Face of France's 'Good King Henri IV' reconstructed

For lovers of French political and religious History, this is great news: the face of "Good Henri IV", the highly revered French king who died 400 years ago in 1610, has been reconstructed by a team of French researchers led by Philippe Charlier. Using scans of the skull believed to belong to the monarch, they created a very lively portrait of what Henry the fourth (a former Huguenot) looked like.

"Bravo"! (link here)

Now in bookstores and on Amazon: La nouvelle France protestante

An IFOP national Survey in 2010 reveals a brand new Protestant map in France.

While many speak openly about the collapse of organized Christianity in contemporary France, the heirs of French Reformers (including French-born John Calvin) are currently growing.

Although this is unexpected, it can't be denied. This process goes along with the spread of Evangelical new communities. A third of all current French protestants are Evangelicals, while 60% remain attached to the presbyterian and lutheran traditions. This new landscape draws questions and requires analysis.

Forthcoming: the New Protestant France

After a year-long process, let me proudly announce that La nouvelle France protestante (The New Protestant France) will be released this month!

In this big volume, written by 22 contributors, the whole new French protestant landscape will be described at length, with maps, data (including a big global IFOP survey), in-depth analysis.THis "must-have" is published by Labor-et-Fides, a strong Swiss-based publisher.

2009 Protestant Festival in Strasbourg (Oct., 30 - Nov.,2)

During the whole 2009 year, French Protestant have been celebrating the 500th anniversary of the birth of John Calvin, the French-born church reformer who inspired a movement that now has tens of millions of adherents worldwide.

No doubt that this Year's climax has been the huge Protestant Festival organized by the Protestant  Federation of France (FPF) in Strasbourg (Alsace, Eastern part of France).

 

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Politics and Religion, France/USA

Both France and the USA do like to teach the World about values. These two great democracies share a common emphasis on universal rights, and it is no surprise if the world debate about the Iraqi war in 2003 turned around what France and what the US had to say.

How to explain that? By going back to History, particularly in studying the relationship between politics and religion in France and the US. This is what this new book is about.

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