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CV NEWS FEED // Ringing bells and classical grandeur marked the reopening ceremony of Notre-Dame Cathedral Dec. 7. A jubilant choir sang in response to the Archbishop of Paris’ first knock on the cathedral doors. The following day, more than 2,500 people attended the celebration of the first Mass to take place at Notre-Dame since the April 2019 fire.
Five years ago, the world had watched, devastated, as flames engulfed and destroyed much of the famous Paris cathedral during the Monday of Holy Week.
According to ABC News, almost 500 firefighters worked tirelessly to save the Catholic cathedral that had stood for more than 800 years as an architectural testament to faith, beauty, and hope. They saved it from complete destruction, but by the time the flames were defeated, much damage had already been done.
Most of the roof was on the floor of the church, scorched and piled amid mounds of rubble. The spire had collapsed after its structure was seared relentlessly by white-hot fire. To many, the day of the fire felt like a defeat. So much beauty, history, and heritage had been destroyed.
As the last embers finally darkened, Catholics and non-Catholics alike were mourning the cathedral’s loss, and collectively wondered, “What now?”
French President Emmanuel Macron announced shortly after the fire that the Cathedral’s restoration would take place by an ambitious deadline of five years. In April 2019, the Prime Minister of France Edouard Philippe announced an international competition for architects to propose a new roof and spire for the church. Designers offered a range of approaches, with some opting for a modernized tone that seemed to strike a dissonant chord against the rest of the Cathedral’s Gothic style.
In May 2019, the French Senate determined that the Cathedral would be restored to exactly how it was before. The design competition ended, but restoration was underway. For more than two years, workers focused on stabilizing the building itself, according to Architectural Record. France was equipped with $900 million raised from donors to pour into the project.
Scaffolding eventually went up. Authorities never determined the cause of the fire; however, Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said in 2019 that it was “likely accidental.”
Cleanup and repairs ranged from major to minor details throughout the church, as people worked to meet the hopeful 2024 deadline to open the cathedral back up to the public.
“Damaged vaults have been repaired, every single chapel cleaned and renovated, the 7,952-pipe main organ taken apart and put back together, and all surfaces, objects, and furnishings cleaned and, where necessary, restored,” Architectural Record reports.
The full extent of repairs won’t conclude until 2028 at the earliest, but even as scaffolding still remains on the exterior, Dec. 7, 2024, marked a turning point. It was the day that the Cathedral’s doors reopened to the public.
Archbishop of Paris opens the doors
As the ceremony began, the Cathedral’s bells began to ring, sounding across Paris. Bells at Catholic churches across the United States were set to ring in unison Dec. 7 to celebrate with Notre Dame.
A procession of clergy approached the massive entrance, and Archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich stopped before it. He spoke in praise of the Cathedral as a place of both peace and justice. He then turned and knocked on the door with his staff, a crozier.
Trumpets sounded. A joyful choir of children and adults began to sing. Twice more, Archbishop Ulrich spoke and then knocked on the door, and the choir responded again.
Archbishop Ulrich then opened the doors, revealing the shining, restored interior of the cathedral. The chorus of singers hailed in a triumphant song.
Notre-Dame is open again.
President-elect Donald Trump, U.S. First Lady Jill Biden, Prince William of England, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Macron were among those present at the reopening. The Hill reported that according to the White House, President Joe Biden could not attend due to a scheduling conflict.
Ceremony attendees also honored a number of firefighters with a long round of applause. Following this, duetting musicians Renaud and Gautier Capuçon played Handel’s Passacaglia on cello and violin.
A powerful video clip that BBC Radio 3 Producer Joseph Zubier shared on X depicts the moment the Cathedral’s organ “awakened” at the beckoning of the Archbishop of Paris. The organist, Olivier Latry, played the historic notes, which at first flickered with a low hum, and then gradually crescendoed to a loud proclamation.
Notre-Dame ‘stands as a message that transcends time and borders’
On Dec. 8 during the consecration of the Cathedral’s new altar, five saints’ relics — including one of France’s St. Catherine Labouré — were placed within the altar, according to NBC Los Angeles. There was a prayer of dedication, and the altar was anointed with oil and incensed.
“It is a true praise that we offer to God, the Father of all, on this blessed evening,” Archbishop Ulrich said during the homily for the Dec. 8 Mass. “We have been waiting for this day for five years, and now it has come! We give thanks for this incredible project, carried out with great energy and determination by all the stakeholders, to bring it to fruition for the joy of all, clearly; for the satisfaction of having met an extraordinary challenge; and, it must be said, for the renown of France, whose enterprises have demonstrated their immense expertise in the restoration of historical treasures!”
Highlighting the multi-layered significance of Notre-Dame, the Archbishop said: “This church, this cathedral that speaks to so many people, has endured through the centuries, maintaining its distinctive identity while being enriched by the expressions of each era. And through an astonishing mystery, it has gained, in our century, a fame that has justified the care we now give to it. It stands as a message that transcends time and borders.”
“To you who enter here, welcome; whether you are Christians or not, believers or not, the Virgin Mary extends her arms to you, listens to you, and presents you to her Son Jesus, to whom be all honor and glory, today and forever!”
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, traveled to Paris for the occasion.
“I was honored to have been invited to the rededication of the Cathedral and we’re here for Sunday Mass… To be here, I bring all of you with me, we love you, the French people love the United States, they’re very grateful to the generosity of many Americans for the rebuilding of Notre Dame,” he said.
Chief architect reveals Marian devotion
Notre-Dame’s chief architect Philippe Villeneuve revealed, in an interview with EWTN correspondent Colm Flynn, a personal spiritual devotion that has underscored his work.
“I spent five years saying nothing about this because I am a civil servant in a secular republic… but now, I have to reveal that yes, I have a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary, and at the risk of sounding totally crazy, or like Joan of Arc, I never stopped feeling support coming from up there,” Villeneuve said. “I don’t think this project would’ve been possible otherwise, and I think that’s what gave me the strength and determination to move forward, because I knew I was supported from up there.”
