The Parisian Archdiocese responsible for the custodianship and refurbishment of Notre Dame Cathedral is issuing an appeal for more donations after an initial push of nearly $1 billion following the devastating 2019 fire and partial collapse that captured the hearts of Catholics and culture lovers worldwide.
The church is now asking for an additional $6 to $7 million to fund the renovation of Notre Dame’s interior, which was made ineligible to receive any of the original gift following a ruling by a French court that limited use of donations to the restoration of the building’s structure and 12th-century facade.
The Archdiocese is seeking to make improvements aimed at modernizing the cathedral while at the same time conserving some of its sacred monuments in an effort to return the popular tourist destination to its original function as a place of worship and religious pilgrimage.
The four-part plan will start with a restoration of the reliquary case housing remnants of the Crown of Thorns, which was saved the night of the fire by Paris Fire Department Chaplain Jean-Marc Fournier. The next phase will see the construction of a new tabernacle inside the cathedral’s nave, featuring new liturgical seating and a remade altar, which was destroyed when the church's vault and lower spire frame collapsed following the four-hour fire on April 15th, 2019.
The final two phases will focus on upgrading the sound and lighting systems and an extension to the choir’s assembly and 8,000-pipe-organ.
“The renovation of Notre Dame provides the opportunity to bring the cathedral into the 21st century, while maintaining the preservation of its own identity, in the spirit of Christian Tradition,” Archbishop Michel Aupetit said in a statement.
Fundraising efforts for the restoration initially garnered an overwhelming amount of donations, even drawing criticism from some who felt the nine-figure campaign to be exorbitant, insisting that the money could be of better use elsewhere in a country that has become embroiled by a popular protest movement aimed at politicizing its skyrocketing cost of living.
Work has continued through the pandemic on the 850-year-old building with an opening set to coincide with the city's hosting of the Summer Olympics in 2024.
7 Comments
Because we all know the Catholic Church is strapped for cash.
It costs a lot to keep all those pedophiles out of jail.
Notre Dame is owned by the French government and has been since the French Revolution. The Catholic Church is allowed to have services there but the building itself is state owned.
That's interesting. Seems the Archdiocese, a Catholic org, is begging for donations, though. Thus my comment.
Could this be another example of a private organization offloading costs to the public sect or while claiming the sole use and (in this case spiritual) benefit?
I am not sure the Catholic Church in Rome has given much, if anything, to the restoration. A lot of Catholics (and non-Catholics) throughout the world have given generously. Figuring out who is responsible for what and where the different pots of money came from and where they went would make a good book.
they should just open it up to corporations for naming rights and maybe lease it out at night for cocktail parties
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