Photo by FREDDIE HERPIN, Photographer
BOBBY ARDOIN
Contributing Writer
A life-sized statue of St. Landry of Paris sponsored by the Opelousas Rotary Club is scheduled to be unveiled during a ceremony May 24 in front of the parish courthouse.
Opelousas Rotarian Bruce Gaudin who has directed the club project for the past several years, said earlier this week that the 10 a.m. statue dedication coincides with the 100th anniversary of the club.
Gaudin received Parish Council permission about years ago to place the St. Landry Monument on courthouse property.
St. Landry was the bishop of Parish during the 600’s. He was later venerated and named a saint by church officials. Landry of Parish was especially concerned with the plight of the poor people around Paris, France.
His biography listed on the Wikipedia.com website indicates that during one Parisian famine around 650, St. Landry sold all of his possessions and in addition to sacred items owned by the church in order to purchase bread for people who at the time were starving.
Gaudin said the statue at the courthouse will depict St. Landry sitting on a bench and offering bread to those who are hungry.
“St. Landry Parish is named after St. Landry and by placing this statue at the courthouse, school-age children will have the chance to learn about St. Landry and know more about the life of this saint,” Gaudin told a Tuesday Rotary Club meeting.
The artist’s sketching of the statue and the actual creation of the statue from a clay mold has covered the last four years, Gaudin said.
According to the Wikipedia article St. Landry was also responsible for the construction of a hospital dedicated to the June 10 feast day St. Peter.
St. Landry Catholic Church in Opelousas is dedicated to St. Landry of Paris. A statue of St. Landry is located behind the altar of St. Landry Catholic Church, while his image can be seen in a stained glass window in the southwest corner of the church, said the Wikipedia post.
A statue of St. Landry can also be seen at the Eglise St. Germain l’ Auxerrois next to the Louve in Paris, the Wikipedia article said.
