Paris, France, Jun 14, 2021 / 13:00 pm
The Archdiocese of Paris launched a multimillion-dollar appeal Monday to restore the interior of Notre-Dame Cathedral following the devastating fire in 2019.
In a June 14 statement, the archdiocese said that Archbishop Michel Aupetit of Paris was launching the new appeal with a view to the cathedral’s scheduled reopening in 2024.
The French government is overseeing the cathedral’s structural restoration and conservation, but the cathedral authorities are responsible for its interior renewal.
“The program of interior improvements, which is entirely the responsibility of the cathedral, aims first of all to return it to worship -- its primary function -- and, more broadly, to offer a new tour to the six million faithful, pilgrims and tourists who enter the cathedral each year,” the statement said.