French President Emmanuel Macron will pay a visit to Notre-Dame Cathedral in the coming weeks, in a significant moment marking the restoration of the iconic monument, which was severely damaged by a fire on April 16, 2019.
At the time, Macron promised that the cathedral would be restored “more beautiful than ever” within five years. Now, with the official reopening scheduled for December 7th, the president is preparing to celebrate a milestone in French history.
During his visit, Macron will give a speech outside the cathedral, maintaining the tradition of the 1905 law establishing the separation of church and state.
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According to the Élysée Palace, “this speech will be addressed to all French people” and will represent a republican and secular moment before a religious and musical event that will take place inside the cathedral.
The reopening ceremony will be attended by 2,000 guests and will be broadcast live around the world.
The December 7 event will be followed by a mass the following day, which will mark the beginning of a new era for the cathedral.
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After Macron’s speech, the Archbishop of Paris, Monsignor Laurent Ulrich, will officiate the reopening by knocking on the cathedral’s main door with his staff. In a symbolic gesture, he will “wake up” the cathedral’s grand organ, which will be accompanied by a musical performance, including a rendition of Bach’s Magnificat and a Te Deum.
On the Friday before the reopening, a nearly life-size statue of the Virgin Mary, dating from the 14th century and which survived the fire, will be paraded through the streets of Paris before returning to its original place in the cathedral.
After reopening, Notre-Dame Cathedral will be open to the public until 10pm during the first week, until December 15th. Due to the large number of visitors expected, it will be necessary to make reservations for the visit, which can be made through the cathedral’s website or through a new application that will be launched.
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Since the fire, millions of euros have been donated towards the restoration of the cathedral, with approximately €500 million already spent over the last five years. Philippe Jost, responsible for the project, stated that a surplus of around €140 million will be allocated to future preservation works on the building, which, according to him, was no longer in good condition before the fire.
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