Reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral: dates, opening times and full programme for the week

After the fire that ravaged Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris in April 2019, Emmanuel Macron had announced a reopening date of 2024. And while the date seemed out of reach for many months, Parisians have never been so close to regaining one of their favorite monuments, with a reopening scheduled for December 7 and 8, 2024, the start of a busy week and an exceptional program.

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The then Minister of Culture, Rima Abdul Malak, spoke of an "ambitious objective" despite an "extremely complex site". In reality, Parisians and tourists will be able to set foot in the cathedral again, and worship will be able to resume, but the work will not yet be complete. The Archbishop of Paris, Monsignor Laurent Ulrich, has announced a number of celebrations for the reopening, starting with the return of the statue of the Virgin and Child on November 15, accompanied by a"grand popular procession through the streets".

On December 7, an inauguration will take place, with an"awakening of the organ, a liturgical celebration with blessing, a Magnificat or Te Deum, followed by vespers". The first mass in years will take place on December 8, the day of the Immaculate Conception, with a consecration of the altar, open to the public.

"This celebration of the reopening of Notre-Dame deserves an octave: from December 8 to 15, each day, we will have a solemn celebration with a particular theme", says the archbishop of Paris, who wants"the people of Paris to be present at these reopening celebrations". Each morning, at 10:30 a.m., the archbishop will preside over a mass.

Reopening times

• Sunday, December 8: 5:30 pm to 10 pm
• Monday, December 9 to Friday, December 13: 3:30 pm to 10 pm
• Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th December: 3.30pm to 8pm
• From December 16, back to normal opening hours, from 7.45am to 7pm.

The complete program

• December 9: Mass of the Immaculate Conception (priests, deacons of Paris and baptized members of the diocesan mission)
• December 10: Mass for consecrated persons, Baptistery blessing Mass (religious communities and faithful of the diocese)
• December 11: Mass for patrons and donors, then at 6:30pm for shopkeepers, local residents, AP-HP Hôtel Dieu)
• December 12: Mass (charities) then at 5:45pm - Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Latin American community)
• December 13: Mass (employees and volunteers of the Maison diocésaine and diocesan services) then at 4:30pm - Return of the Crown of Thorns (faithful of Paris in the presence of the Knights and Ladies of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre)
• December 14: Mass (schoolchildren and faithful)
• December 15: Mass (Paris firefighters, companions and those who worked on the site)