It finally happened. One of the most famous worship sites in all the world finally opened its doors to a more public praising of God after a fire nearly destroyed its breath-taking beauty over five years before. Granted, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, approaching 800 years of history after the original structure was mostly completed, has seen its fair share of renovations over the centuries. However, this was another level of initial collective shock and fear for the French and worldwide adorers, to a near Resurrection-like miracle for the majestic architectural work of art.
Naturally, the re-opening initiated by Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich, wielding a staff carved from fire-scorched beams knocking on the door to the cathedral, continued with a worship to the God of the Resurrection and the Life with a fair share of stirring music, to say the least. One of which was South African soprano Pretty Yende joining Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France in a rendition of “Amazing Grace.” Now, I will be the first to admit (and perhaps incredibly sacrilegious to type out right now), that “Amazing Grace” is near the bottom of my favorite list in the church hymn department. I suppose it’s not so much about the words and the music, but only hearing it seemingly thousands of times in my relatively younger lifetime, and hearing it played/sung as slowly and as dirge-y as any musical composition in history.
And then, it happened. A song that is reaching a quarter of a millennia in age was…well, Resurrected in power and meaning. Granted, it helps to have a voice like Yende’s and instrumentation like the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France to raise the notes to new life. And the music not only filling a wondrous space of Notre Dame Cathedral, but precious spaces around the world as people were filled with hope watching yet another Gospel-like rendition of life rising from near-death: that certainly gives a meaning-filled context to stir up even more power in the soul. Nevertheless, it happened: grace was made holy beautiful, once again.
In the weeks to come, more will make the trek to that near ancient church building in the City of Lights. God only knows how they’re going to accompany all those who will do so for Christmas Eve, especially. Of course, there will be countless more who will do so in other church buildings around the world on that evening meant to be filled with its own fair share of hope. Many of whom may not have entered any building of organized religion since the last Nativity of Our Lord celebration. That will lead some of the church-going die-hards to sneer: to wonder why they don’t make more of an effort even just a little more frequently than once or twice a year. The CnE-ers (Christmas and Easter) are sometimes belittled to the level of the “disrespectful” tourists in Europe, who the die-hard cathedral church members almost believe make their respective homes of worship into dens of thieves (Matthew 21).
Nevertheless, maybe the tried-and-true “Amazing Grace” has something to offer. That maybe the song was perfectly included for the re-opening ceremony/worship not just in the sense of grace for an aged church building somehow managing to re-emerge from a devastating inferno. Maybe it needed to be played and sung and heard as a reminder to all onlookers that any house of worship is meant to be a physical and spiritual center of…well, “Amazing Grace.” That each and every place that insists on praising God, is meant to be a place and people that bestows “Amazing Grace” on all those who enter, including those who aren’t so sure if they deserve any level of grace, let alone the “amazing” kind. And that, in the Gospel reality, the same “Amazing Grace” is going to be extended by God to the die-hard church-goers as to the CnE-ers as well as to those who once came and fell off entirely for whatever the reason may be. That, no matter the fears we bring to God in a majestic cathedral or any sanctuary or any place at all, this grace of God is meant to fully relieve it all. It may not make much sense at all to the normal standard operating procedure of the human way of doing things, as if we should determine the entirety of reality, including God’s, but I guess that’s what makes it “amazing.” Thanks be to God, indeed!
In Christ,
Pastor Brad
To view “Amazing Grace” as sung from Notre Dame Cathedral on December 7: please click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezg9nctWDqA