The cathedral was devastated by flames on April 15, 2019 and, since then, had no longer hosted these Nativity masses celebrating, for Christians, the birth of Jesus.
For the first time since the fire of 2019, Notre-Dame de Paris is celebrating Christmas again on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the traditional Nativity masses which should attract many faithful.
“We are now back at Notre-Dame, which has just been returned to worship and visitors. Our hearts are celebrating!” launched the Archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich in a Christmas message broadcast on Tuesday. He paid tribute to the “talents deployed on the restoration site” who allowed “may the pain of the fire and the five years of separation be erased to leave only the joy of reunion, the joy of living together again in this common house, the house of God”.
The cathedral was devastated by flames on April 15, 2019 and, since then, had no longer hosted these Nativity masses celebrating, for Christians, the birth of Jesus. For the first Christmas under the cleaned vaults of this masterpiece of Gothic art, more than 860 years old, several masses were planned at 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. After a musical vigil from 11 p.m. with the mastery of Notre-Dame, the traditional Midnight Mass will begin at midnight, presided over by Mgr Ulrich.
Wednesday, Christmas Day, the Archbishop of Paris will preside over the 11 a.m. mass, also broadcast by France 2. Two other services are planned, at 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Is it possible to reserve?
How to attend? “No reservations are possible for Christmas masses” and access to the cathedral will be “subject to availability”specifies the diocese of Paris. The Notre-Dame website therefore advises arriving 30 minutes before the time of the celebrations, “bearing in mind that queues can be long, with a risk of not being able to access the cathedral”.
Access to the cathedral remains subject to a strict limit of 2,700 people, while enthusiasm remains strong for access to this building magnified by Victor Hugo and celebrated in various films, novels and musicals.
EPA – YOAN VALAT
After five years of colossal work, on a project costing nearly 700 million euros, Notre-Dame de Paris reopened at the beginning of December, with a ceremony on the 7th of this month in the presence of several personalities including the American president-elect Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, broadcast on international television.
“Charity” and “generosity”
Since then, the free ticket office has been taken over, even if it is still possible to show up without reservation and queue to try to get in. “This Christmas time is a time to express charity and generosity” but also “the hope that God does not abandon us”underlined Laurent Ulrich on Sunday on Radio Notre-Dame, at the end of a year 2024 full of situations “which concern us all, which darken the horizon, which for many do not allow us to live peacefully”.
“We are well aware of the difficulty and complexity in which we live”he added, highlighting in particular the political situation “inextricable, difficile”the one “extremely dramatic” in Mayotte, without forgetting “Palestine, Lebanon, and many other countries which are in chaos, Ukraine…”
For Catholics, this Christmas also marks the start of the Jubilee, the “Holy Year” 2025 of the Catholic Church, which will be launched Tuesday evening by Pope Francis from the Vatican. This major international pilgrimage organized every 25 years is expected to attract more than 30 million faithful to Rome.
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