The Bells of Notre Dame

The famous bells of Notre Dame have become a recognizable, romanticized sound of Paris. Their constant vibrations give a continuous sense of breath to the sacred building. As part of the restoration since the 2019 fire, the bells have recently been restored and arrived back in the cathedral.

The first record of bell ringing at Notre Dame took place in 1198 during the construction of the cathedral. During the French Revolution, about 80% of France’s church bells were melted down. Notre Dame’s three clock bells and the large Emmanuel were spared. Emmanuel is the largest, current-oldest, and most famous of Notre Dame’s bells, was cast in 1686 and rings in F#.

The bells mark times for prayer but are also rung in celebration and honor. They were silent during the German occupation during World War II until in 1944, as French and American troops were entering Paris, the bells rang again, soon joined by bells across the city. Due to the Germans strict control over radio stations, many Parisians did not know how close Allied forces were. The bells were the first indication to many that liberation was imminent.

The Offering of Cain

There’s one part of the story of Cain and Abel that always bothered me: why wasn’t Cain’s offering good enough?

Cain was a farmer. He offered what he had: fruit. Abel was a shepherd. He offered what he had: sheep. Why is what the brothers offered more important than that they made offerings? I’d be angry and gloomy too if God held no regard for my offering. Now, it’s not Abel’s fault, and Cain definitely shouldn’t have let the anger consume him and lead him to kill his brother. But, why was his offering rejected to begin with? Does God really require flesh over fruit?

Well, it turns out that what they offered wasn’t equal (“he offered what he had”). Revisiting the text, Abel offered “from the firstborn of his flock and from their fat portions” (Gen. 4:4): the first and the best. Gen 4:3 says, “So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord from the fruit of the ground.” There’s a footnote after “course of time” indicating at the end of day(s). So while Abel offered his first and best, Cain offered his leftovers as an afterthought. Later, God will accept offerings of first fruits from His people. It’s not about what was offered but how it was offered. Abel wanted to give the best he had; Cain was willing to give something but not the first/best and didn’t make it a priority.

St. Asicus of Elphin

St. Asicus, or Tassach, was born in Ireland in the fifth century. He was a metal worker in brass and copper. He was from the family of a wealthy druid. Asicus was converted to Christianity by St. Patrick, and they became friends. Asicus used his craft to make chalices, patens, and book covers for Patrick. He is credited with the copperwork on the shamrocked-patterned beaten brass altar screen in the cathedral in Sligo.

When Patrick established a church and monastery in Elphin, he appointed Asicus as abbot-bishop around 450. He was later abbot-bishop of all of Ireland.

It is said that he was often troubled by thoughts that he wasn’t worthy of his position. After a dispute in the monastery, Asicus spent the last seven years of his life alone on an island in Donegal living as a hermit. Some of his monks found him and tried to get him to return to the monastery, but he fell ill and died in 490. His brothers buried him in a churchyard nearby. A bishop in the nineteenth century noted, “We sought in vain for any trace of an inscribed stone in the old churchyard. He fled from men during life, and, like Moses, his grave is hidden from them in death.”

St. Asicus’ feast day is April 27.