Editor,

It was tragic and sad to watch as Notre Dame Cathedral burned in Paris. Notre Dame was symbolic of the beautiful civilization that once flourished during the high Middle Ages. Notre Dame, translated from the French, means “Our Lady,” a reference to the Mother of God.

The beautiful Gothic cathedral was built to honor her because God created her to bring his son, Jesus, into the world. Notre Dame symbolized Christian civilization “par excellence.”

The images of Notre Dame’s collapsing spire spreading across the globe was a symbolic lesson for modern man. It was a reminder that when men are in union with God’s law, they can build a supernatural edifice considered by many as a piece of “Heaven on earth.”

But when they are not, worse tragedies await.

France is a nation steeped in liberal secularism. If the fire is reduced to just an unfortunate event, the lesson will be in vain. This is not an ordinary occurrence.

The episode marks the end of a historical epoch. It is a punishment for humanity that has turned its back upon God. Its providential message speaks not only to France but the world.

Sadly, the Medieval period in history has many detractors who labeled the period as the “Dark Ages,” but, in reality, it was a time when the light of Christ shone the brightest throughout Europe; Christendom. Notre Dame Cathedral’s existence was a testimony of that period.

The Middle Ages was formed years after the fall of Rome. After Rome fell, barbarians from the North and East invaded all the area that once encompassed the Roman Empire. These hordes of lawless barbarians, who worshipped false gods, ravaged the land.

Through pillage and rape they burned down churches and everything that came in their path. What eventually put an end to their savagery was the conversion of Clovis, the pagan king of the Franks, to the church by St. Remigius, a Catholic bishop in Gaul. (France)

When Clovis asked the saintly bishop what he and his men must do to convert, the bishop replied, “Adore what thou didst burn and burn what thou didst adore.” Their conversion marked France as the first daughter of the church.

Liberalism/socialism and neo-paganism over the last century has burned down the moral laws of God worldwide, and America is no exception.

In fact, in 1917, Fatima, Portugal, the Blessed Mother appeared to three children with a similar request for our neopagan world. She told the three children (seers) to tell the world that, “If mankind did not stop sinning and offending God, as a punishment God would allow the errors of Russia to spread throughout the world.”

St. Remigius’ advice to Clovis, the Mother of God’s message to the seers in Fatima, and Notre Dame burning carry the same message: we too must “Adore what we have burned and burn what we have adored!”

Walter Camier

Weatherly