Newly restored Notre Dame cathedral held its first mass on Sunday, with Christians celebrating the return of the French capital’s most famous place of worship after a historic re-opening ceremony.

The beloved Paris monument nearly burned down in 2019, but has been fully renovated inside and fitted with a new roof and spire during a frenzied five-year refit.

The inaugural mass was led by Paris archbishop Laurent Ulrich with 150 bishops and more than 100 priests from the capital in attendance, as well as French President Emmanuel Macron.

The archbishop led prayers and consecrated a new altar which replaced the old one that was destroyed five years ago.

“Whether you are here in person in the cathedral or in front of a screen, including perhaps under the rain, I greet you with intense emotion,” Ulrich told the congregation, referring to the small rain-drenched crowds outside watching events on public screens.

In a nod to France’s ongoing political turmoil, he added that he “prayed also for our country that is looking to the future with worry.”

A second mass in the evening at 6:30 pm (1730 GMT) will be open to the public, with roughly 2,500 people who secured free tickets this week expected to attend.

The cathedral will open fully to visitors on December 16 via an online reservation system.

‘For Jesus’

During a re-opening service on Saturday attended by world leaders including US President-elect Donald Trump, Macron expressed the “gratitude of the French nation” for the restoration work since 2019.

“We have rediscovered what great nations can do — achieve the impossible,” he said.

Macron is under intense political pressure having called snap elections in June that led to a hung parliament, with the main parties now struggling to form a stable government.

One of the most moving moments on Saturday came when firefighters in their protective gear walked through the congregation to thunderous applause as the word “Merci” (“Thank you”) was beamed on the intricate facade and famous belltowers of the Gothic masterpiece.

The architectural wonder had been in danger of collapsing during the April 2019 blaze and was saved only by firefighters pumping vast quantities of water onto the flames from the nearby River Seine.

Groups of worshippers huddled under umbrellas on Sunday beyond a strict security perimeter set up outside Notre Dame.

“Beyond the reconstruction work, it’s beautiful because it shows that the church still has a role, discreet and small, but it still has a role to play in France,” 21-year-old engineering student Jacques told AFP.

Monique Kashale, a 75-year-old from the Democratic Republic of Congo, said she was “very cold but for Jesus Christ I can put up with it, for the Virgin Mary it is bearable.”

Trump in Paris

Saturday’s re-opening service began with the archbishop Ulrich, dressed in brightly coloured new vestments designed by fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, knocking on the doors of the cathedral three times.

Trump was placed on the front row as guest of honour next to Macron, with invitees marvelling at the freshly cleaned walls, new furniture and state-of-the-art lighting installed as part of the overhaul

The reconstruction effort cost around 700 million euros ($750 million), financed from donations, with the five-year re-opening deadline met despite predictions it could take decades.

Part of the cathedral’s lead roofing base still needs to be finished and the statues of the apostles and saints, removed before the fire to allow for their restoration, will only be reinstalled in the first half of 2025.

The exact cause of the 2019 blaze has never been identified despite a forensic investigation by prosecutors, who believe an accident such as an electrical fault was the most likely reason.

Notre Dame welcomed around 12 million visitors a year before the fire, but expects to receive an even higher figure of “14 to 15 million” after the reopening, according to the church authorities.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Paris:

The archbishop of Paris re-opened Notre Dame cathedral on Saturday by symbolically knocking on the doors and entering the 12th-century landmark which has been restored after a devastating fire in 2019.

Wearing new designer vestments and carrying a staff cut from one of the roof beams that survived the inferno, Laurent Ulrich joined hundreds of VIPs inside the Gothic masterpiece for a two-hour ceremony.

Ulrich commanded the cathedral to “open your doors” and he entered the magnificently-restored edifice.

US President-elect Donald Trump sat on the front row as guest of honour next to French President Emmanuel Macron, with invitees marvelling at the freshly cleaned walls, new furniture and state-of-the-art lightening installed as part of the cathedral’s overhaul.

Outside, small crowds of Parisians and tourists braved wet weather and high winds to witness the renaissance of a beloved monument which came close to being totally destroyed by the inferno that toppled its roof and spire.

“I find it really beautiful, even more so now that the spire has been restored,” Marie Jean, a 27-year-old dentist from southwest France, told AFP outside.

The reconstruction effort has cost around 700 million euros ($750 million), financed from donations, with the re-opening achieved within a five-year deadline set by Macron despite predictions it could take decades.

Workers had to overcome problems with lead pollution, the Covid-19 epidemic, and the army general overseeing the project falling to his death while hiking in the Pyrenees last year.

It is “a cathedral like we have never seen before,” Philippe Jost, who took over as project manager last year, told Franceinfo radio, adding that he was proud to “show the whole world” a “great collective success and a source of pride for all of France”.

Saturday’s service will feature prayer, organ music and hymns from the cathedral’s choir.

A public concert planned in front of the cathedral featuring Chinese piano virtuoso Lang Lang and possibly US singer and fashion designer Pharrell Williams had to be pre-recorded on Friday night because of the stormy weather.

– ‘Do the impossible’ –

Held up as an example of French creativity and resilience by Macron, Notre Dame’s renaissance so soon after the fire comes at a difficult time for the country.

The sense of national accomplishment in restoring a symbol of Paris has been undercut by political turmoil that has left France without a proper government since last week when prime minister Michel Barnier lost a confidence vote.

Macron is hoping the re-opening might provide a fleeting sense of national pride and unity — as the Paris Olympics did in July and August.

The scale of the immense security operation also recalls the Olympics — with some 6,000 police officers and gendarmes mobilised.

The re-opening “is the proof that we know how to do grand things, we know how to do the impossible” Macron said Thursday in a televised address to the country.

He is set to address the congregation during Saturday’s ceremony.

Trump show?

Macron has scored a major coup by attracting incoming US president Donald Trump for his first foreign trip since his re-election.

Another 40 heads of state and government are also present, including Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, who was given a round of applause as he entered Notre Dame, as well as British heir to the throne, Prince William.

Macron hosted three-way talks with Zelensky and Trump at the presidential palace shortly before the ceremony, with future US military support for Ukraine’s war effort against Russia’s invasion expected to have been discussed.

Trump has vowed to force an end to the nearly three-year Ukraine war when he takes office, sparking fears in Kyiv that he will force Ukraine to make territorial concessions to Russia which Zelensky is resisting.

“It seems like the world is going a little crazy right now and we will be talking about that,” Trump told reporters as he prepared to sit down for talks with Macron.

One surprising absentee on Saturday was Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church.

He sent a message addressed to the French people which is set to be read out.

The exact cause of the 2019 blaze has never been identified despite a forensic investigation by prosecutors, who believe an accident such as an electrical fault was the most likely reason.

On Sunday, the first mass with 170 bishops and more than 100 Paris priests will take place at 10:30 am (0930 GMT), followed by a second service in the evening at 6:30 pm which will be open to the public.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)