The Facade of Notre Dame seen later in the morning, after our visit.

How has the restoration of the cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris fared? In February we made a visit to find out. By arriving at opening time, we mostly avoided standing in line. Just an hour or so later, a queue wound endlessly all around the square in front of the cathedral. Certainly, touristic interest is there!

Outside, the cathedral has been beautifully restored. The facades are in the best condition I have ever seen.  The famous spire has returned to its place. A substantial amount of work on the exterior still needs to be completed.  

Inside,  the restoration after the 2019 fire  has given the interior a bright, almost whitewashed look. I suppose this is intended to recreate the appearance of the cathedral in the 12^th and 13^th centuries  –  at the time of its construction. The problem is that many centuries have elapsed since then! And the effects are magnified by the bright lighting installed  now. (We have earlier discussed similar restoration initiatives  – or deformations – in New York at St. Patrick’s cathedral.

Masses of tourists proceed through the aisles; one is forced to move in one direction. The noise level is deafening. The cathedral tries ineffectually to combat this by broadcasting now and then a recording starting with ”shhhhh….”. This only seems to elevate the noise level. Of all these visitors, we could see no more than a handful who actually prayed.

 It is all quite disconcerting. By way of comparison, the much smaller basilica of Sacre Coeur on Montmartre is also attracting hordes of tourists nowadays, yet a substantial number of people  are at prayer, and that helps to restrain the noise level and preserves some sense of the sacred. 

The choir  of Nore Dame has been restored with new,  modernistic furnishings. By “modernistic” I mean a style  that could have been employed around 1970. From it one gets the sense that the Catholic Church is an institution that has run out of ideas, that it can only repeat the formulas of fifty or sixty years ago.  

The side chapels have lost their status as places for the celebration of the mass. The altars are bare. Along  the nave, the chapels have been renamed according to a new, specific program: one side has the names  of Old Testament prophets, Of course, like all ideological projects of the Conciliar Church, this revision of the chapels ignores the context. For nobody in the hordes pressing through can stop to absorb the new theological program. In some chapels baroque paintings  – historically associated with Notre Dame but not necessarily of the highest  quality – are on display  with museum-like lighting and settings.

At least for us, a visit to Notre Dame, because of the lighting, the effects of the cleaning, the noise, the turbulence and the exclusive focus on tourism –  is no longer a religious event. The contrast with the cathedral even in 2017 – about the time of my last visit to Notre Dame – is striking. For prayer and to reflect on the spirit of Gothic architecture, the visitor should consider other cathedrals in France.

(Above) The new arrangement of the choir;(below) the new altar. In the distance one perceives a red sanctuary light on top of the old high altar (now serving as a place for reserving the Blessed Sacrament?)

(Above) More tourists than faithful are here. The sculptural group is from the the time of Louis XIV.

In the ambulatory. (Above) The “space-age” reliquary of the Crown of Thorns, brought to Paris by St. Louis. (We could not see the relic.) (Below) A favorite habit of the “Conciliar Church”: a museum-like display of Eastern icons. Those praying in these chapels, however, were few and far between.

(Above) The cleaned walls and columns are now brightly illuminated.

(Above) The side chapels are no longer used as such. The former altars are bare. In some of them, baroque paintings are displayed which were gifts of Parisian guilds in the 17th and 18th centuries. All is brightly illuminated as if in a museum.

Tourism is big business here! (One sees similar machines inside St. Patrick’s, NY.)

Some things are unchanged or have been expertly restored. (Above) A mid-14th century Madonna. A sign reads “placed in front of this pillar in 1855 and since prayed as ‘Notre Dame de Paris’ “(sic). (Below) one of the great rose windows dating to the reign of St. Louis.

(Above and below) Significant work on the exterior is still going on.

A Solemn Mass was offered at Noon yesterday for the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin at St. Mary Church Norwalk, for the Regina Pacis Academy community.

(Above and below) Canterbury Cathedral, the site of Becket’s martyrdom (and the goal of Medeieval pilgrimages)

(Below) The place of the martyrdom.

(Below) A side chapel in the cathedral.

On Saturday, October 11,  the National Latin Mass Pilgrimage took place once more. Its path lies between the Cathedrals of Arlington, Virginia and Washington DC (two dioceses which introduced some of the most confrontational measures against the Traditional Latin Mass). The Arlington Latin Mass Society sponsored the pilgrimage. Some 50 pilgrims took part. Now certainly dire forecasts of a looming weather disaster – which proved false – diminished participation.   But I can’t ascribe the low turnout entirely to that. We also had noticed a declining numbers at our last visit to the pilgrimage. As in prior pilgrimages, the clergy were conspicuous by their abscence.

Numbers, however, are not everything. Among the pilgrims, spirits were high. This pilgrimage was, as in the past, well organized. And are there not prominent examples of pilgrimages that a smaller core group has preserved through the years that later flowered (in numbers) once again: the “Pilgrimage of the Restoration” in Auriesville, NY or even the “Pilgrimage of Christendom” in Chartres. 

At the beginning it seemed that threatened rain-and windstorms might materialize. Later, the skies cleared and it turned out to be a beautiful day. (Above) In front of the cathedral of the Arlington diocese – with a statue of St. Thomas More looking down.

(Above) Chanting and praying the rosary. Sometimes cars honked approval.

(Above) The Pilgrim Virgin – at the one rest stop for the pilgrims across from the Iwo Jima memorial.

(Above) Processing onward from the Lincoln Memorial. The area around that monument was dominated by a deafening “Jesus Movement” event.

(Above) On the steps of St. Matthew Cathedral. The pilgrimage concluded with the chanting of None and Vespers on the steps of the Cathedral (not within it!).

(Above) Arrival of the Pilgrims at the Shrine.

The Pilgrimage for the Restoration on its 30^th Anniversary

Yesterday we had the joy to be  present at the 30th “Pilgrimage for the Restoration” at the Shrine of the North American Martyrs in Auriesville, New York. It was a perfect day for this event. The contingents of pilgrims made their way to the shrine carrying their banners and often pushing their strollers; their order, discipline and demeanor were impressive. As far as I could see, the organization of the event seemed very thorough and competent. 

Over the years the details of this pilgrimage – the overall itinerary, the day of arrival and the program of the final day  – have frequently varied. This year, on reaching Auriesville on Sunday, the pilgrims first descended into the ravine  –  the most secluded and sacred spot of the shrine grounds. For this is where St. Isaac Jogues buried the bones of his martyred companion St. Rene Goupil. Next, they processed to the Coliseum, where a  Solemn Mass was celebrated,  accompanied by splendid music and in the presence of a bishop. Finally, after the conclusion of the Mass, relics of the saints revered in Auriesville were reverenced. 

If  numbers alone were the only criterion of success, this year’s  Pilgrimage for the Restoration was an outstanding achievement. One of the leaders estimated there were 700 to 800 pilgrims present; more may have joined for the concluding Mass. It is a dramatic improvement in participation compared to the situation around 2013. 

Now the Pilgrimage for the Restoration began in grandly successful style in the1990s. Numerous organizations participated, and a large congregation attended the concluding Mass in the Coliseum. Among other reasons for this impressive achievement was the uniqueness of this liturgy at that time in North America:  it was one of the few occasions at which a traditionalist could experience a Solemn (or Solemn High ) Mass. 

Already by 2008, however, attendance at the pilgrimage was decreasing. Was it the increasing availibility of more convenient traditional Masses? Or perhaps some foolishly thought “restoration” of the traditional liturgy had been achieved and no further work was needed? By 2013 the pilgrimage had dwindled to an affair of some 100-200 pilgrims. Then, the Jesuits in charge of the shrine started to exclude the pilgrims from the Coliseum. When, in 2015,  the Jesuits abandoned most of the Auriesville site it even seemed as if the shrine might permanently close. 

Perhaps recovery started precisely with the exit of the Society of Jesus from the shrine in 2015. For the new owners refurbished run-down grounds and buildings and were more welcoming to the Traditional Mass. The persecution of the traditionalists by Pope Francis starting in 2021 undoubtedly helped to reenergize the commitment of traditionalists to this pilgrimage.  Finally,  the emergence of competition in North America, notably the Three Hearts pilgrimage in Oklahoma,  may have also incentivized participants in this part of the country.

Let us recall that the Chartres pilgrimage,  the original model and inspiration for the Pilgrimage for the Restoration, also descended for a time into routine – perhaps even stagnation. But in the last several years the Pilgrimage of Christendom in France has enjoyed record attendance, in good weather and in bad. So much so that its success has become a major concern for the Vatican and the French hierarchy. But these impressive results could only have been achieved thanks to the persistence of the pilgrims through the leaner years.  The same is true in Upstate New York:  the persistence of the traditionalist pilgrims to Auriesville year after year – and the organizers – preserved the pilgrimage and laid the foundation for this year’s success.

(Above and below) The arrival of the pilgrims.

(Above) Prayer in the Ravine.

(Above and below) Processing from thr Ravine to the Coliseum.

The start of the Mass.

(Above) The choir was excellent.

In a recent visit to the cathedrals of England we encountered the traces of the prior occupant: the Catholic Church. Here and there the memory – and sometimes the tombs – of the medieval saints are preserved. For the devotion to the saints was and still is characteristic of the Catholic Church in England. Many of the great cathedrals owe their architectural splendor to the medieval pilgrims who thronged to the graves of the saints revered there.

Of course, the most famous saint was Thomas Becket. His shrine in Canterbury Cathedral was the main pilgrimage destination of England – as immortalized by Geoffrey Chaucer.

(Above and below) The place in Canterbury Cathedral where St. Thomas Becket’s magnificent shrine once stood. The Church of England seems to have no difficulty in commemorating “St. Thomas of Canterbury” – whose cult in England was extirpated by that denomination’s founder.

(Above and below) Where St. Thomas was martyred.

Saints often had been outstanding bishops of their diocese and leaders both in Church and state. (Above) The (former) tomb of St. Osmund in Salisbury Cathedral: pilgrims could see or touch the relics of the saint through the openings. The famous reliquary was destroyed in the Reformation. (Below) The tomb of St. William, the patron saint of York. (York Cathedral)

Durham Cathedral still contains the tombs of two early English (Anglo-Saxon) saints. (Above) Saint Cuthbert (ca. 634 – 687) (Below) The tomb of Venerable Bede (672/3 – 735) in the “Galilee” chapel. They both were instrumental in the founding and consolidation of the Catholic Church in England. The relics of both had been translated (moved) to Durham early in the Middle Ages.

Such was the faith of Catholics in medieval England. But what of the age of the Reformation and beyond?

Canterbury Cathedral still houses the grave of another more recent Catholic archbishop. Cardinal Reginald Pole, the last Roman Catholic archbishop of Canterbury, was one of the most outstanding prelates of Europe and even was considered for the papacy. He was archbishop under Queen Mary I and supported her in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to restore Catholicism as the official faith of England. The extent to which he was involved in her campaign against heretics is disputed. But scholars like Eamon Duffy think that despite this “failure” of a Catholic restoration, Mary and Pole planted the seeds fof the recusant resistance of the next 270 years. Tragically, Pole died in 1558 while under bitter attack by the possibly crazy Pope Paul IV.

(Above) The tomb of Cardinal Pole in Canterbury Cathedral.

(Above) The tomb of the repudiated Queen Catherine of Aragon in Peterborough Cathedral (up to the time of Henry VIII, an abbey). She was buried here in 1536. Her tomb was subsequently destroyed by the Puritans – the existing decorative slab is a contribution of the late 19th century. We should reflect on her life and its lessons for the Church of Amoris Laetitia. A second tragic Catholic queen, Mary Queen of Scots, was once also buried in Peterborough. But her son, King James I, eventually had her body moved to Westminster Abbey after he ascended the English throne in 1603.

(Above) A list of the martyrs of York displayed in the York Oratory (Roman Catholic!)

The English Catholic Church especially reveres the martyrs of the Reformation period onward. Their relics, of course, are not found in Anglican cathedrals! One of the chief of these was Margeret Clitherow of York. She was put to death in a particularly gruesome manner in 1586 (she was pressed or crushed to death). A relic of her survives in the Bar Convent ( a clandestine convent and school established in the 17th century by the Mary Ward sisters)

(Above ) A chapel of St. Margeret Clitherow in the picturesque “Shambles” of York. This was thought to have been her house – but a subsequent renumbering of the houses on the street had been ignored. Her real house still exists, across the street from the chapel. Note the arrangement of the altar….. (Below) The relic of St. Margertet Clitherow – her hand – in the chapel of the Bar Convent.

Finally, not a tomb, but, like the Bar Convent, an ancient reminder of the penal times. The former chapel of the Bavarian embassy – now known as the Church of Our Lady of the Assumptionn and St. Gregory – dates to the period when London Catholics could only worship in chapels of embassies of Catholic countries. The Bavarian chapel, after having been destroyed by the mobs of the anti-Catholic Gordon riots of 1780, was rebuilt around 1790. It is thus one of the oldest Catholic churches built after the Reformation in England. It was, however, extensively redecorated in the 19th century. After a number of recent vicissitudes, it has been entrusted to the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham. As in the case of the chapel of St. Margeret Clitherow, please note the arrangement of the altar.

These mementos of the English martyrs and the sufferings of the penal times are especially relevent to traditionalists. For we are still officially persecuted – this time by the establishment of our own church. Reflection on the history of the Catholic Church in England helps put our situation in perspective. Consider the surrender of almost the entire English hierarchy under Henry VIII – except for one bishop, St. John Fisher of Rochester. The persecution of Catholics that began then lasted, with a few reprieves, almost 300 years! And if physical violence had (mostly) died down after the 17th century, at all times in these years English Catholics were denounced, segregated, and excluded from most aspects of public life. Yet they persevered and in the 19th century a Catholic renaissance did indeed take place. One of the main spiritual leaders of that recovery, St. John Henry Newman, is about to be made a doctor of the Church. But this renewal was only possible by virtue of previous generations of Catholics who had kept the faith through seeemingly hopeless times. And also by the sacrifice of so many who paid the ultimate price for that faith.

A Solemn Mass was celebrated yesterday at the Pontifical Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Harlem to celebrate the patronal feast day.

Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament concluded the Mass.

Solemn vespers as celebrated yesterday at the “Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral.” (Fr. Enrique Salvo, Rector). Fr. Armando G. Alejandro, Jr. of the Ordinariate was the officiant. There were some very familiar names among the ministers and servers….

The music was an extraordinary selection of what might have been heard on a Marian feast in Mexico City in the 18th century. Mr. Jared Lamenzo led the schola and orchestra.