Tales of the Bells of Notre-Dame Quiz

Answer: Emmanuel

Isaiah was dealing with the possible invasion of the Kingdom of Judah by the Kingdom of Israel, which bordered them to the north. He not only told King Ahaz that God would destroy the Kingdom of Judah's adversaries, but he also predicted the coming of Christ in Isaiah 7:14 - "therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel". Matthew repeated the prophecy in his gospel while recounting the conversation that Joseph had with the angel Gabriel after discovering that Mary was with child before their marriage. "Emmanuel" is the French form of the name.

Notre-Dame bell fact: Emmanuel is the only bell in Notre-Dame Cathedral that predates the French Revolution. Some believe that the revolutionaries may have been uneasy about destroying an item so closely linked to Christ. Constructed in 1685, it is the largest of the bells, weighing in at 13 tons; all the new bells were made to be in tune with Emmanuel. For many years after the Revolution, Emmanuel was rung by himself, but only for events like Christmas, Easter, state funerals, and times of great mourning.

Answer: Marie

The French commonly call the Virgin Mary, "La Vierge Marie" or "Marie". According to Christian doctrine, the Virgin Mary is the mother of Christ Jesus, a virgin whose baby was conceived by the Holy Spirit. "To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name [was] Mary" (Luke 1:27).

Notre-Dame bell fact: Prior to its destruction by revolutionaries in 1791, Marie was located in the south tower of the Cathedral. Today Marie is the second largest bell in Notre-Dame; it was made in the Netherlands in 2012.

Answer: Gabriel

There are many examples of God's use of the archangel Gabriel as his messenger in the Bible. In the Old Testament book of Daniel it was written that Gabriel helped Daniel interpret his visions (Chapters 8 and 9); in the New Testament Gabriel appeared to Mary. "And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus" (Luke 1:30-31). While the Bible does not specifically call Gabriel an archangel, those angels who stand in the presence of God have that distinction; Gabriel had traditionally been considered to be an archangel.

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: All told, it is believed that there was a total of 20 bells housed at Notre-Dame before the Revolution - but there were apparently ten main bells that were rung together. Gabriel was made at the foundry of Villedieu les Poeles in Normandy.

Answer: Anne

Although there is no information in the gospels about Saint Anne, she is considered to be the mother of the Virgin Mary. The first-found information about her and her husband, Joachim, is from the Gospel of James, which some scholars believe was written around 150 AD. Very little is known of Anne; while some sources claim she was only married once, others say that she had three husbands. Anne is believed to have had a sister named Sobe, who was the mother of John the Baptist's mother, Elizabeth.

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: The full name of Anne's bell is actually Anne Genevieve. The second part of the bell's name pays respect to St. Genevieve, who is one of the patron saints of Paris. She is believed to have saved Paris from the Huns, after asking the residents of the city to pray that they would be saved. The Huns instead attacked Orleans. She also is credited with breaking the blockade that the Salian Franks had on the city and negotiating peace with their leader, Childeric I.

Answer: Denis

Saint Denis was sent to Paris as its first bishop in the third century, sometime around 250 AD. He was a very popular man, and had great success in converting the people of Paris to Christianity. It has been said, however, that Saint Denis was too popular and successful; he became feared by the Roman governor of the area. Denis and his companions, Rusticus and Eleutherius, were not only arrested, but also sentenced to death by decapitation. One of the stories tells that after being subjected to such a gruesome death, Denis picked up his head and walked several miles to the top of what is called "Montmartre" today, while delivering a sermon about the repentance of sins. The place where he stopped preaching is believed to be the site of Saint Denis Basilica. He is venerated today as one of the patron saints of France.

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: Although the revolutionaries seized Emmanuel, they did not melt it down as they did an estimated 80% of the bells in France at the time. It was returned to Notre-Dame in 1802 at Napoleon's request. The bell rang by itself - only in times of alarm and emergency - until 1856 when Napoleon III gifted four more bells to the Cathedral in honor of his son's baptism. Their names were Angélique-Françoise, Antoinette-Charlotte, Hyacinthe-Jeanne, and Denise-David. They are currently in storage.

Answer: Marcel

Saint Marcel was the ninth Bishop of Paris. Known for his work to help the poor, there is a legend that he also slayed a dragon which was terrorizing some of the "loose women" of the city. He hit and killed it with his crozier, or bishop's staff. From 360-361 he was in charge of a meeting in Paris which eventually accepted the edicts that had been written by the Council of Nicaea in 325.

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: The new bells were cast from a bronze alloy. Believe it or not, they are not expected to not last forever. Over time it is possible for bells to fall out of tune. Although some people frowned upon the replacement of the 1856 bells citing their historic value, others view the bells that were donated to the church by Napoleon III to have been an inferior quality from the beginning. Nevertheless, the bells rang together, even though it was said to be grossly out of tune, every fifteen minutes since 1856.

Answer: Etienne

St. Etienne - or St. Stephen in English - is very important to Christians as he is considered to be the first Christian martyr. He was stoned to death by the Sanhedrin, the Jewish council. "And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him" (Acts 8:1-2). St. Stephen is also important to the city of Paris, however, because the first cathedral church built at the site where Notre-Dame now stands was constructed in his honor.

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: It has taken so long to replace the out-of-tune bells because of a 1905 law passed in France which provided for the separation of church and state. At the time the bells became the property of the state, and looking back on the history of France it is obvious that state funds were needed for necessities in the 20th century. Both Notre-Dame and the state worked together to complete the 2013 renovation project.

Answer: Benoit-Joseph

When he was Pope Benedict XVI, Joseph Ratzinger named October 11, 2012-November 24, 2013, the year of the Jubilee of Faith. It was the same year as the 850th anniversary of the Cathedral. On March 23, 2013, the ten bells were heard together for the first time. After his resignation as Pope, Ratzinger was known as the "Pope Emeritus".

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: The project to update the bells in Notre-Dame Cathedral had a $3.5 million budget. The lighting of the Cathedral, as well as its organ, was also modernized in preparation for the 850th celebration.

Answer: Maurice

During the time that Maurice du Sully was Bishop of Paris, construction of the Notre Dame Cathedral began and was nearly completed. He was also known for the completion of the episcopal palace, as well as having the ear of the monarch of the day - whether Louis VII or his son, Philip Augustus. At one point he served as the Guardian of the Royal Treasury when the king was on the Third Crusade.

Notre Dame Bell Fact: Before the new bells were hung in the Cathedral towers, they were put on display inside Notre-Dame for people to see in February 2013. A ceremony was held to bless them at the time, and it is estimated that a million visitors came to see them - and touch them as well!

Answer: Jean-Marie

Jean-Marie Lustiger was appointed Bishop of Paris by Pope John Paul II in 1981; interestingly, his birth name was Aaron Lustiger. He was born in Paris, however, his parents were Polish Jews, who had come to Paris at about the same time as WWI. When he was thirteen years old, Lustiger converted to Christianity. Throughout WWII his parents had to wear the Star of David badge, and his mother died in Auschwitz in 1943. At one time he served as an advisor to Pope John Paul II, and there was even talk that Lustiger might be his successor.

Notre-Dame Bell Fact: The Jean-Marie bell is the smallest of the ten current bells in Notre-Dame Cathedral. Eight of the new bells were cast by Paul Bergamo, a bellmaker in Normandy. All of them were washed in holy water and anointed with chrism oils.