A small congregation of believers will attend the mass on Good Friday at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, a year after the historic temple was destroyed by fire. Due to a lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic, only seven people will attend the mass at the cathedral, which will be broadcast on television.
“Only a few priests will attend the masses that we will celebrate during the Holy Week and people will be able to follow services on radio or on television,” said Roman Catholic Archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit, in a video news conference.
The service will include a crown of thorns rescued after the fires at Notre-Dame Cathedral.
No processions will be held on Holy Saturday due to the measures. On Easter Day, the Archbishop of Paris will preside over the mass at the Church of Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois, near the Louvre Museum in the heart of Paris, in the presence of only 20 people.
Last year, hundreds of Parisians participated in the Easter mass at the Church of Saint Eustache and prayed for the rapid restoration of the Notre-Dame Cathedral, which had been burned a few days earlier, on April 15. The fire destroyed the roof of the medieval temple, toppled the spire and the bell towers and outer walls were in danger of collapsing. French President Emmanuel Macron has set a goal of restoring the iconic temple within five years.
Source: ANA-MPA
