Archbishop of Paris officially reopens Notre Dame Cathedral

The Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrichofficially reopened Notre Dame Cathedral on Saturday with a ritual that included solemnly knocking on the doors by tapping his cross and wait for the reaction of the Gothic temple, sung by the choirs inside, before you cross the threshold.

In particular, the Notre Dame singers recited Psalm 121 of the Bible: “I lift up mine eyes to the mountains; “Where will my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, creator of heaven and earth” – each of the three times the archbishop asked Notre Dame to open its doors.

The ceremony, which had to be adjusted due to the wind and rain and which started with the ringing of the cathedral bells, was attended by dozens of leaders from all over the worldsuch as the newly elected President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the First Lady, Jill Biden; the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni or the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Both Trump and Zelensky had just been received at the Elysée by Emmanuel Macron, a diplomatic victory for the French president, who achieved this first meeting between the two leaders since the Republican leader’s victory in the November elections, with Washington’s future uncertain support for Kiev against Russia on the table.

This led to Macron and his wife Brigitte arriving later than expected at the cathedral esplanade, where a tent had been set up where heads of state and government could greet each other and take a photo.

In the absence of the French President, acting Prime Minister Michel Barnier provided the first receptions.

When Zelensky arrived a few minutes after Macron and entered the restored ship, the Ukrainian president was greeted with applause.

Meanwhile, some attendees had their photo taken with billionaire businessman Elon Musk, also present at this ceremony that included a large representation of European royalty, such as Prince William of Wales or Belgian Kings Philip and Matilda.

Now that all the guests are inside, the signal for the start of the ceremony comes from the bellswhich Macron, his wife and the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, listened to while standing in front of the facade.

Then the Archbishop of Paris, accompanied by other clergy, made a brief explanation procession with the wooden cross with which he knocked on the doors (made with wood reclaimed from the ruins of the April 2019 fire). All dressed in a cape with green, red, yellow and blue colors, each with a special liturgical meaning.

After opening the doors, he moved the door to the sink holy water before returning outside to invite Macron, the French first lady and the Paris mayor inside.

This began the next phase of the ceremony, which was originally supposed to be the first and took place on the outdoor promenade, with a more political character.

In this part, Macron gave a speech before handing the baton back to Archbishop Ulrich, who will continue with the planned religious rituals, such as the calls to “wake up” the cathedral organ.

He fire that destroyed the temple on April 15, 2019 left one of Paris’s icons in ruins. Now, and after some pharaonic works, The cathedral shines again in all its splendor.

That of day 8 will be a more religious program with a mass at 10:30 a.m., during which the altar will be dedicated.