Notre Dame bells ring for the first time since devastating fire 5 years ago 

The rose window of Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral is seen on Oct. 25, 2024, in Paris a few weeks before its reopening to the public scheduled for Dec. 8, 2024. / Credit: Chesnot/Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 8, 2024 / 16:40 pm (CNA).

The bells of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris have rung for the first time since April 2019, when a devastating fire broke out in the spire and roof of the historic French church. 

Notre-Dame of Paris passed the major milestone today at about 10:30 a.m., just one month away from its highly anticipated reopening on Dec. 8. Housed in the northern belfry of the cathedral — which had been partially destroyed by the fire — the bells rang out one at a time, then sounded out together, according to AFP.

Though authorities have not determined whether the fire was an accident, an initial investigation found that it could have been caused by an electrical malfunction. 

French President Emmanuel Macron immediately announced his intention to repair the cathedral within five years and even called for alternative contemporary proposals to reconstruct the church. For a brief period, debates swirled over whether the French government would sanction such an update instead of preserving Notre Dame’s original character. 

However, the French Parliament soon passed a bill stipulating that reconstruction efforts must “preserve the historic, artistic, and architectural interest” of the historic cathedral. Macron officially declared a year later, in 2020, that the reconstruction would seek to resemble the original structure in the interest of finishing the project ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

Notre Dame Cathedral was built between the 12th and 14th centuries. Its spire was first completed in the 13th century but was ultimately replaced in the 19th century on account of damage. 

Catholic News Agency