Notre Dame was built in French Gothic architectural style. Notre Dame is the most famous Gothic cathedral from the Middle Ages, noted for its massive size and use of the flying buttress. The size of Notre Dame is intended to evoke the knowledge of God’s power and majesty, as noted in the category of power by John Ruskin in Seven Lamps of Architecture. The four buttresses on the western façade of Notre Dame extend to the top of the towers as if raising them to the sky, symbolically bringing focus to God and the buildings dedication to Him. The stained-glass windows adorning Notre Dame are said to inspire people to worship, letting the light and beauty of nature seep into the building. Therefore, the stained-glass windows meet another of Ruskin’s categories – beauty.

While at Notre Dame, we spent time admiring the western façade that depicts The Last Judgement and the Gallery of Kings. The Last Judgement portal depicts those who have died and have been sent to “have their souls weighed” by the Archangel Michael. Those who loved God were taken to the left into Heaven and those who did not were taken to the right into Hell. It was an interesting depiction to say the least. Above, the Gallery of Kings included twenty-eight statues representing twenty-eight generations of Kings of Judah. Personally, I thought that was pretty neat.

Also, Jeff pointed out a feature of the architecture that resembles the “Illuminati” symbol. He told us that in fact, the triangle represents the Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The circle around the triangle represents the infinity of God and His perfection, because a circle has no beginning or end. Finally, the eye in the middle of the triangle symbolizes the eye that sees everything, representing divine knowledge. It was so fascinating to learn how intentional each design was and what it all means. It makes the building come to life and deepened my appreciation of it.