I realize that speaking French makes conservative Americans suspicious. France is socialist. However, there is one story that I will never forget, that is the story of Marie Durand. Most Americans have never heard of her.

http://www.museeprotestant.org/Pages/Notices.php?scatid=144&noticeid=543&lev=1&Lget=EN

This above is a link to a brief summary of her life. I visited La Tour du Constance at Aigues-Mortes. Aigues-Mortes means “bitter death”. Located at the mouth of the Rhone River in southern France it is a very humid place and a strong wind, “Le Mistral”, blows down that river valley for days on end in the winter. Inside the tower it is dark and damp. I saw the stone where someone engraved the word “Resister”. Originally the prison was built for male prisoners but somehow a few managed to escape, after that only women were kept there. These women were there because they were protestants and refused to renounce their faith. Marie Durand was a young woman when she was incarcerated and spent most of her adult life there. She did not live many years after her release because of poor health. She never renounced her faith. What a remarkable woman!!
The French have hung a plaque on a wall in the tower. I don’t remember exactly the wording on it but I remember it said that the prisoners held there were “les obstines” (that’s with an accent mark I can’t make with my keyboard”) “the obstinate” ones.
So, even though we certainly do not want to be like the French in that they are socialists there are some French people who loved God and were true to their faith at a great price. Socialists believe Government is god.