Coventry Cathedral sends regards to Notre Dame Cathedral following fire

Coventry Cathedral has sent their regards to Notre Dame Cathedral following the fire which broke out at the latter on 15 April.

The fire broke out at night on the roof of the 850-year-old monument in Paris. Firefighters had the flames “completely under control” after nine hours, during which teams worked to salvage priceless artefacts and historical relics from the Gothic structure.

The “involuntary destruction caused by fire” will take a national effort to rebuild, and was reminiscent of the devastation Coventry Cathedral underwent during the Blitz in 1940.

In 2001, a fire consumed the cathedral but was put out before irreversible damages set in.

Referring to these occurrences, the Dean of Coventry Reverend John Witcombe said: “Our hearts go out to our sisters and brothers in the cathedral and civic community in Paris.

“You will feel that your heart has been taken from you, but God still holds your life in his hands, and will give you grace to rebuild, as he did for us.

“For now, though, your grief will be inconsolable and our hearts and our prayers are with you from this city and this community.”

The Archbishop of Canterbury also compared the fire in Notre Dame Cathedral to the desolation suffered by Coventry’s during the Second World War.

“It was rebuilt to the glory of God and stands today a symbol of hope and resurrection,” he said in a tweet, and sent his prayers to Notre Dame.

Yesterday night, the cathedral welcomed everyone to a prayer for the fire in Notre Dame. They further compared images of the crosses in both monuments on Twitter.

Police are investigating how the Notre Dame Cathedral fire broke out. Causes such as arson and terrorist activity have been ruled out, as it was most likely due to construction work.

After visiting the site of the accident, President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron said: “Notre Dame is our history, our imagination, where we’ve lived all our great moments, and is the epicentre of our lives.

“It’s the story of our books, our paintings. It’s the cathedral for all French people, even if they have never been. But it is burning and I know this sadness will be felt by all of our citizens.”