Notre Dame de Paris, La Belle

She’s back in all her glory. Better than ever. Crowds and lines and the reported need for reservations kept us away from her Thursday afternoon. But at the 8 am mass the next day there were no lines at all. About 100 folks worshiped in the awesome, uplifting space. I tried to focus on the young African priest and his excellent reading of scripture and clear message of God never abandoning us, but my eyes were so often lifted up to the high white vaulted ceiling by the huge white pillars and also to the upper levels’ statues and windows. The choir space of rich wood extending way behind the altar and behind the 5 priests who presided over the Eucharist, the expanse of it all, the high, far eastern window with light shining in on the famed crown of thorns, and even the quiet passing of the visitors around the ambulatory reminded me that I wasn’t in any old church, but the most famous church in the world.

Notre Dame was worth a mass to me. If attending a Catholic service first thing in the morning would get me into the restored Gothic gem after the devastation of the April 2019 fire, I was up for it.

So much care has gone into the repair and restoration, it was hard for me to imagine the destruction of the fire. On my walking tour after the service, I just kept thanking God that it was saved. Thankful for all the persons who worked to make it shine again. Perhaps that is the great lesson: We can repair and restore what is almost lost. Notre Dame symbolizes the best of humanity. Its restoration gives hope to all of us.

Here are a few impressions: