24 August 2024
At the opening today of the rebuilt Notre Dame Cathedral, after the disastrous fire in April 2019, President Macron defended his decision to retask it with a new mission as a “house for all faiths, and also for those who have no faith.”
“Notre Dame is a symbol of France, it has been reconstructed as a symbol of France, and so it is perfectly normal that its magnificence be accessible to everyone,” the president said. The new Notre Dame was even better than the old one, he said.
The new Notre Dame is controversial and has divided critics. They have accused it of being little more than a tourist attraction. Wasn’t it ever thus? While it will continue to be free to admire the building from the outside, entry within shall now attract a hefty fee.
The event spaces are also controversial.
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