The Miracle of the Rose

Almost without exception, the response to the Notre Dame fire has overlooked something of immense importance. Or rather someone: Notre Dame, Our Lady, the Mother of God, to whom the cathedral is dedicated. Even Catholics have understated the Marian character of the building. Bishop Robert Barron, for instance, rightly praised the beauty of the North Rose window, its colour and mathematical design. He described it as “a foretaste of heaven in its beauty.” But the rose window also depicts the relationship between heaven and earth made possible through Mary. She sits at the centre of the rose with her Son in her lap, making for him a throne on earth even as by containing him in her womb she became heaven. It matters that Mary is depicted in glass: the sunlight streaming through the window symbolises the light of God entering into the world through her and taking on flesh.
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Our Lady as the Throne of Wisdom, holding her Son
Detail of Photo by Julie Anne Workman, License CC-BY-SA 3.0

The North Rose at Notre Dame in Paris
(Enlarged)
Photo by Julie Anne Workman, License CC-BY-SA 3.0

The Miracle Window that Survived the Fire of April 15, 2019

 For further reflections on Our Lady and her Son as Logos, go here.

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