Worshippers return to restored Notre Dame for Easter rituals with emotion and awe

PARIS (AP) — Four months after its long-awaited reopening, Notre Dame Cathedral welcomed worshippers and tourists alike on Friday for an emotional Easter ceremony centered on the Crown of Thorns, a circular band of branches encased in a golden tube and one of Christianity’s most revered relics.

The ritual, held during Holy Week, included liturgical chants, candlelight, and a solemn procession of clerics carrying the Crown of Thorns through the alleys of the cathedral.

Tourists queued in a line that stretched across the Seine, waiting to enter the renovated Gothic landmark. Inside, ushers struggled to gently enforce a separation between curious visitors and the faithful.

Notre Dame’s rector, Rev. Olivier Ribadeau Dumas, said this week’s crowda exceeded expectations.

“ Before the fire, we saw about 20,000 pilgrims a day,” he said. “Now it’s closer to 30,000. The joy people feel rediscovering the cathedral — you can see it on their faces as they leave.”

Among the worshippers was Marylène Portet, 63, a Paris native who has attended Easter Mass at Notre Dame since childhood. She frowned as a group of tourists pulled out their phone to snap photos from areas where the faithful were gathered.

“This is a sacred moment,” she said. “You don’t just take a picture of the relic and move on.”

After the ushers intervened, Portet went back to soaking up the moment, gazing at the renewed ceiling or leaning forward to catch a glimpse of the ceremony unfolding more than 200 rows ahead.

“It’s not only the cathedral that’s been rebuilt,” she said. “It feels like a link that was missing for so long has been restored too.”

Tiphaine Mauquiez, 41, came with her two young daughters from Poitiers in central France.

“We tried to attend Mass during reopening week in December but couldn’t get in,” she said. “This time we made it. For my daughters to witness this magnificent moment — it’s unbelievable.”

In January, cathedral officials announced a record attendance in the first month following the reopening.

“Before the fire, we welcomed between 10 and 12 million visitors a year,” said Sibylle Bellamy-Brown, head of public reception at Notre Dame. “Since the reopening, more than 3.5 million have already come. But our goal isn’t to set records. What matters is seeing the cathedral come back to life.”

For French and foreign worshippers alike, the day of celebration wasn’t just about faith, but reconnection.

Marianna Janik, 34, visiting from Poland with her husband, said they planned their trip around this moment.

“We simply could not miss this,” she said, before kneeling as the relic procession passed. “We came to Mass here 10 years ago. When the fire happened, we were heartbroken. So coming back now to worship Jesus Christ in a cathedral that rose from the ashes — it’s even more powerful.”

On April 15, 2019, a devastating fire forced the closure of the monument. After a five-year renovation that's still ongoing, Notre Dame reopened in Dec. 2024 in a grand ceremony that drew leaders from around the world.

Clergymen stop during the Way of Cross ceremony to mark Good Friday at Notre Dame cathedral, Friday, April 18, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich holds the ancient relic that many Christians revere as Jesus Christ's "Crown of Thorns" during a ceremony to mark Good Friday at Notre Dame cathedral, Friday, April 18, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich, center, holds the ancient relic that many Christians revere as Jesus Christ's "Crown of Thorns" during a ceremony to mark Good Friday at Notre Dame cathedral, Friday, April 18, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

A nun touches the ancient relic that many Christians revere as Jesus Christ's "Crown of Thorns" during a ceremony to mark Good Friday at Notre Dame cathedral, Friday, April 18, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

People attend the Way of Cross ceremony to mark Good Friday at Notre Dame cathedral, Friday, April 18, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

HELSINKI (AP) — Authorities are investigating damage to an undersea telecommunications cable in the Gulf of Finland early Wednesday that occurred between the capitals of Finland and Estonia.

Finnish authorities seized and inspected the vessel suspected to have caused the damage, the country's border guard said in a statement. Its anchor was lowered when it was discovered in Finland’s exclusive economic zone.

Helsinki police have opened an investigation into aggravated criminal damage, attempted aggravated criminal damage and aggravated interference with telecommunications.

The cable belongs to Finnish telecommunications service provider Elisa and is considered to be critical underwater infrastructure. The damage occurred in Estonia's exclusive economic zone, police said.

The ship's crew of 14 — hailing from Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan — was detained by Finnish authorities, local media reported. The ship, named the Fitburg, was flagged in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It had been traveling from Russia to Israel.

Finnish National Police Commissioner Ilkka Koskimäki told local media that investigators are not speculating on whether a state-level actor was behind the damage. Koskimäki also said the ship had been dragging its anchor for hours.

“Finland is prepared for security challenges of various kinds, and we respond to them as necessary,” Finnish President Alexander Stubb wrote on social platform X.

The undersea cables and pipelines that crisscross one of the busiest shipping lanes in Europe link Nordic, Baltic and central European countries. They promote trade and energy security and, in some cases, reduce dependence on Russian energy resources.

Earlier this year, Finnish authorities charged the captain and two senior officers of a Russia-linked vessel that damaged undersea cables between Finland and Estonia on Christmas Day in 2024.

The Finnish deputy prosecutor general said in a statement in August that charges of aggravated criminal mischief and aggravated interference with communications were filed against the captain and first and second officers of the Eagle S oil tanker. Their names were not made public. The statement said they denied the allegations.

The Kremlin previously denied involvement in damaging the infrastructure, which provides power and communication for thousands of Europeans.

The Eagle S was flagged in the Cook Islands but had been described by Finnish customs officials and the European Union’s executive commission as part of Russia’s shadow fleet of fuel tankers. Those are aging vessels with obscure ownership, acquired to evade Western sanctions amid the war in Ukraine and operating without Western-regulated insurance.

For the West, such incidents are believed to be part of widespread sabotage attacks in Europe allegedly linked to Moscow following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Meanwhile, Estonian authorities are cooperating with the Finns to decide whether they should initiate a separate criminal case or move forward in a joint prosecution in the Elisa case. The telecom provider said its service was not affected by the damage.

Another undersea cable, owned by Swedish telecommunications service provider Arelion, was also damaged early Wednesday, according to Estonian officials. It was not immediately clear whether the Arelion cable's damage was linked to the Elisa's.

Martin Sjögren, an Arelion spokesperson, confirmed Wednesday's cable damage in the Gulf of Finland. He said another cable, this one between Sweden and Estonia in the Baltic Sea, was damaged on Tuesday.

“We are actively working with authorities in Sweden and other countries to investigate the cause of the cuts,” Sjögren said in an email. “We cannot disclose any details about exact times or locations at this point with regard to the ongoing investigation.”

Repair work is expected to begin as soon as poor weather conditions clear. He said the vast majority of the company's customers were unaffected by the damage.

The seized vessel Fitburg rests in the harbour in Kirkkonummi, Finland, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (Roni Rekomaa/Lehtikuva via AP)

From left, Gulf of Finland Coast Guard District Commander Mikko Simola, Chief of the Border Guard Markku Hassinen, Director of the National Bureau of Investigation Robin Lardot, Helsinki Deputy Police Commissioner Heikki Kopperoinen, Helsinki Police Department chief Jari Liukku and National Police Comissioner Ilkka Koskimaeki, attend a press conferance in Helsinki, Finland, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (Kimmo Penttinen/Lehtikuva via AP)