In the shadow of the destroyed cathedral | Our Lady of …

From Paris

Any disaster is an incident. The fire that destroyed part of the Notre-Dame cathedral provoked a series of incidents that began by changing the political agenda of President Emmanuel Macron, provoked national and international unrest, removed the components of the French identity, sparked a debate over how it should be restored, it opened a strong controversy on the contribution of large fortunes and companies to the funds for the restoration and ended up putting in first position of the sales the book of Victor Hugo Notre Dame of Paris, in which he immortalized two emblematic characters: the ballerina Esmeralda and Quasimodo, the hunchback ringer of the cathedral who fights against the entrance of the soldiers of the devilish judge Frollo in the cathedral, stunning molten lead from above.

The past, present and future were captured that night, as hundreds of thousands of people around the world stood motionless on the bridges of Paris, witnesses of the firefighters battle. This episode has its heroes embodied by several soldiers of the fire and by Jean-Marc Fournier, the chaplain of the Paris firefighters, member of the Holy Sepulcher, whose intervention saved Santa Corona from the fire . But the first thing that burned the flames was the strategy to the millimeter defined by the presidency of the Republic. Emmanuel Macron had to intervene that day on television, at 8 pm, to put an end to the vast political, social and institutional crisis opened in the second half of November 2018 by the movement of yellow vests. Macron had planned to activate act II of his mandate through a series of measures developed after the "big debate" with the French that Macron was proposing in the midst of a yellow storm. The fire broke out at 6:50 pm and with him the president lost political initiative. Similarly, Macron left his political agenda in parentheses, placed himself at the head of the rescue and promised that in five years the cathedral would be restored. The deadline was too short for the experts, who estimate that it will take at least twenty years. Today, no one agrees on the question of which cathedral should be restored, with what style, with what materials. The question is whether to preserve the historical memory or redraw a cathedral that represents the 21st century. The president spoke out for a "contemporary architectural gesture". The quarrel between "the old and the modern", between those struggling to reproduce the past and those who see in the destruction the opportunity to reorganize it without changing the identity of the work is as dense as the antagonism linked to its financing. Between 750 million and one billion euros were needed for the restoration. Pledges have already been raised, around a thousand.

In three days, there were more donations (850 million) than the top ten charities over the course of a year (843 million). Charities have regretted that this huge flow of money contrasts with the decline in private donations resulting from the previously applied tax on large fortunes, modified in favor of the rich by Emmanuel Macron when he came to power in 2017 Donors contributed 350 million less after this tax policy, which quickly earned Macron the nickname "president of the rich". In addition, as the law provides for a 60% tax reduction for those who donate money, this means that 60% of the cost of the restoration will be borne by the state. The many French badociations devoted to helping the poor, unions and left-wing political parties have expressed their deep discomfort. The dance of fortune is consistent. The richest man in France and Europe (source Forbes), Bernard Arnault, head of the LVMH group (Louis Vuitton, champagne Moët & Chandon and Hennessy cognac), pledged to pour 200 million dollars into the world. for the reconstruction of Notre-Dame. The family Bettencourt Meyers, owner of the cosmetics multinational L & # 39; Oreal, will also pay the same amount. François-Henri Pinault and his family, owners of the group consisting of companies such as Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Boucheron and Bottega Veneta, will put 100 million euros on the table. These four billionaires account for half of the billion euros that have already been collected. The solidarity of large groups, great fortunes and ordinary people has been instantaneous and gigantic, but the amounts and tax benefits that those who bring them have opened a question of high morality. As Florent Gueguen, director of the Federation of Actors of Solidarity pointed out, "of course, the generosity of rebuilding Notre-Dame is legitimate, it is a treasure.We would also like this impulse to go to the most needy. ".

Notre-Dame is today an ombría silhouette on the Parisian horizon. He lost the splendor of his nocturnal illumination. They will eliminate for a long time the disagreements, the opportunisms and the weaknesses of the human condition.

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