The French prime minister has been ousted just days before the re-opening of Notre-Dame Cathedral, an event that is meant to unify and serve as a rallying point for the French nation.
Michel Barnier has become the shortest-lived prime minister since 1958 after he lost a confidence vote in the French Parliament. President Emmanuel Macron is now facing calls to resign after the loss of his prime minister – along with the collapse of the French government – that leaves the “country facing a crisis that will reverberate across Europe”, <a href="https://www.thetimes.com/world/europe/article/french-government-michel-barnier-prime-minister-macron-resign-president-6wprd6fvd"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">reports</mark></a> <em>The Times</em>.
It notes that “in a sign of nervousness” at a political crisis that some presidential advisers fear could spiral out of control, the Élysée Palace has let it be known that Macron will address the nation in a televised broadcast on Thursday, 5 December.
The president, who has ruled out resigning, is believed to be trying to find a new prime minister by the end of the week in an effort to restore calm before he is due to greet in Paris dignitaries and leaders from around the world, <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/donald-trump-to-attend-reopening-of-notre-dame-cathedral/?swcfpc=1"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">including Donald Trump</mark></a>, for the reopening of Notre-Dame.
The US president-elect announced on 2 December his plans to travel to Paris this weekend to attend the reopening ceremony of the fabled cathedral, in what would be his first foreign visit since winning the presidential election at the start of November.
He also said that French 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!”
<a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/notre-dame-reopens-but-has-the-quest-to-restore-its-beauty-succeeded/?swcfpc=1"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color"><strong><em>RELATED: Notre-Dame reopens: but has the quest to restore its beauty succeeded?</em></strong></mark></a>
The current political upheaval clearly could take the shine off that “very special day”, especially for Emmanuel Macron.
The restoration and reopening of the Parisian landmark is both a national and global affair, given the iconic status of the Catholic cathedral around the world, and, very understandably, a source of great pride for the city and for France itself.
About 6,000 police officers and members of the gendarmerie will be deployed over the weekend for the event, which is expected to be attended by about 50 heads of state and government, Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez said at a press conference, <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/260795/us-president-elect-trump-to-attend-notre-dame-cathedral-reopening-in-paris"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">reports</mark></a> the <em>Catholic News Agency (CNA)</em>.
After <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/pope-francis-will-celebrate-inaugural-mass-at-reopening-of-notre-dame-de-paris-claim-well-placed-sources/?swcfpc=1"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">speculation that Pope Francis would attend the ceremony</mark></a>, it was later confirmed in September that he would not.
The <a href="https://www.notredamedeparis.fr/en/reopening/december-7-8/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">reopening service</mark></a>, presided over by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich, is due to be attended by Macron, various officials, donors and Parisian clergy. The service will include the singing of the <em>Te Deum</em>, the Magnificat, prayers for the world and the Lord’s Prayer, <em>CNA</em> notes.
The cathedral’s inaugural Mass will be celebrated the following day, Sunday, 8 December, during which the archbishop will consecrate the high altar. About 170 bishops and priests from around the world will participate, along with one priest from each of the 106 parishes in the Archdiocese of Paris.
An iconic symbol of French history and Gothic architecture, Notre-Dame suffered a near cataclysmic fire on 15 April 2019 when flames engulfed its roof and spire.
Its main structure and many of its priceless contents were managed to be saved. The subsequent five-year-long restoration project, which has cost around $760 million (£600 million), has proven “monumental, involving teams of architects, artisans, and engineers dedicated to preserving the cathedral’s historical integrity”, reports <em>CNA</em>.
That achievement remains secure, though unlike the political landscape around it after the no-confidence vote.
Barnier, the former European Union Brexit negotiator, has warned that France faces turmoil without precedent in recent history, which he said could damage the economy, notes <em>The Times</em>.
It highlights Marine Le Pen explaining that her party voted against Barnier because he is “simply continuing a system rejected” by French voters, perpetuating Macron’s “technocratic” approach that involves ruining the country’s finances while “being careful not to touch the totem that is uncontrolled immigration”.
French politics and Notre-Dame – in terms of what it ultimately represents – have become increasingly intertwined while at the same time set against each other. That's one of the reasons that France’s Catholics have <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/as-in-us-cultural-dissatisfaction-in-france-driving-voters-with-catholics-turning-to-marine-le-pen/"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">increasingly turned</mark></a> to Marine Le Pen and her opposition party, in the face of cultural dissatisfaction at a secular state that they see as aggressively secular and anti-Catholic.
Earlier this year, Macron presided over France becoming the first country in world to make abortion a constitutional right.
As a result, there are likely many French Catholics who, while joyful at the restoration of one of the most famous Catholic cathedrals in the world, aren't overly disturbed that Macron's grand vision for it on 7 December isn't going exactly to plan.
<a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/breaking-news-france-becomes-first-country-in-world-to-make-abortion-a-constitutional-right/"><mark style="background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" class="has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color"><strong><em>RELATED: France becomes first country in world to make abortion a constitutional right</em></strong></mark></a>
<em>Photo: French Prime Minister Michel Barnier delivers a speech during the debate prior to the no-confidence votes on his administration at the National Assembly, Paris, 4 December 2024. (Photo by ALAIN JOCARD/AFP via Getty Images.)</em>
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