My search for Catholic churches in Thailand continues. After checking out the Bangkok Cathedral and the Holy Rosary Church, my sight was next aimed to a church located near the Surasak Station of the Skytrain. This church is the St. Louis Church.
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| (Source: St. Louis Church website) |
My intention in going to St. Louis Church was to pray and then take some photos. So, I packed my camera and rode the BTS (or Skytrain) to reach this church.
I wondered who is this St. Louis and why the church was named in his honor. According to Catholic Online, St. Louis is the only canonized king of France. He had fought in the crusade and died during a siege of Tunis.
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| Saint Louis King of France. |
The naming of St. Louis Church showed that this church was built or managed by French missionaries in the past. The name is the hint of that French connection.
I discovered that St. Louis Church is within the compound where various institutions are located like the St. Louis Suksa School, St. Louis Commercial School and the St. Louis Hospital. Of all the institutions located within the compound (other than the church of course), what delighted me the most is this:
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I was glad to reach the office of the Papal Nuncio to Thailand. A nunciature is a sort of an embassy of the Holy See to other countries and the Nuncio is the Pope's representative. The presence of a nunciature in Thailand means that the Thai government is in good relationship with the Church.
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Too bad that I haven't met the Papal Nuncio.
Unfortunately, St. Louis Church is closed during that time. I didn't got the chance to pray at least one “Hail Mary!” :-(
I am getting used to the situation of churches here in Thailand. Most of the time they are closed. I sorely miss the churches in the Philippines where I can just enter any time I want to pray.
I just decided to walk around the church to look for an opening. I found none. Though I discovered, to my delight, the tarpaulin that contain the life story of Saint Lorenzo Ruiz and Saint Pedro Calungsod.
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I exclaimed, "Never thought to see you here in Bangkok Pedro and Lorenzo!"
The presence of the guards made me hesitant to take photos of St. Louis Church. What I just took is the side view of the church.
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And the supposed front view of St. Louis Church.
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FAIL!
Since I couldn't enter St. Louis Church, I just decided to go to the Holy Rosary Church because I know that it is open during the day.
I'm still hoping to visit St. Louis Church before I go back to the Philippines. I saw the photos of its interior and it is beautiful also. This image from the website of St. Louis Church is the proof.
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| (Source: St. Louis Church website) |
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Was there a time that you wanted to enter a church so badly but became frustrated because it was closed? Tell me your experiences by leaving a comment in the comment box below. Thank you for the visit!
