here?
In this case, the answer is easy: Blame Dan Cooper, retired longtime minister for the Pitman Road Church of Christ in Sewell, N.J.
Actually, credit him — because this story has a happy ending, which I’ll explain.
Bobby Ross Jr., with his wife, Tamie, while reporting in La Chapelle au Riboul, France, about 160 miles southwest of Paris.
Earlier this year, Dan told me about the Chapelle de Fuveau Church of Christ in Marseille — in the south of France — buying an abandoned monastery to transform into a community outreach center. He thought this might make a great story, and I agreed.
In case you missed reading that story on the front page of the Chronicle’s December print edition, be sure to check it out. Also from Marseille: my profile of Algerian immigrants Khaled and Djedjiga Hassani, the former monastery’s caretakers; and my reporter’s notebook feature on the love in many languages I discovered at the Chapelle de Fuveau church.
Bobby Ross Jr., right, interviews missionary Craig Young in Marseille, France.
Journey of a lifetime
Because of her battle with autoimmune diseases, Tamie can’t travel with me often. However, she’s always wanted to visit Europe.
So persuading her to go along with me to France did not require much effort. We bought her a ticket (with personal funds) and prayed that she’d feel like going.
Related: In secular France, Christians work to bring new life to old monastery
Even though she broke a foot a few weeks before the trip, I thanked God when the plane took off with her beside me. We flew from Oklahoma City to Atlanta and then all night from Atlanta to Paris before a quick connecting flight to Marseille.
Besides the story Dan suggested, Erik Tryggestad, the Chronicle’s president and CEO and roving international correspondent, told me about Jerry and Zoobi Jones buying an old convent school in northwestern France.
Their dream: to open a Christian university serving members of Churches of Christ in Europe.
The Joneses’ place in the sleepy village of La Chapelle Au Riboul is about 600 miles from Marseille. So midway through our trip, Tamie and I rode a train to Paris and then caught another train to Le Mans, where Jerry picked us up.
That leg of our trip turned into a challenging episode itself as we got lost in the Paris subway system. We found ourselves lugging our bags up and down steep concrete staircases. And did I mention that Tamie broke her foot before this trip?
Related: A dream for Christian higher education in Europe
Fortunately, a few nice French people along the way helped us find the right station — with no time to spare.
And we had a wonderful time visiting with the Joneses and hearing their story, which the Chronicle published this week. After our time there, Jerry drove us back to Le Mans. We boarded one more train and made our way to Chartres for a bit of rest and sightseeing.
Also online today: my profile of Sherry Pogue, who bought a small castle in eastern France to launch a ministry serving missionaries; and my interview with Arlin Hendrix, who is celebrating 50 years as a missionary to France. We didn’t get to visit Pogue or Hendrix in person, but I enjoyed talking to both of them.
Read the entire series from France at this link.
Dan Cooper visits with Tamie Ross at the Chapelle de Fuveau church in Marseille.
Tamie Ross rides a train from Le Mans to Chartres during the trip to France. If she looks tired, she was.
Exhausted and exhilarated
Oh, I should finish the Chartres story.
Just as Tamie and I worry that we’ll never find our driver, he shares his location. He’s parked only a few minutes away. Whew!
“Please stay put,” I text, hoping my English translates. “On our way.”
When we catch up with him, he’s friendly. He places our luggage in the trunk. We slide into the back seat.
I doze off on the hour-long ride to the airport. But Tamie stays wide awake and holds on for dear life. Zigging and zagging along a major highway, she prays as the driver exceeds 100 mph.
Thankfully, he delivers us in time to make our flight. Which is promptly delayed.
Tamie Ross explores an old Catholic church in La Chapelle Au Riboul, France.
But eventually, we take off.
Exactly 24 hours after searching for our driver, we walk in our front door in Oklahoma City. It’s 9:45 p.m. in our time zone.
We are exhausted. We are exhilarated. We won’t soon forget our adventure in France.
BOBBY ROSS JR. is Editor-in-Chief of The Christian Chronicle. He traveled to France to report this special series. Reach him at [email protected].
