President-elect Donald Trump embarked on his first foreign trip since his November 2024 electoral victory, joining Saturday’s reopening ceremonies for Paris’s famous Notre Dame Cathedral.
The weekend’s celebration, which drew an estimated 50 world leaders and high security, kicks off an octave of events marking the restoration of the famous twelfth-century Gothic church to its place in Catholic liturgical life and French tourism following a devastating April 15, 2019 fire. Firefighters stood helpless as the blaze — believed to have been accidentally ignited by an electrical failure or a lit cigarette — consumed the roof and spire of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thwarting their efforts to douse the flames with water was a centuries’ old waterproofing technique involving covering the roof with a lead sheet.
NEW: Donald Trump and French president Emmanuel Macron meet up in France with multiple very intense handshakes.
The two men were seen handshaking before returning for another intense handshake.
The meeting comes during Trump’s visit to France for the reopening ceremony for the… pic.twitter.com/XBa9LOZvlX
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 7, 2024
Nearly $1 billion in pledges from 150 countries was raised within days of the devastation to launch the ambitious five-year rebuilding effort, itself a point of national pride. Approximately $148 million of the funds remained unspent as of November 2024, The Associated Press (AP) reported. (RELATED: These Photos Show The Damage Done To The Notre Dame Cathedral)
Notre Dame’s resurrection: Its chief architect on rebuilding France’s ‘heart’ in 5 years https://t.co/5JWh17VbIi
— The Associated Press (@AP) December 5, 2024
Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron at Élysée Palace prior to departing for the events at Notre Dame.
President Zelenskyy arrives at Élysée Palace to meet with President Trump and President Macron 🇺🇸🇫🇷🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/pOypNfYAFY
— Margo Martin (@margomartin) December 7, 2024
The reopening service was presided over by the archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, and observed by French government officials, world leaders, donors and representatives of Parisian clergy and laity, according to Notre Dame’s announcement of the ceremonies. During the rite of the opening of the cathedral’s doors, the archbishop struck the closed door with his liturgical staff — the crosier — crafted from charred remains of the roof, prompting attendees to respond with the thrice singing of Psalm 121:
How joyful it was when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord!’
Now our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem!
Jerusalem, built as a city, that is bound firmly together.
Incredible evening in Notre Dame 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/kLz7xxz7cN
— Margo Martin (@margomartin) December 7, 2024
After the doors’ opening and before an address by Macron, those who responded to the 2019 fire and assisted with the restoration were honored. The archbishop then blessed the 8,000-pipe Great Organ of Notre Dame to symbolically end the silence imposed upon the cathedral. In addition to the singing of hymns, a series of prayers was offered for the world and in thanksgiving to God for the successful rebuilding effort. A star-studded concert was scheduled for Saturday evening.
Following the events at Notre Dame, Trump met with William, the Prince of Wales, at the British ambassador’s residence in Paris.
The Prince of Wales met with President-elect Donald Trump tonight in Paris at the British ambassador’s residence.
They joined other world leaders at the reopening ceremony for Notre Dame cathedral pic.twitter.com/7mxtwoElu1— Kate Mansey (@KateMansey) December 7, 2024
The inaugural Mass will occur Sunday with the consecration of the cathedral’s high altar. A “fraternal buffet” will then be offered “to welcome the most disadvantaged and those who support them daily.” Notre Dame expects to welcome 15 million visitors annually following the reopening, three million more than before the disaster, according to AP.
Trump announced his intention to join Notre Dame’s reopening celebration in a Truth Social post Monday.
“It is an honor to announce that I will be traveling to Paris, France, on Saturday to attend the re-opening of the Magnificent and Historic Notre Dame Cathedral, which has been fully restored after a devastating fire five years ago,” the president-elect wrote. “President Emmanuel Macron has done a wonderful job ensuring that Notre Dame has been restored to its full level of glory, and even more so. It will be a very special day for all!”
President Macron, whose government collapsed Wednesday, extended the invitation to attend to Trump, sources told Fox News. First lady Jill Biden, joined by her daughter, Ashley, attended as part of her final solo foreign trip which included stops in Italy, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. President Joe Biden was also invited but did not attend due to a “scheduling conflict,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Friday.
PARIS, FRANCE – DECEMBER 7: French President Emmanuel Macron meets with President-Elect Donald Trump at the Elysee Palace on December 7, 2024 in Paris, France. Donald Trump was among the wave of foreign dignitaries descending on Paris this weekend to attend a reopening ceremony at Notre-Dame Cathedral, more than five years after it was damaged in a major fire. (Photo by Oleg Nikishin/Getty Images)
US First Lady Jill Biden (CL) listens to US President-elect Donald Trump sits during a ceremony to mark the re-opening of the landmark Notre-Dame Cathedral in central Paris on December 7, 2024. Around 50 heads of state and government are expected in the French capital to attend the ceremony marking the rebuilding of the Gothic masterpiece five years after the 2019 fire which ravaged the world heritage landmark and toppled its spire. Some 250 companies and hundreds of experts were part of the five-year restoration project at a cost of hundreds of millions of euros. (Photo by THIBAULT CAMUS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Trump spoke with Macron as well as Pope Francis in the aftermath of the “horrible and destructive fire” and “offered the help of our great experts on renovation and construction,” according to a pair of April 17, 2019 social media posts. He suggested the utilization of “water tankers” to stop the fire from above, a method a French civil agency which deals with disasters dismissed.
Just had a wonderful conversation with @Pontifex Francis offering condolences from the People of the United States for the horrible and destructive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral. I offered the help of our great experts on renovation and construction as I did….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2019
So horrible to watch the massive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Perhaps flying water tankers could be used to put it out. Must act quickly!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 15, 2019
#NotreDame @PompiersParis Le largage d’eau par avion sur ce type d’édifice pourrait en effet entraîner l’effondrement de l’intégralité de la structure.
Aux côtés des #sapeurspompiers qui font actuellement le maximum pour sauver #NotreDame.— Sécurité Civile (@SecCivileFrance) April 15, 2019
Macron was the first U.S. ally to congratulate Trump on his successful bid to return to the White House, according to Politico.
Pope Francis, who suffered a facial injury Friday morning, did not attend Saturday’s service — attributed to a scheduling conflict — but sent a message acknowledging the occasion.
In the weeks following an assassination attempt at a July 13, 2024 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Trump posted to social media at least three references to significant Catholic figures: one honoring Mary, the mother of Jesus, and another for martyred Polish priest Jerzy Popiełuszko; a famous prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, as well as an image honoring the Nov. 1 Solemnity of All Saints. Catholics subsequently expressed delight and speculated as to the motivation of the posts.
Happy Birthday Mary! pic.twitter.com/d1nwHWTk2b
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 9, 2024
Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits, who prowl about… pic.twitter.com/Z3RoeGUslh
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 30, 2024
Wishing everyone a Blessed and Happy All Saints’ Day! pic.twitter.com/5VlPkCJ7M5
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 1, 2024
Trump, speaking with “The World Over” host and Fox News contributor Raymond Arroyo following the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York on Oct. 17, denied he was “telling voters something about [his] spiritual journey.”
“No, I don’t think so, it’s just beautiful to me,” Trump said. “I look at the whole thing: the words and the pictures — the pictures are so beautiful. Yeah, I put up some stuff … it’s really that I think it’s really beautiful.”
Catholics, an estimated 22% of the 2024 electorate, broke for Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris 58%-40%, according to a CNN exit poll. Among Latino Catholics, Trump secured a seven-point lead, 53%-46%. He performed better among white Catholics, whose support he drew 61%-35%, a 26-point lead.
Donald Trump didn’t just win white Catholics.
Donald Trump won Hispanic Catholics 53% to 46%. https://t.co/tWbJcTdMRJ
— CatholicVote (@CatholicVote) November 7, 2024
The reopening of Notre-Dame de Paris, which translates to “Our Lady of Paris,” coincides with the Dec. 8 Catholic feast of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception which honors Mary, the mother of Jesus and serves as the patronal feast day for the United States. While Notre Dame honors Mary’s role in the Christian religion, Catholics do not worship her.
France was estimated to have a self-identifying Catholic population of 37.9 million, or 60% of the 2010 national population, 65 million, according to Pew Research. While that figure has significantly decreased with the rise in both secularism and Islam, the country seemingly retains some of its identity as “the eldest daughter of the Church.”
The Daily Caller reached out to Notre-Dame de Paris, the Archdiocese of Paris, the Apostolic Nunciature in the United States, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Embassy of France in the United States, and the Office of Melania Trump for comment but received no response before publication.
Editor’s note: This report has been updated with additional details surrounding the reopening of Notre Dame.
This article was originally published at dailycaller.com
