Scandal! Renan created controversy. The answer? A calvary
And also
The tops
A monument against Renan
Renan was regarded as an anti-Catholic, an impious man, antipatriotic...
He wrote a biography about Jesus Christ, written like the life of a vulgar man...
Well, In Brittany, people used to be pretty bigots: Renan was too outrageous.
So when the city of Tréguier decided to raise a statue of Renan in 1903, on the Cathedral square, Breton Catholics decided to respond one year later: they raised that calvary!
A "compensation calvary"... so there!
The calvary
It’s a big block of granite, a calvary made by Breton sculptor Yves Hernot and inaugurated by bishop of Rennes Mr. Labouré, the day of the annual procession dedicated to saint Yves.
The monument is 12 metres high.
In the middle, Jesus Christ on his cross with the two thieves.
We have a poem by Breton poet Brizeux:
Nous avons un cœur franc pour détester les traîtres. Nous adorons Jésus, le Dieu de nos ancêtres
"We have a pure heart to hate traitors. We love Jesus, our ancestors’ God."
On the pedestal, we have this sentence in 3 languages (Latin, French, Breton):
En vérité, cet homme était vraiment fils de Dieu.
"This man was really son of God".
Below the 3 crosses, you’ll probably recognize Virgin Mary, saint John, Mary-Magdalene, saints George and Maurice.