July 12th, 2025
David is watching a TV programme about the reconstruction of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. The estimate is that it actually cost £500/€600 million, and the amount donated was about a quarter more than was needed. His thought process was very much along the lines of, why was so much money raised for an inanimate object when appeals to house the homeless or feed children breakfast before they go to schools falls on deaf ears.
Well, for a start he doesn’t actually know that the humans who donated to the appeal don’t also donate to other ‘human-based’ appeals, but we will continue along this road anyway.
Firstly, it was an ancient place of worship that had an international standing, and humans will always be attracted to such locations. It doesn’t work on all places of worship because there are churches, mosques, synagogues and temples that are falling into disrepair, and appeals for their restoration go unanswered.
Notre Dame as a symbol of State power also had the attraction of being a ‘limelight’ project, something that gained some form of recognition to you for which ‘you’ as a human contributed. This gave personal kudos.
Most importantly it is one of the anchors of the human condition – not just ‘it’, but similar landmarks the world over – that reinforce the achievements and craftsmanship capable of being carried out by humans. It says, ‘Look what we can do.Look how we can restore this old, damaged building. We can do this because we are human and stand head and shoulders above animals’. It is pride.
Pride in what? Pride in one’s personal and collective ability for sure, but also just pride in being human. If you look at this more deeply in the way I would ask you to examine ‘human things’, then you will recognise that the Cathedral doesn’t exist, neither do any of the materials that make it up, nor do the humans who restored it. But most of all examine pride and what it means. Does pride exist if a human doesn’t?
I do not want to diminish the achievement. Humans work wonders with their ingenuity and have made life so much easier for those that are fortunate enough to be able to enjoy the fruits of that creativity. However, the more you reach out to these ‘human things’, the less you remain inside with Me. The Cathedral is just a large building that has received considerable publicity because of its status. I would ask you to be aware of that which you reach out to that is perhaps more local, more personal and that diverts you from Me.
David asked the question of My relating to Notre Dame, but he could have very well asked the question about a piece of electrical equipment in his house to which he is attached, or to some items he has bought recently.
Be they big or small, things within the human condition are there to distract you, to stop you from being with Me. Does the place of worship bring you closer to Me? Only you can bring yourself closer to Me, not some outside object, whatever that may be.
I Love You