By now, everyone in the world who has a television, computer or cell phone has seen pictures of the Notre Dame fire. This tragic loss is not only French or that of the Catholic Church. It is a body blow to the cultural and spiritual history of all humankind.
I visited that beautiful, ancient cathedral with my parents when I was just 7. The year was either 1950 or 1951. My father was part of the post-World War II U.S. occupation force in Germany and my folks wanted to expose me to as much of Europe’s cultural and natural heritage as possible.
Notre Dame at night
The cathedral’s 900-year history and its endurance under severe adverse conditions, such as surviving France’s control by Adolf Hitler, didn’t impress me much, but being inside that place certainly did. I was awestruck by its immensity, construction, beauty, statuary, and, at that age, mostly by those gorgeous stained-glass windows. Never in all my life though, did I ever think I would see a Notre Dame fire of such immensity.
This incredible loss, thankfully not total, is one that should touch all of us. And although some very rich people have already contributed great sums of money for reconstruction, it is important for those of us with less resources to become part of that process. We the people of the earth have a responsibility to not only restore that building to its former grandeur but to make it even better than it was for future generations.
And in that light, I urge you to reverse the Notre Dame fire’s destruction by contributing to its rebuilding, if you have not already done so. Here is a link that you might find useful in deciding where to send what you can no matter how small an amount or when you read this article. This project is going to be going on for a very long time and will need tremendous support.
Contribution options from NBC News
And below, you will find some other links that you might find of interest in thinking about the massive Notre Dame fire:
NBC News video of the fire (3 min.)
From above and within, how fire hit Notre Dame — the heart of Paris
A Walking Tour of Notre Dame before the fire (9 min. video)
The history of Notre Dame cathedral in Paris (Catholic News Agency)
This is what makes Notre Dame cathedral so iconic (CNN)
Notre-Dame: A history of Paris’s beloved cathedral (BBC)
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