Notre Dame Cathedral

Discussion in 'World Events' started by Tiassa, Apr 15, 2019.

  1. wegs Matter and Pixie Dust Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    9,253
    It was devastating to watch the fire slowly destroy the cathedral, but it seems that there is a palpable lesson to learn from the global reactions. Or maybe a few lessons. One, it shows how obsessively attached we become to things. Even subconsciously. It is merely a building after all, but it has meaning. We have attached meaning to it. This building holds no significance in my life, but yet my jaw dropped open, gasping out loud when I saw the networks airing this disaster. But don't buildings burn down every day? Everywhere? Not that we should dismiss it, but it got me to thinking about my own personal reaction, and why I felt moved at all. Buddhism offers the perspective of how suffering only exists because of our attachment to material things, including our own lives.

    Second, this event shows us how connected we truly are, as a global people. All around the world, many wept as the cathedral got swallowed up by an inferno. Why are we weeping? Why do we care? I think it's different for us all, but the fact that we do care, is telling.
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2019
  2. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  3. RainbowSingularity Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,447
    Gothic architecture has inspired billions of dollars worth of movies, fashion, art, buildings, citys & and sub-cultures all around the world.
    every professional architect should know and be able to draw some aspect of the Cathedral of Notre Dame
    it is highly unlikely that any current big city in the world is not influenced somewhere by Gothic architecture.
     
  4. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  5. Bells Staff Member

    Messages:
    24,270
    Mod Note

    Cease and desist in the spread of dangerous and fake propaganda.

    Police and investigators had earlier ruled out arson as a cause of the fire, which destroyed the cathedral's roof and caused its spire to collapse. [source]
     
  6. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  7. Bells Staff Member

    Messages:
    24,270
    Because it is old. It has been around for so many generations, that it was a staple in life, I guess one could call it. We attached meaning to it, because in our view, that building stood the test of time. We did not see how it was crumbling, at risk of falling down, the spire was in a dangerous position (due to it crumbling already, without restoration, the fear was that parts of the building would collapse) and chunks of the Cathedral were already falling down into the back courtyard.

    I think what this should now do is open our eyes in regards to maintaining our historic buildings. Questions should be asked about what fire protections there are in these old structures. Most importantly, how much money are Governments willing to spend to protect their national treasures. The French railed against having to use taxpayer funds, and possibly even having to pay more tax, to pay for much needed restorations for their national monuments.. I do not think they realised how dire the situation was. The hope was always for donors to give money to save it, because it was such a national icon. Tragically, it's taken this fire to get that to happen. But it is not the only building in danger in France and elsewhere.

    I would hope that they are all looking to upgrade or install sprinkler systems, fire alarms, and other preventative measures to preserve these monuments.
     
    Write4U, wegs and RainbowSingularity like this.
  8. RainbowSingularity Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,447
    with an ever increasing globalisation of local markets profit has been leveraged to drive the mechanisms of society, rather than society drive the mechanisms.
    divide to conquer politics which always gives in to corporate welfare undermines the peoples faith in leadership.
    this results in the citizens not trusting money to be stolen and used by those same corporate welfare scam artists.

    if you are very well off, and you pay a lot of money to look identical to the other person standing beside you, i dont trust you to be a leader. you are a follower, NOT a leader.
     
  9. Write4U Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    20,069
    An obscure fact about Notre Dame Cathedral is that it housed an entire apiculture operation of some 180,000 bees.
    https://www.instagram.com/p/BwU6vtoHqoU/
    https://www.huffpost.com/entry/bees-notre-dame-paris-honey_n_5cba0c2fe4b068d795cc36ee
     
  10. Quantum Quack Life's a tease... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    23,328
    The article contradicts itself:
    An unnamed French judicial police official said investigators still have not been allowed inside the cathedral to search through the charred ruins due to safety concerns, as its damaged walls were still being reinforced with wooden planks.
    then a little later:
    Police and investigators had earlier ruled out arson as a cause of the fire, which destroyed the cathedral's roof and caused its spire to collapse.
    The police hadn't even entered the building to determine the cause but ruled out arson somehow...
    But I will take your concerns seriously and not post about any further conspiracy theories regarding this issue.
    But seriously you need to take your concerns with the thread starter Trippy asc I am only responding to the OP.
     
  11. wegs Matter and Pixie Dust Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    9,253
    Very insightful, and you're right - we should take an interest in the maintenance of historic buildings and landmarks. It usually takes tragedies to get people's attention. In a warped way, it's nice to see global concern over it. That doesn't happen with many issues, because we (globally) are so polarized by politics and such.
     
  12. Write4U Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    20,069
    One small item of scientific interest. In old cathedrals the red panes of the stained glass-in-lead windows are made with gold.
    It was an old secret guarded by the church, but was really the first practical application of nano technology.
    http://www.nisenet.org/sites/default/files/catalog/uploads/8880/materialsgold_guide_31oct11.pdf
     
  13. RainbowSingularity Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,447
    insurance fraud is such a common term of social reference for American news readers.
    propaganda would be making such a claim knowingly while there is hardly any insurance cover.

    on a more somber note, it raises some questions for me
    1 idealist asking 'is there a better way that can be learnt to collect money for such restoration' ?
    2 idealist asking again 'is there some type of fire detection system that would not seem opulently objectionable to those paying the bills?'
    3 idealist asking yet another question 'is there some better way that global treasures such as the cathedral can some how engage with businesses to help collect money for ongoing preservation ?

    perception opinion of subjective comparrison of moral conceptualisation

    what if mecca burnt down ?
    would it seem bigger than the cathedral burning down ?
    why is that ?

    idealist posturing inquisitive annotation ... where(& how) does modern-conceptual-metaphysical-manifestation of civilizations' perceptually manifest 'corner-stones of culture' ?
     
  14. Write4U Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    20,069
    Even I would not entertain the thought that the Church would intentionally burn down a historical and religious icon such as Notre Dame for insurance purposes.
    That would be blasphemy in the highest degree.
    https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/15/world/europe/notre-dame-cathedral-facts.html

    After all they own enough secular properties that could be destroyed for insurance money. Why Notre Dame?

    They are going to restore it anyway. If they wanted part of Notre Dame demolished for safety reasons, they could hire expert demolition teams who can take piece of a building without touching the rest. No need to resort to an uncontrolled fire which might have taken the entire cathedral down. That would have been a historical tragedy.
     
    Last edited: Apr 25, 2019
  15. Gawdzilla Sama Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    3,864
    IIRC people saw the fire start, workers etc., so they knew what caused it.
     
  16. Quantum Quack Life's a tease... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    23,328
    French police scientists have entered Notre Dame cathedral for the first time to begin gathering evidence on the cause of the fire that devastated the roof and destroyed the spire last week.


    Three different agencies will begin to take samples and look for clues that might suggest how the blaze began and ripped through the centuries-old gothic architectural masterpiece last week. Police are treating the blaze as accidental.


    src: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...e-scientists-begin-hunt-for-evidence-on-cause
    25-04-2019​
     
  17. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    37,882
    Well, it's a city. As for al-Kaʿbah al-Musharrafah, it is also true that Rabia al Basri reportedly threatened to burn down the Kaaba should it ever stand between a Muslim and God.
     
    RainbowSingularity likes this.
  18. James R Just this guy, you know? Staff Member

    Messages:
    39,397
    From my perspective, you've got to respect any building that has stood for 800 years, let alone one as impressive as Notre Dame.

    Partly, I think, it's because it puts the paltry human lifespan into perspective.
     
    wegs and Write4U like this.
  19. Write4U Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    20,069
    Just for the architecture and artwork. It is a functional museum of nearly a thousand years ago.

    I was never in the Notre Dame, but I did see the cathedral at Cologne, Germany.
    It was awesome and fascinating

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!



    It inspired me to learn about medieval bronze Bell casting, a lost art.
    https://christophpaccard.com/knowledgebase/lost-wax-bell-casting/
    and


    and stained glass blowing using nano tchnologies to create permanently stained glass panes;
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stained_glass#Cylinder_glass_or_Muff

     
    Last edited: Apr 26, 2019
  20. RainbowSingularity Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,447
    additionally, smoke damage can do quite a bit of damage to paintings.
    such fumes/smoke penetrates porous materials and the smell can last for years if not permanently.

    having the cathedral smell like the fires of hell might be a great April fools joke, but unlikely to be a desired intention of any of its members or staff as a permanent feature.
     
  21. RainbowSingularity Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,447
    what self acclaimed artist does not know of and watched the stage or film version of the hunchback of notre dame ?
    Frankenstein ?
    Vampire movies ?
    Werewolves movies ?
    how many TV series ?

    ... billions of dollars ! ...to be fair, hundreds of billions of dollars
     
  22. Write4U Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    20,069
    Sanctuary, sanctuary!! ...........

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

    .
     
  23. iceaura Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    30,994
    Bees exemplified Christian virtue in the old days. The fact that honey does not spoil easily, is pleasant to see and touch as well as medicinal and good for you, underlined the virtue of the hardworking, self sacrificing, bees. You can see depictions of beehives in lots of older churches and cathedrals - in the stained glass, carved into the woodwork, etc. Monks kept bees.
    They fell somewhat out of favor with the uncomfortable discovery that bees have no kings, the queens are promiscuous, and male bees are all but superfluous to the virtuous hive. Biological science ruins everything.
     
    Write4U likes this.

Share This Page