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We announce the REOPENING OF THE NOTRE-DAME DE PARIS CATHEDRAL!

2024

Dear Friends,

Notre Dame Cathedral ‘back in the light’. The doors of the newly restored Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris were officially reopened to the public during a ceremony last night, just over five years after a fire destroyed the roof, structure and spire of the iconic structure. Breaking five years of silence, the bell of Notre-Dame, known as the bourdon, rang out across the city of Paris. It was the first stage of the reopening process, which began with three knocks on the cathedral's central portal, the Portal of the Last Judgement, by the Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich. The opening of the doors was set to music with the polyphonic piece Totus Tuss, composed in 1987 by Henryk Gorecki during John Paul II's visit to Poland, and sung by the 150 young members of the Maîtrise de Notre Dame.

‘Notre Dame has known darkness, now it is back in the light. She knew silence and now she rediscovers the joy of our songs,’ said Mgr. Ulrich, who took possession of the Paris cathedral for the first time two years after being appointed head of the Archdiocese of Paris, succeeding Mgr Michel Aupetit.

The reopening process began yesterday, 7 December 2024, and will run until 8 June 2025, coinciding with the Feast of Pentecost. 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 many the opportunity to rediscover Notre-Dame.

Let's marvel at the perseverance that led to this reconstruction and recovered this heritage of faith in what is one of the oldest Gothic cathedrals in the world. Let's visit and admire it!

A huge XIIIIIIII! Fátima C. Brízio