The construction of the great Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, France was started in 1163 during the reign of King Louis VII and finally finished nearly 200 years later in 1345. Henry VI was crowned there in 1431, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor there in 1804. He was responsible for badly needed major renovations at that time, saving the cathedral from being demolished. In 1909 Joan of Arc was beatified there by Pope Pius X as an innocent and martyr of the Catholic Church. Millions of tourists from around the world visit the Cathedral each year, climb the 140 steps up into the bell tower to see the famous bells and gain a fabulous view of the city, stroll the aisles while listening to guides telling the long history and pointing out many priceless artifacts there, and lighting candles in prayer for loved ones. If the visitor is extra fortunate there might be a prayer service or a wedding when the 17th century grand organ is played.
When I was a college student back in the mid-fifties I was fortunate enough to join a group on Hollins Abroad for a year and live in a French family while attending La Sorbonne and also doing extensive touring of Europe. One of the first stops along with a visit to La Tour Eiffel and the Louvre was to La Notre Dame de Paris. Its picture was on the cover of my year's calendar for 1957.
There were times when I could walk the streets of this beautiful city with my camera. Of course, I would find my way to the book stalls along the Seine River and take in all the sights and sounds along the way. Dominating much of the scenery was the grand cathedral. Climbing the 140 steps to the top of the bell tower was not too big a challenge at my late teen age and certainly well worth the effort.
You can see the dark effects from years of car exhaust . . .
In 1984 Bill and I took a motorcycle tour in Europe which took us to Paris. Of course, we made a visit to Notre Dame Cathedral.
Good to see the facade had been cleaned!
This photo was purchased:
Here it is 2019. The Cathedral is now 856 years old. There have been many near catastrophies over the many years but the structure has remained and become a symbol of strength and hope not just for the French but the world.
On Monday, April 15th, the first day of Holy Week, a faulty electrical circuit caused a flare that was not immediately detected. The alarm system rang out a warning but was first thought to be malfunctioning which gave the sparks time to spread and feed on the forest of wood used in the upper structure. The rush hour traffic impeded the fire trucks' urgent response to the scene. Finally the crews arrived and bravely did their work, frustrated that equipment could not get high enough to attack the spreading flames in the tower and upper roofing.
This photo was taken shortly before fire broke out
Commentary by Alexandra Desanctis: THERE IS HOPE FOR NOTRE-DAME DE PARIS Catholics around the world, who knew this cathedral not only as a place of particular beauty, but as a place of transcendence, a house dedicated to God and built to glorify Him, not its creators . . . its beauty told a story of something greater, something not of this world. The fire was a painful reminder that everything in the earthly city is, in the end, only dust."
The fire raged on into the night
There were reports it was burning to the ground!
Major broadcast TV stations interrupted their usual programs for hours while the world watched, held their breath, and prayed. How could this happen??
People looked for signs of hope
The robe of Saint Louis
A "Holy Nail" and a fragment of the true cross have been saved
The fire was fought by nearly 400 firefighters over nine hours before it was extinguished. Notre Dame beekeeper Nicolas Geant was fearful the 200,000 bees kept on a roof of a neighboring sacristy, just below the cathedral's rose window, would have perished. Each hive has about 60,000 bees. Researching on the internet from a drone and satellite photo, he could see their wooden hives still there and also got reports of their activity. He said that had they been a bit closer to the flames the hives would have burned and the wax melted, gluing all the bees together. The smoke did not bother them. The bees produce approx. 165 pounds of honey yearly which is sold to Notre Dame employees. This kind of bee does not abandon its hive and gorges on honey and does not leave the queen bee when it senses fire. Initially three hives were installed In 2013 as part of a Paris-wide initiative to help increase the decline of bees. There are other hives at the Paris Opera.
You can see them .. V .. on the flat roof to the left of the scaffolding riverside.
Who We Are
President Macron has pledged to rebuild this glorious cathedral and worldwide donations are pouring in. May we all join in this great effort, if not with our dollars or euros, but with our fervent prayers to remember who we are and what we are to do with our lives. Nothing stays the same from day to day, year to year, as we build on our faith that there will be a tomorrow and a renewed cathedral built to the glory of God.