Through marriage, some parishioners are French. Services may be conducted in French or in both languages. The church is now an accepted part of the community. Ecumenical relations with other churches are excellent. “They recognise that we take our faith seriously,” says Canon Letts. “We don’t keep apart, doing our own thing, disregarding their interests.” He hosts a monthly meeting, in French, of clergy from other churches in Nice: Roman Catholic, Russian and Greek Orthodox, Armenian, Église Réformée de France, Lutheran, Salvation Army, Baptist.
The church has two priorities, says Canon Letts: to serve God, and to serve his people. Financially that makes life tricky. The church is self-supporting, receiving “not a cent” from anyone, and pays “horrendous” taxes. It does not make economic sense to give four out of six Sunday collections away, he says, but we do – we believe it is our duty.
Nice tends to attract older Anglophones, so there are few young parishioners. Canon Letts is philosophical: “We may have more young worshippers in Australia, but I gather in England this is the pattern. The church for centuries has lived with these ebbs and flows.”
Nice posting. ‘They recognise that we take our faith seriously.’ Indeed, ‘they’ in general do, and ecumenical relations, in practice, are very good in the UK and in Europe. Forget the frigid pontifications of official RC-dom.