Following the recent fire at the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral, the University will be making a $100,000 donation toward upcoming renovation efforts, University President Fr. John Jenkins said Tuesday in a statement issued by the Office of Media Relations.
“We are deeply saddened to see the damage to the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, a church whose exquisite Gothic architecture has for centuries raised hearts and minds to God,” Jenkins said in the statement. “We join in prayer with the faithful of the Cathedral and all of France as they begin the work of rebuilding.”
Furthermore, the bells of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart will toll 50 times at 6 p.m. today in commemoration of the beginning of the church’s rebuilding process.
The cathedral, which was built between 1163 and 1345, caught fire Monday night, according to a CBS News report. The spire collapsed due to the blaze, and one firefighter was injured during efforts to put out the fire. Officials said it was extinguished Tuesday morning and the fire’s cause remains under investigation — though authorities do not believe it was caused by arson or terrorism.
