Pope Francis talks about refugees and Notre Dame with Anne Hidalgo

Anne Hidalgo on a weekend in Rome, or rather in the Vatican, while Paris growl. Pope Francis welcomed the mayor of Paris on Saturday, speaking with her privately about the refugee situation as well as the site of the restoration of Notre Dame, nearly four years after the cathedral fire.

“Forty minutes of meeting in Spanish to discuss refugees in particular, climate issues and the restoration of Notre Dame de Paris,” noted Vatican News, an information service of the Dicastery for Communication of the Holy See about the Pope.

Notre Dame, built between 1163 and 1345, was destroyed by fire on April 15 and 16, 2019. It must restore its famous spire before the end of the year to reopen it at the end of 2024, after the Olympic Games in the French capital.

“A message of openness and refusal to withdraw”

With the sovereign pope, “the mayor of Paris points out the power and usefulness of the pope’s message in the face of economic interests that do not want to change anything”, for his part, noted the entourage of Anne Hidalgo.

And the elected socialist “reminded the importance of welcoming refugees and how the Pope allowed the Parisian churches to convey the message of openness and refusal to withdraw into oneself,” according to the entourage of the city council member.

“I am infinitely honored by the audience that Pope Francis has given me. We had a wonderful conversation about solidarity between peoples, the great moment of fraternity that will be the 2024 Games and of course Notre Dame de Paris, this jewel that unites us, “said the Parisian councilor on the social network Twitter .