On Wednesday, May 28, 2025, the chapel for Eastern Christians was officially inaugurated at Notre-Dame de Paris.
This new chapel, initiated by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich, Archbishop of Paris and Ordinary for Eastern Catholics, is part of the broader interior renovation project of the cathedral. It now offers a space for prayer and contemplation dedicated to the Eastern Churches, serving as a reminder of the unity and universality of the Catholic Church. As Msgr. Olivier Ribadeau Dumas, rector of the cathedral, emphasized on this occasion: “Everyone must be able to come here and say, ‘This is our Notre-Dame.’”
Located at the heart of the ambulatory, the chapel sits between the Chapel of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows—where the Crown of Thorns is kept—and the south wall of the choir enclosure, adorned with scenes depicting the Risen Christ among his disciples. It is part of a specific theological narrative, positioned at the crossroads of the Passion and the Resurrection, symbolizing the fervent faith of Eastern Christians, who are too often persecuted for their beliefs. According to Msgr. Ribadeau Dumas, the chapel meets “a call for justice and charity, to welcome Eastern Christians into a refuge, a place of peace.”
Eight New Icons: Expressions of a Living and Shared Faith
Icons hold a central place in Eastern spirituality.
Painted by eight iconographers in France and the Middle East using traditional techniques, the eight icons on display pay tribute to the founding figures of the great Eastern Churches:
- Saint Mark (by Véronique Vié, 2025) – for the Patriarchate of Alexandria and the Coptic Churches
- Saint Andrew (by Isabelle Doucas, 2025) – for the Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Byzantine Churches
- Saint Ignatius of Antioch (by Nimat Badawi, 2025) – for the Patriarchate of Antioch, the Syriac Churches, the Maronite Church, and the Greek Churches of the Levant
- Saint James the Greater (by Nayirie Keutéklian, 2025) – for the Patriarchate of Jerusalem
- Saints Addai and Mari (by Father Jean-Baptiste Garrigou, 2025) – for the Patriarchate of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Chaldean Church, and the Assyrian Churches
- Saint Thomas (by Marie-Cécile Froment, 2025) – for the Churches of India: the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara Churches
- Saint Frumentius, Enlightener of the Kingdom of Aksum (by Anne Nicolas and Sonya Basmadjian, 2025) – for the Ge’ez Churches in Ethiopia and Eritrea
- Saint Gregory the Illuminator (by Chahé Kazandjian – known as C. Kazan, ©ADAGP, 2025) – for the Armenian Churches
These icons were blessed during the annual mass of L’Œuvre d’Orient, held on Sunday, May 25, in the cathedral, and presided over by His Beatitude Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako.
