On Wednesday’s episode of “The Andrew Klavan Show,” the bestselling author discusses how the burning of Notre Dame is a tragedy not just for France and Europe, but for all of Western Civilization. Transcript and video below.
On Wednesday’s episode of “The Andrew Klavan Show,” the bestselling author discusses how the burning of Notre Dame is a tragedy not just for France and Europe, but for all of Western Civilization. Transcript and video below.
Joan of Arc became a hero to the French in the 15th century during the Hundred Years War. A peasant girl who received heavenly voices and visions, she believed she had a mission to overthrow the English and put Charles VII on the throne. It is said she convinced Charles to place her at the head of his armies by revealing things to him in private only the angels could have told her. Her victories at Orleans and elsewhere gave Charles the crown he wanted. Captured by pro-English nobles and abandoned by the King, she was handed over to England and tried for witchcraft, heresy, and cross-dressing. She was convicted and burned at the stake; a death that understandably terrified her. It’s said that as she was dying, she cried out to nearby clergymen to lift up a crucifix „hold the cross high“ she said, „so I can see it through the flames.“
I was reminded of those words yesterday as I watched Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris burning. When Saint Joan died in 1431, she was only 19. But the cathedral had already been standing for nearly 170 years.
