Notre Dame will sit empty on Christmas for the first time since the French Revolution in 1789.
The famed French cathedral announced it would not be able to host Christmas services in the wake of the blaze that damaged much of the structure on April 15. Many watched in horror as the centuries-old cathedral burned, damaging the building and knocking down its famous spire.
Instead of Notre Dame, Christians will gather at Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois, a neighboring church that has housed worshippers since Notre Dame’s blaze.
Patrick Chauvet, the cathedral rector, told the Associated Press, “This is the first time since the French Revolution that there will be no midnight Mass.”
Chauvet noted that the legacy of services held at Notre Dame will still be “connected to” the midnight Mass, even if the worshippers are not inside the building, saying, “We have the opportunity to celebrate the Mass outside the walls, so to speak.”
Only one service has been held in Notre Dame since the fire. On Easter, Michel Aupetit, the Catholic archbishop of Paris, held a Mass for the firemen and priests still working to clean up after the fire.
Donors have pledged more than $1 billion to rebuild the cathedral, with $122 million in donations already collected to be used in the reconstruction.
