On VIP tour of Notre Dame, President Macron calls its reopening a ‘shock of hope’
France’s Emmanuel Macron has praised workers for achieving the “impossible” task of restoring Paris’s Notre-Dame cathedral after a major fire engulfed the Gothic jewel in 2019.
This morning (Friday 29 November) the world had a first look inside a resplendent new Notre-Dame as Macron conducted a televised tour to mark the cathedral’s imminent re-opening.
Five-and-a-half years after the devastating fire, Paris’s Gothic jewel has been rescued, renovated and refurbished – and it will offer visitors a breathtaking visual treat.
In a speech to the craftsmen and women who worked on the refurbishment, Macron said: “The blaze at Notre-Dame was a national wound, and you have been its remedy through will, through work, through commitment.”
“I am so deeply grateful, France is so deeply grateful,” the president said during his speech, adding: “you have brought Notre-Dame back”.
Macron – accompanied by his wife Brigitte and Archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich – kicked off a programme of ceremonies that will culminate with an official “entry” into the cathedral on 7 December and the first Mass the day after.
On entering the refurbished cathedral, Macron said it was now “repaired, reinvented and rebuilt”.
“It is sublime,” he said.
Turning his speech to donors, he expressed gratitude for their solidarity and said their “generosity” made it possible to rebuild the Cathedral. He also praised and thanked those involved in rebuilding and restoring the cathedral, paying tribute to Jean-Louis Georgelin – a retired general who oversaw the reconstruction until his death last year.
Visibly moved, the president said: “He should have been with us. I believe he would have been proud and happy.”
He said the workers “re-baptised this site, you gave five years of your lives”, and said that the reopening of the cathedral as a “shock of hope”, before ending his speech by saying “France is so deeply grateful”.
He was then shown highlights of the building’s €700m (£582m) renovation – including the massive roof timbers that replaced the medieval frame consumed in the fire.
REOPENING
The reopening ceremonies will begin on 7 and 8 December, 2024, followed by an octave of events until 15 December, including two concerts of Jean-Sébastien Bach’s Magnificat on 17 and 18 December. Weekly concerts on Tuesdays and numerous events will continue until Pentecost in June 2025, offering an opportunity for many to rediscover Notre-Dame.
7 December
The reopening service, presided over by the Archbishop of Paris, will take place late in the afternoon, in the presence of the President of the Republic, officials, donors, representatives of all the parishes of Paris, members of the cathedral chapter, and the Parisian clergy.
During the rite of the opening of the doors, the Archbishop will strike the closed door of Notre-Dame with his staff. The cathedral will “respond” with the singing of Psalm 121, three times. The cathedral, which had been silent, will once again resonate with the song of praise, and on the third time, the doors will open.
This entire service will be accompanied by the choirs of the Notre-Dame de Paris Choir School. Olivier Latry, Vincent Dubois, Thierry Escaich, and Thibault Fajoles will play the great organ, while Yves Castagnet will accompany from the cathedral’s choir using a temporary organ (until the choir organ is restored).
The service will be followed by a broadcast produced by France TV, airing globally from the cathedral’s forecourt, aimed at sharing the joy of the reopening with as many people as possible and thanking those who made it possible.
December 8
The inaugural Mass, with the consecration of the high altar, will take place on Sunday, 8 December at 10:30 AM, presided over by the Archbishop of Paris, with the President of the Republic also in attendance.
At the invitation of Archbishop Laurent Ulrich, nearly 170 bishops from France and around the world will participate in the celebration, along with one priest from each of the 106 parishes in the Diocese of Paris, and one priest from each of the seven Eastern Catholic Churches, accompanied by faithful from these communities.
The consecration of the altar will be carried out in five steps. First, the relics of five saints will be placed and sealed in the altar. These relics, belonging to three women and two men who marked the history of the Church in Paris, include those of Saint Marie Eugénie Milleret, Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat, Saint Catherine Labouré, Saint Charles de Foucauld, and Blessed Vladimir Ghika. The prayer of dedication will then be recited, followed by the anointing with oil, the central moment of the consecration. This will be followed by the offering of incense, before the altar is adorned and illuminated.
This Mass will be followed by a fraternal buffet to welcome the most disadvantaged and those who support them daily through charitable organizations in the Diocese of Paris.
For more information visit the cathedral website:
NOTRE DAME