Holy Week-Notre-Dame Disaster

by Cindi Sutter, Chief Communicator & Editor of Spirited Table®

“All across our globe the citizens of the world grieve the loss of one of the most iconic basilicas’ of faith, Notre-Dame. For this to occur during Holy Week, touches our hearts in ways that will forever impact all of us who’ve walked those halls, prayed for the fires to stop, or listened to the amazing acoustical phenomenon that a chorus of voices created inside this awe-inspiring cathedral”. Cindi Sutter

Here is one of the most beautifully written facts, tribute and history of Notre-Dame, from our friends at AFAR. Entitled Why We Wept for Notre-Dame as It Burned; It begins like this…

As the world mourns for the Gothic Basilica in Paris, AFAR’s editors reflect on what the cathedral means to them.

The photos are staggering, the videos even worse: an 800-year-old icon, not just for Paris but for the world, ablaze. As several hundred firefighters struggled to contain the fire that consumed the wooden roof and spire of Notre-Dame yesterday, Parisians lined the Seine and circled the Île de la Cité, weeping. They took pictures and videos, hoping—and openly praying—that these wouldn’t be their last. The devout clutched rosaries as they sang “Ave Maria” within sight of the seeming hellscape atop their beloved cathedral: “Vous êtes bénie entre toutes les femmes.” You are blessed among women.

At the lowest of lows, when all hope was lost, a Notre-Dame spokesman told French media: “Everything is burning, nothing will remain from the frame.” Thankfully, the latest news from the French capital is that Christian relics, including the crown of thorns and the tunic of Saint Louis, as well as the double rectangular towers of Notre-Dame are safe. The fate of the famed rose windows and the cathedral’s main organ is less certain, while the spire and wooden roof of the church are gone. You can find the tribute in full at afar.com.

See Below the Parisians singing 'Ave María'…what a testament of faith, sadness and support.

Amen!