Notre Dame has been restored and it is glorious. As I wrote back in April 2019, Notre Dame in flames struck at the very heart of France, Catholics the world over, and those who loved the history and grandeur of such an inspirational place.
Notre Dame has long been on our bucket list and we were able to at least see the exterior of it during Thanksgiving week this year. Until you get there, it’s hard to fathom the sheer magnitude of the reconstruction efforts. Not only that, but there are many apartment buildings RIGHT NEXT TO Notre Dame! Can you imagine the horror and shock felt by everyone living there that night?
Yesterday evening, Notre Dame was consecrated once again.
Can you imagine the awe and anticipation as wood from the fire rebuilt into a staff is used to knock on those doors? The bells ringing once again throughout the city, and the voices lifted up in praise and song? We were watching from afar and had goosebumps. On April 15, 2019, it was unfathomable that this would ever happen again. But five years later and billions in private donations, teams of craftsmen from all over the world, sometimes sitting or laying on the ground, hanging from ropes, or hand planing great beams of wood; carefully restored Notre Dame Cathedral inch by inch.
When Tomas van Houtryve walked into Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral four years ago, he was wearing a hazmat suit and looking through a massive hole in its ceiling.
At first you notice “all its grandeur and beauty,” the photographer said. “But then when you look up, there’s this awful hole that’s been torn right through the very heart of the cathedral.”
van Houtryve went on to photograph the reconstruction over the next few years.
The first is from before the fire. It’s a picture from van Houtryve’s “accidental archive” — a test of his wet-plate camera. The second is from that same spot, after the fire and when the cathedral was without a spire or roof. And the third is from the week that Notre Dame’s new spire, still covered in scaffolding, had finished reconstruction.
“The point of the book is actually this same process I went through,” van Houtryve said. “How do you kind of learn to observe something that you’ve ignored?”
As van Houtryve made his pictures, he began to see his documentation of Notre Dame in parallel to the generations of craftspeople who built and maintained it. When the construction of Notre Dame began, the people building it knew that it would not be completed in their lifetimes — or even their children and grandchildren’s lifetimes.
And now, there is more to add to the story of Notre Dame. The applause rendered to the firefighters who tried to save the Cathedral and to those who restored it was thunderous. It brought tears to my eyes.
Merci à tous ceux qui ont oeuvré pour le sauvetage, la préservation et la restauration de Notre-Dame de Paris. ❤️#NotreDameDeParis pic.twitter.com/Y0NYG9tt47
— France tv (@FranceTV) December 7, 2024
Notre Dame is nearly 900 years old. It has 900 years of history enclosed within it’s walls. Stories of Kings, Queens, wars, strife, architectural marvels, artistry, and above all FAITH.
Once again, people will be able to attend Mass at Notre Dame. Once again, they will be able to come and marvel, to think and learn, and worship.
Notre Dame Cathedral on Sunday will host its first Mass since the catastrophic fire of 2019, a moment that transcends religious significance to become a powerful symbol of Paris’ resilience.
For Catholics, it marks the revival of the city’s spiritual heart, a place where faith has been nurtured for centuries. For the world, it signals the rebirth of one of world heritage’s most famous landmarks.
The event is both solemn and historic. Archbishop Laurent Ulrich will preside over the morning Mass, including consecrating a new bronze altar. This liturgy, attended by French President Emmanuel Macron, clergy, dignitaries and guests, is closed to the general public. Nearly 170 bishops from France and around the world are taking part in this celebration, along with one priest from each of the parishes in the Paris diocese and one priest from each of the seven Eastern-rite Catholic churches, accompanied by worshippers from these communities.
The grand reopening was both solemn and joyous.
The concert after that was equally so. Jim is correct. This was God’s Grace in song.
This is what God's grace sounds likepic.twitter.com/G7a2fFUrWT
— Jim Hanson (@JimHansonDC) December 7, 2024
Via Instapundit, I found this commentary regarding a Jewish economist’s visit to Notre Dame fitting for Notre Dame’s rebirth. The architects built Notre Dame for the ages, as have those who’ve labored these last five plus years to bring back it’s original glory.
Five years ago, the world was lamenting the loss of Notre Dame. This weekend, it was a time of joy.
Une magnifique interprétation de "Ave Maria" de Hiba Tawaji ❤️#NotreDameDeParis @PhilharRF @radiofrance pic.twitter.com/1Zf2WMIWdf
— France tv (@FranceTV) December 7, 2024
Thanks to all the hard work of the craftsmen and women from around the world, Notre Dame is once again open for worship, praise, awe, and inspiration.
https://twitter.com/FranceTV/status/1865496886330663124
Hallelujah and AMEN!
Feature Photo: Author’s personal photo
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