Notre Dame chief architect reveals devotion to Our Lady who gave him strength to complete restoration

The chief architect of Notre Dame has revealed his devotion to Our Lady, saying that he believes she gave him the strength to complete the restoration of the French Cathedral after it was almost completely destroyed in a fire in 2019.

Colm Flynn, the Vatican correspondent for EWTN News, asked architect Philippe Villeneuve in a televised interview, “Are you a man of faith?”

“I spent five years not talking about this because I’m a civil servant in a secular republic, but now I have to reveal that, yes,” answered Villeneuve, who has been chief architect of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris since 2013. 

“I have a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary. And at the risk of sounding totally crazy or like Joan of Arc, I never stopped feeling support from up there. I don’t think this project would have been possible otherwise. I think that’s what gave me the strength and determination to keep going because I knew I was supported from up there.

Speaking about the work completed over the past five years, Villeneuve said, “I’m really amazed by the beauty, by the work, by the quality of the work”. 

Since the catastrophic fire, Notre Dame has undergone a £800 million restoration with Villeneuve at the helm. 

Aided by fellow architects Rémi Fromont and Pascal Prunet, Villeneuve led a team of around 2,000 craftsmen from all over the world who worked tirelessly over five years to complete the restoration.

The Cathedral reopened on Saturday 7th December to much pomp and ceremony, with world leaders and dignitaries, including Prince William and Donald Trump, in attendance.

When Villeneuve first saw the charred remains of Notre Dame in 2019, he told Associated Press despondently, “We have lost the framework, the roof, the spire, and three sections of the vault”.

That same day, President Macron had announced that the Cathedral would be rebuilt in just five years.

“There was one sole (problem),” Villeneuve said, “the deadline.”

Yet, he soon started to gather hope as he noted that all the stain glass windows had been spared, as well as the 19th century great organ, the furniture and the paintings. 

“It will be breathtaking,” he said, before the opening ceremony. 

De Villeneuve’s revelation comes following the French government’s proposal of an entry fee for the newly restored cathedral as part of a scheme to help fund the conservation of religious heritage sites across France.

The plan has drawn criticism from the Archdiocese of Paris which released a statement asserting the “unchanged position of the Catholic Church in France regarding free entry to churches and cathedrals”.

Pope Francis has also been vocal in his criticism, saying, in a statement read out at the opening of the Notre Dame, that “immense” numbers set to visit the Cathedral should be welcomed “generously and free of charge”.

The first Mass in the restored cathedral took place on December 8 and is being followed by an octave of daily solemn celebrations, each focusing on a different theme.

Archbishop Laurent Bernard Marie Ulrich of Paris has asked the faithful to make a pilgrimage to the cathedral  in the first six months of its reopening to encourage a city wide renewal.

(LtoR) Archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich, the rooster designer, architect Philippe Villeneuve, President of the “Rebatir Notre-Dame de Paris” public establishment, Philippe Jost attend the blessing of the new golden rooster containing relics prior to its installation atop the spire of Notre Dame cathedral as part of its reconstruction, in central Paris on December 16, 2023. The golden rooster, designed by architect Philippe Villeneuve, contains relics saved from the fire that struck the monument on April 15, 2019, and a document with the names of those working on its reconstruction | Photo by Thomas SAMSON / AFP via Getty Images)

The post Notre Dame chief architect reveals devotion to Our Lady who gave him strength to complete restoration appeared first on Catholic Herald.