In the heart of Paris, Notre-Dame Cathedral witnessed a profoundly moving moment: Martin Lorentz, a carpenter who helped restore the cathedral after the devastating 2019 fire, married his fiancée, Jade, inside the very church he had helped rebuild.
The wedding, celebrated on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, was granted special permission by the Archbishop Laurent Ulrich of Paris and was presided over by the cathedral’s rector, Monsignor Olivier Ribadeau Dumas.
A Wedding in the Flowerbed of Faith
During the five-year restoration project, Martin Lorentz worked on rebuilding the famous charpente — the medieval wooden framework that was completely destroyed in the April 2019 fire.
With axe in hand, he shaped the beams of the roof using the same traditional techniques employed more than 800 years ago.
Now, beneath the soaring Gothic vaults he had helped restore, the carpenter heard the priest say to him with a smile:
“Jade and Martin, welcome to the cathedral.
Martin, you know it well — you knew it from up there, and now you’re down here.”
A Family Born on the Altar He Rebuilt
About 500 people attended the ceremony — most of them artisans and craftsmen who also took part in restoring the cathedral.
As the newlyweds exited the church, their colleagues formed an honor guard, raising their axes in salute, a gesture of respect and friendship.
“It’s unbelievable to see all this happen and to reunite with friends here. Getting married in our cathedral feels like being at home,” one guest told the French press.
Outside, tourists and onlookers joined in the applause, witnessing something rare: the first wedding celebrated at Notre-Dame since the fire, just ten months after its partial reopening.
Love, Work, and Rebirth
Among the more than 2,000 workers and 250 companies involved in the restoration, Martin Lorentz stood out for how deeply he identified with the spiritual dimension of the project.
“We wanted to share our love with everyone. It’s the most beautiful day of our lives,” the groom said with emotion.
For him, being married inside the cathedral was not a mere coincidence, but a sign — proof that God can write beauty even in the ashes of history.
Notre-Dame is being reborn — not only in stone and wood, but also in human love and living faith. And on the altar that survived the flames, a carpenter found his own eternal “yes.”