As with the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games this summer, the weather was not favorable for the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral this weekend. The authorities had put in place a system allowing Parisians to attend the ceremonies on Saturday evening on the left bank of the Seine, opposite the cathedral. But the cold and the rain dissuaded them from coming to the point where there were more police and gendarmes than spectators on the banks of the Seine.
The bad weather also disrupted the program for December 7, which was to consist of 3 stages according to the Élysée. A so-called “republican” time with a speech by Emmanuel Macron on the square in front of the cathedral in front of around forty heads of state, then after the opening of the doors a “liturgical” time inside the cathedral and finally a “more festive” cultural time, with a television program including several musical episodes, classical and contemporary.
Finally the “republican” and “liturgical” times were intertwined since it was necessary to organize the first part inside the cathedral. After a careful security check, the 2,500 guests waited for a long time in the cathedral from 5 p.m., witnessing from 6:15 p.m. via screen the endless welcome of the heads of state by the Macron couple with arrivals on the square, hugs and official photo.
The baptistery designed by Guillaume Bardet and the chairs designed by Ionna Vautrin for Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris.
© Guillaume Bardet – Ionna Vautrin / Emissive
A sequence all the more interminable as the representatives of the States were most often ceremonial representatives little known to the public, with the exception of Prince William for Great Britain. With the exception also of Volodymyr Zelensky, who was applauded for a long time when he entered the cathedral and of Donald Trump who sat next to Emmanuel Macron, very proud of his diplomatic coup.
Then Monsignor Ulrich proceeded to the symbolic opening of the doors of the cathedral, followed by the screening of a short film on the saving of the cathedral. The applause in tribute to the “rescuers and builders” represented by Philippe Villeneuve, the chief architect, then brought a little human warmth to a very formal ceremony. The good surprise came from Emmanuel Macron’s speech, more precisely from its duration. Initially expected to last 20 minutes, then 15 minutes, the very sober and slow speech was ultimately very short: 10 minutes. The archbishop responded in a way by thanking him profusely for his voluntarism in the restoration of the cathedral.
Pope Francis, absent from the ceremony due to “a busy schedule”, had his apostolic nuncio read a message in which he encouraged the archbishop to maintain free entry. The latter then proceeded with the “organ awakening” ceremony, which was a bit long and with a surprising musical program. Shortly after, the guests (patrons, firefighters, officials, etc.) left the nave, leaving room on the screens for the third “festive” part: a television program hosted by Stéphane Bern which had to be recorded the day before due to bad weather. time.
The mass the next day, Sunday December 8, lasted almost 3 hours, introduced by the consecration of the liturgical furniture. The officials were fewer in number this time.
The program for the coming days restores all of its religious dimension to the cathedral. The octave week sees a series of masses for specific audiences, more or less open to the public. Monday, the Mass of the Immaculate Conception for an audience of religious, Tuesday a Mass for the consecrated and a Mass of blessing of the baptistery, Wednesday a Mass for patrons, in the evening a Mass for the neighborhood merchants, Thursday a Mass for charitable associations, Friday a mass for employees and volunteers of the diocesan services of Notre-Dame, Sunday, a mass for firefighters…
From December 16, mass times take their final format with services throughout the day. The cathedral is open Monday to Friday from 7:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. (late night on Thursdays until 10 p.m.) and Saturdays and Sundays from 8:15 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Entrance to attend services or visit the cathedral requires reserving a time slot on the Notre-Dame site. It is always possible to enter the cathedral without reservation if you are patient. But patience is also required to register on the Internet. The diocese has also designed a mobile application to visit the cathedral including five “discovery” routes.
Group visits will only be possible from June 2025. Visits to the towers and belfries, managed by the Center for Historic Monuments, will begin in 2025, with no specific date yet announced. The diocese expects 15 million visitors per year, and as the cathedral can only accommodate 40,000 people per day (with a capacity of 3,000 people), it must make arrangements to manage this flow.
