“Sometimes we need to rebuild the Cathedral together.”
| This morning I stood with a gathering crowd watching a television set at our local gym. We watched in silence the slow burn of a building that was so symbolic for so many people, a national landmark. We listened as reporters told us of the massive blaze in Paris. The Notre Dame Cathedral was burning, quickly burning. The fire devastated enormous parts of the 850-year-old church. My heart felt an odd pang as the cathedral’s iconic spire fell, engulfed in the mouth of the fire. Later in the day I picked up the story on my IPhone and read that French President Emmanuel Macron described the fire as a “terrible tragedy,” but added the “worst had been avoided,” promising the people of Paris that they will “rebuild this cathedral together.” That last part struck me– it was rather beautiful. Here’s what you may not know about cathedrals. Retired deputy chief Jim Bullock told CNN’s Don Lemon that churches, particularly cathedrals, are especially susceptible to fires. “It’s old wood that is dry and burns fast, and there’s a lot of wood in that building,” Notre Dame’s ceiling has been described as a forest thanks to the amount of wood that was used in its construction. “Some of it is hundreds of years old, and tinderbox dry”. “Churches have their own problem, especially large cathedrals,” he said. “There’s a large open-air space, so there’s lots of air to feed the fire (along with) a lot of combustible stuff in the ceiling. And once (the fire’s) in the ceiling it’s hard to get up there — it could be 300 feet in the air.” According to reports, the church was going through a renovation process but was simply not fast enough in it’s movement to rebuild and refurbish. All of this got me thinking. For many of us we are like these buildings, we have pieces of ourselves that have become dry, outworn, brittle. Sometimes it’s a simple frame while others times the very foundation has changed, grown old and may not be suitable anymore to support what lies on top. And sometimes, if not maintained, if not allowed to shift and change with time, an occasional fire may start and if there is enough tinder present the effects can be far reaching and often painful. But during this season when so many will consider the theme of death and resurrection I’m also reminded that after the burn, after some things have been stripped way, sometimes to their very foundation, there is the beautiful call to rebuild, to resurrect, to bring life to the structure again. After death life has a way of beginning again, and much like French President Emmanuel Macron said “we will rebuild this cathedral together.” In the middle of pain and destruction may we remember there is life on the other side and something new waiting to be birthed from it. Here are some questions to consider if you’ve found yourself in the middle of this deconstruction. 1. What am I committed to changing? 2. What lesson am I learning right now? 3. What am I resisting or avoiding in my life? 4. Where can I take responsibility for my outcome? 5. What challenges from my past can I celebrate overcoming? 6. What expectations am I ready to release? |