Notre Dame de Paris cathedral to reopen on December 8

Paris. The Notre Dame cathedral in Paris will be ready to welcome the whole world starting December 8, after the fire that occurred in April 2019, which devastated the roof and structure of the 860-year-old temple, declared a Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). of Humanity in 1991 and one of the best-known and most visited symbols of Europe.

The reopening marks the completion of the restoration funded exclusively by donations. The call work of the century It will have cost about 700 million euros (743 million dollars) and mobilized about 2,000 professionals, including numerous artisans.

Last Friday, the carving of the Virgin Mary with the Baby Jesus returned to your houseaccompanied at dusk by hundreds of faithful who chanted the Hail Mary in front of the temple of Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois, where it remained after the fire.

The so-called Virgen del Pilar dates back to the mid-14th century and was found intact despite the flames. Amid joy and contemplation, the bells of Notre Dame began to ring for the first time since the fire.

Our thirst is great to welcome the entire world back under the vaults of the cathedral.declared the Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, during a press conference in the French capital, and assured that 15 million visitors are expected to visit the building each year.

It’s time to reunite with Notre Dameadded its rector, Olivier Ribadeau Dumas. According to the diocese, these days will be moments of happiness, peace and fraternity, to which many people will be able to join.

President Emmanuel Macron, who launched the ambitious bid to rebuild the cathedral within five years, will speak in the atrium of Notre Dame on December 7, on the first day of festivities that will include a major concert, whose headliners have not yet been revealed. . The list of expected foreign heads of state was also not published.

Asked about the absence of Pope Francis during the reopening of Notre Dame, Monsignor Ulrich stated that he understood this decision. You think you need to be somewhere else moredeclared the archbishop, who nevertheless expressed his hope of receiving a message from the supreme pontiff.

Regarding the possibility of visiting Notre Dame de Paris, it is expected that from December 1, interested parties will be able to reserve specific times in a scheduling system enabled on their website. Details of the ceremonies and modalities of access to the cathedral will also be available on the site.

The collective memory in France and the world keeps fresh the images of that fateful April 15, 2019, when the flames consumed a good part of the structure of the emblematic Gothic cathedral, which was minutes away from succumbing to a fire whose origin and circumstances remain undetermined.