Prayers for and Thoughts on the Cathedral de Notre Dame

On Monday, April 15 a terrible tragedy befell an internationally
renown cathedral, not merely a landmark (though it certainly is),
and an iconic house of worship for the Catholics of Paris,
of France, and for the millions of Catholics from around the world
who visit and worship there when visiting Paris, and for many
others who traveled to Paris specifically to worship at this
nine century-old church, but a tribute and a message of love
to the Virgin Mary; its name is French for "Our Lady of Paris".
The Cathedral of Notre Dame suffered a major fire
which consumed much of its roof and caused further damage
to the area of the altar. Its spire, an icon in and of itself, was
destroyed along with the oak frame and the lead roof. In a sad
irony, the cathedral was undergoing some restoration work
in the very area where the fire broke out; authorities are still
trying to determine the origin of the fire as your faithful Peasant
types this post, but they have averred that the cathedral was
no more than half an hour away from complete destruction
as the structural damage would have been severe enough to
cause its complete collapse. Some of the relics and other holy
items in the cathedral were saved, including the crown of thorns
which Jesus Christ wore when he was sent to die on the cross.

In my younger days, when among other things I traveled far
and often, I too worshiped at the cathedral. Having visited
Paris twice, I made it a point to visit the vast House of God
with its flying buttresses and majestic spire, its gargoyles
perched around its structure as permanent sentries watching
out for evil spirits should they come by to menace the cathedral
and all those who pray there. Pity they couldn't do anything to
contain and quench the conflagration that rose up that recent
fateful night. I also attended Sunday Mass there; against the
ornate surroundings which included the most stunning stained
glass windows it was an exquisitely magnificent experience,
one very unique in my experience which I shall never forget.
Worshiping there in attending Mass made one feel a great
level closer to heaven, and it was among the highlights of
my 61 years of life so far. I cannot and do not want to imagine
Paris or the world without the Cathedral of Notre Dame,
and I have been praying for her and her parishioners,
her clergy, and for my fellow Catholics in France and
throughout the world. Of course there are other, many other
Catholic houses of worship in the world, including other
magnificent cathedrals; there is also the Basilica Du
Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart) that I also visited and worshiped
in. But there is something uniquely mystical and other-worldly
about the Cathedral de Notre Dame which I pray can be
preserved when it is repaired. I am worried that somehow
it won't be preserved at all, or that it will be only poorly so,
because in recent years the French, like the rest of Europe,
has succumbed to the siren song of secularism, the secularism
in the sense of a society no longer recognizing their link to
their heavenly Creator and perhaps even rejecting the
existence of same. Now, I'll save my thoughts on secularism
and related things for another day but I will state here and now
that many French folk have come to regard the Cathedral
as merely a museum, a monument to a bygone time, a
tourist attraction, and I fear that when they repair the place
it will not retain that mystical quality that made it so special.
Could the fire have been a sign from God, as some of the
faithful think, that He is displeased with the people of
France for taking this tack and this catastrophe was an
"attention getter" to get them to think about the course that
they have embarked upon? As a life-long practicing Catholic,
I can't say as to whether or not that is true, but I will say that
it was a truly sad day when the Cathedral de Notre Dame
was partially engulfed in flames, and that it will take many
months to repair and restore the beautiful, medieval
cathedral which was built and consecrated to the Mother
of Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Although after the
work is completed people will be able to come visit
and worship there as before, they may not be able to
enjoy and treasure the experience that I and many others
had been able to partake of with all the fullness of its
heretofore mystical and mysterious atmosphere, for it
may well be eliminated not so much by political edict
but by a lack of understanding of and appreciation for
these spiritual qualities on the part of people who have
no use for them. While I'm happy that they want to repair
the cathedral, and French President Emmanuel Macron
has vowed to get it done, my aforementioned concern
stands. Time will tell.


MEM