Milan, 25 Sep. (LaPresse) – “It has been seven years since the whole world, in suspense, observed the cathedral engulfed in a terrifying fire. Even then we raised our gaze, bewildered, recognizing human insufficiency in the face of the imponderable. That pain was not of Catholics alone, nor of believers alone. We realized, in that dramatic hour, that Notre-Dame is more than a monument. The choral participation in the reconstruction and now the splendor of the result reveal that here the heart of a people beats, that we find ourselves at the vital center of a civilization, that past and future embrace, that heaven and earth meet.” So said Pope Leo XIV during the homily held for the celebration of vespers in the Parisian cathedral.”I wanted to meet you in this symbolic place of the Church in France. It was a joy for me to cross the threshold, just now, as happens every day to thousands of brothers and sisters who come here from all over the world. The mere fact of entering, presents us with a beauty that speaks to our restless heart and calls it to peace. In restoring this space to all humanity, it has rightly been understood how each visitor can allow himself to be regenerated by what he sees, listens to, and experiences. The institutions –public, ecclesial and private– involved in the restoration of Notre-Dame, with their specific contribution, have thus contributed to reactivating the cultural, existential and spiritual paths that the Cathedral opens. In this context, the Church has interpreted its task in terms not only of conservation, but also of creativity, making tradition live with the boldness of those who have faith and are turned to Hope”, said the Pontiff who thanked “the archbishop, Monsignor Laurent Ulrich, his collaborators and the diocesan community of Paris, who also imagined a pastoral path of first announcement and Christian initiation within everyone’s reach.”
France, Pope: “It’s a joy to cross the threshold of Notre Dame seven years after the fire.”
Milan, 25 Sep. (LaPresse) – “It has been seven years since the whole world, in suspense, observed the cathedral engulfed in a terrifying fire. Even then we raised our gaze, bewildered, recognizing human insufficiency in the face of the imponderable. That pain was not of Catholics alone, nor of believers alone. We realized, in that dramatic hour, that Notre-Dame is more than a monument. The choral participation in the reconstruction and now the splendor of the result reveal that here the heart of a people beats, that we find ourselves at the vital center of a civilization, that past and future embrace, that heaven and earth meet.” So said Pope Leo XIV during the homily held for the celebration of vespers in the Parisian cathedral.”I wanted to meet you in this symbolic place of the Church in France. It was a joy for me to cross the threshold, just now, as happens every day to thousands of brothers and sisters who come here from all over the world. The mere fact of entering, presents us with a beauty that speaks to our restless heart and calls it to peace. In restoring this space to all humanity, it has rightly been understood how each visitor can allow himself to be regenerated by what he sees, listens to, and experiences. The institutions –public, ecclesial and private– involved in the restoration of Notre-Dame, with their specific contribution, have thus contributed to reactivating the cultural, existential and spiritual paths that the Cathedral opens. In this context, the Church has interpreted its task in terms not only of conservation, but also of creativity, making tradition live with the boldness of those who have faith and are turned to Hope”, said the Pontiff who thanked “the archbishop, Monsignor Laurent Ulrich, his collaborators and the diocesan community of Paris, who also imagined a pastoral path of first announcement and Christian initiation within everyone’s reach.”