The fire of April 2019 ignited nearly $1 billion in pledged donations from across the world within days.

Not all the money was needed

Restoration chief Philippe Jost says €140 million (around NZ$252,000,000) still remains from the funds as the cathedral prepares to reopen next month.

The surplus will be used to support vital future preservation work on the central Paris cathedral.

Jost says people's generosity after the fire and the way the donated funds were managed was "very attentive and professional".

The funds will be used to maintain the cathedral "in agreement with the patrons and donors to carry out needed work" he says.

The 861-year-old Notre Dame cathedral has an ongoing need for work to ensure its preservation and structural integrity.

He also confirmed that the billionaire tycoons who pledged vast sums in the aftermath of the blaze have "fulfilled their financial commitments".

They all "honoured their pledges made on the night of the fire or in the hours that followed" he says.

Initially, the transfer of the promised funds seemed to hang in the balance as billionaire donors held back, waiting for specific restoration plans and negotiations outlining how their contributions would be used.

Initially this caused some frustration.

Smaller donations were used to cover tasks such as removing toxic lead dust and structural fortifications.

Critics from around the world questioned whether the donors were motivated by desire for legacy more than by a commitment to preserving France's cultural heritage.

Reopening date of Notre Dame announced

As the date nears for Notre Dame Cathedral's reopening, the eight bells in its northern belfry, partially destroyed in the blaze, rang out last week for the first time since 2019, their resonance carrying across the city.

The world-famous cathedral's ceremonial opening is programmed for 7 December. Its first service will take place the next day.

President Macron plans to give a short speech in front of the cathedral on 7 December and will be present at the first service the next day.

Due to the separation of Church and State, there has been debate about Macron's appearances as part of the celebrations.

Source

• AP News
• katholisch.de

The imposing cross, spanning 12 meters and weighing 1.5 tons, is the only element of the choir roof that resisted the flames.

Approximately 250 companies and hundreds of craftsmen, architects, and professionals have contributed to the ongoing restoration project, which aims to reopen the cathedral on December 8, 2024.

The fire, which occurred on April 15, 2019, caused the collapse of Notre-Dame's spire and part of its roof. The restoration has made significant progress five years later, including reinstating the spire's lead-covered needle.

The 2019 fire was a significant blow to the cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage site and a symbol of Christianity that welcomed 12 million visitors yearly.

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As the shell at the summit has been taken down in recent days, it has revealed the cathedral's new spire for the first time, adorned with a golden rooster and cross, offering a glimpse of the building's expected appearance upon completion.

A resident near the cathedral, Frederico Benani, who witnessed the 2019 blaze, felt emotional Tuesday at seeing the spire once more.

"I can open the window in the morning. I see Notre Dame. I see the spire — it's for me, beautiful, and it's much better (than) before," Benani said. "It gives us hope."

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The reopening period will include numerous celebrations and pilgrimages and will extend from December 8, 2024, to June 8, 2025, the feast of Pentecost, as the universal Church follows the rhythm of the 2025 Jubilee.

The Archbishop of Paris announced the initiatives in a pastoral letter published on 2 February, inviting the faithful to celebrate the Cathedral's re-inauguration after a fire gutted it on April 15, 2019.

Fifteen days before the church's reopening, a large procession will accompany the return of the image of Notre Dame to the Cathedral along the streets of Paris.

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The furnishings include a semi-circle altar rising from a three-step base, a designer bishop's chair, a sleek ambo, and a stylised tabernacle - all in a dark smooth bronze.

But not everyone is happy with the modernist touches created by French designer Guillaume Bardet, whom Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich announced on June 23 had been chosen to make the new liturgical furnishings.

Some have criticised Bardet's work as overly minimalist and too austere. Criticism has been voiced on social networks, notably on Twitter with the hashtag #saccageNotreDame - as in "ransacking" the monumental church.

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These conditions are currently being carried out: cleaning and restoration of the interior of the building; restoration of masonry and collapsed vaults; and restoration of the missing spire and frameworks, which, according to the newest statement from the "Rebuild Notre Dame" committee, "is in progress, both on the Ile de la Cité and in the workshop."

Ile de la Cité is a famous island on the Seine River, one of two natural islands in Paris and the heart of the French capital. It's there where Notre Dame is located and where hundreds of shocked Parisians watched as flames consumed the cathedral's medieval roof April 15, 2019.

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