Seven routes to Notre-Dame: Pilgrims take off across France ahead of cathedral’s reopening

CNA Staff, Aug 1, 2024 / 15:11 pm

In anticipation of the reopening of Notre-Dame de Paris, seven French pilgrimages began on July 28 to meet at the medieval Catholic cathedral in September. 

The legendary church’s reopening “is a historic moment and an opportunity to march behind the Blessed Virgin,” reads the Les 7 Routes Notre-Dame website.

Named for the Blessed Mother, Notre-Dame de Paris (“Our Lady of Paris”) is an 861-year-old monument beloved and revered by Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

In 2019 the world mourned the damage done to the 315-foot-tall spire and roof of the cathedral in a devastating fire. The fire originated under the roof, spreading through the wooden rafters of the attic and consuming the spire, which collapsed. 

Except for the main altar, all the works of art in the cathedral and the reliquary containing what is believed to be the crown of thorns were rescued. 

People around the world contributed to the restoration of the structure. Worldwide donors from 150 countries gave about $928 million. The cathedral is set to reopen on Dec. 8. 

For seven weeks, pilgrims on seven different routes will process under the patronage of seven different states. Each pilgrimage started in a religiously significant site usually named for its patron saint, each located along the French border.

Pilgrims will meet in front of Notre-Dame at the end of the pilgrimage on Sept. 14 and will take part in a prayer vigil. The following day, pilgrims are set to attend a Mass celebrated at the Church of Saint-Sulpice by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich of Paris. 

The endeavor is supported by the president of the French Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Éric de Moulins-Beaufort of Reims, as well as many other bishops, according to the pilgrimage website.

The pilgrimages began at religiously significant sites bordering France, from the stunning Mont-Saint-Michel, a tidal island town topped with an abbey, to Saint-Martin-de-Ré, a port town off the coast of France. 

The routes are named for the following saints: St. Michael the Archangel; St. Anne, the mother of Mary; St. Martin; St. James the Greater; St. Joseph the Carpenter; St. Joan of Arc; and the great pilgrim St. Benoit-Joseph Labre.

Each set of pilgrims will carry an image of the route’s patron saint. 

A special Marian crown route will circle the suburbs of Paris carrying a statue of Our Lady of Tenderness, stopping by historic churches and visiting those in need in places like nursing homes. 

“At a time when the Church seems to be crumbling, a new fervor is taking shape,” the pilgrimage’s website reads. 

“God’s people are on the march. They are called to give thanks and to implore Mary to spread the good news of the Gospel in people’s hearts.”