A Priest’s Incredible Act Inside the Burning Notre-Dame
On the evening of April 15, 2019, the whole world watched Notre-Dame burn live on television. As the roof collapsed and the spire was about to fall, a priest walked alone into the burning cathedral. He was Father Jean-Marc Fournier, chaplain of the Paris Fire Brigade, and he had gone in to save the Blessed Sacrament and the Crown of Thorns. Before he came out, he did something almost no one knows about: he lifted up the Eucharist and blessed the burning cathedral.
In this video, we retrace that night through Father Fournier’s own words. There’s the race to open the safe holding the Crown of Thorns, and the human chain of firefighters and priests that carried the relics to safety. There’s the north tower, saved at the last minute, the golden cross that stood untouched above the rubble, and the spire’s rooster, found with its relics still inside. All the way to Notre-Dame’s reopening in December 2024.
CHAPTERS
0:00 The priest who walked into the fire
0:26 The evening of Holy Monday
1:26 Father Fournier, from Afghanistan to the Bataclan
2:14 The Crown of Thorns and the human chain
3:22 Alone in the burning nave
4:30 Why risk your life for the Eucharist?
5:23 The blessing inside the burning cathedral
6:18 The north tower and the decisive half hour
7:04 The golden cross and the rooster found in the rubble
8:12 “Lent in miniature”
8:54 Jesus is waiting for you in your parish
🙏 Write our prayer in the comments:
Lord Jesus, truly present in the Eucharist, bless Your house, bless my home and my family. Amen.
SOURCES
Father Jean-Marc Fournier’s words are taken from his interviews with KTO and Famille Chrétienne (April 2019).
National Catholic Register – How Blessed Sacrament, Crown of Thorns Were Saved: https://ncregister.com/blog/notre-dame-priest-how-blessed-sacrament-crown-of-thorns-were-saved-from-fire
Aleteia – Chaplain who saved Eucharist gave Benediction before he left the flames: https://aleteia.org/2019/04/18/chaplain-who-saved-eucharist-in-notre-dame-gave-benediction-before-he-left-the-flames
CBS News – The heroes of the Notre-Dame fire: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/notre-dame-cathedral-fire-heroes-human-chain-crown-of-thorns-blessed-sacrament
AFP – “We have 30 minutes”: the night Notre-Dame was saved: https://www.theborneopost.com/2019/10/10/we-have-30-minutes-the-night-notre-dame-was-saved/
Aleteia – What was saved and what was lost: https://aleteia.org/2019/04/17/the-notre-dame-fire-what-was-saved-and-what-was-lost/
Aleteia FR – Le sauvetage inespéré du coq de la flèche: https://fr.aleteia.org/2019/04/17/le-sauvetage-inesperee-du-coq-de-la-fleche-de-notre-dame/
Friends of Notre-Dame de Paris – The Rooster: https://www.friendsofnotredamedeparis.org/cathedral/artifacts/rooster/
The illustrated scenes are artistic reconstructions based on eyewitness accounts.
#NotreDame #Eucharist #FatherFournier
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