Latest news with #NotreDameBasilica
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Montreal basilica did not chime bells to discourage praying Muslims
The premier of Quebec previously floated the idea of introducing a total ban on praying in public streets and parks -- including during protests -- as the government looks to strengthen secularism in the Canadian province. But claims that loud bells were intentionally rung to drown out a crowd participating in Muslim prayer in front of the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal are false; the church's carillon chimes every hour and was not struck to dissuade the expression of faith. "In an attempt to intimidate Catholics, Muslims held a 'prayer service' in front of the Cathedral in Montreal. This was the Cathedral's response...," claims the caption of a July 24, 2025 Instagram video. In the clip, participants accompanied by a Palestinian flag kneel and rise in a public square as loud church bells silence most of the other noise in the footage. Different versions of the claim that the video shows the iconic Montreal basilica deliberately drowning out the Muslim prayer also spread on Facebook, X and TikTok. The proportion of Muslims in the Canadian population more than doubled from 2001-2021 (archived here), creating tensions over how to accommodate requests to pray during the school or work day. In December 2024, Quebec Premier François Legault said he wants to ban praying in public, commenting that he wanted to send a "message to Islamists." The Canadian Muslim Forum said the threatened ban "unfairly targets Quebecers, especially those of Muslim faith, based solely on their backgrounds" (archived here). Some rabbis criticized the proposal, while Catholic bishops in the province panned the move to restrict public expression of faith in a letter saying "praying is not dangerous" (archived here and here). The posts claiming the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal deliberately rang its bells to put a stop to the Muslim prayer in front of its establishment are inaccurate. A basilica spokesman told AFP the demonstration did not trigger the striking of the bells, which he said automatically chime every hour on the hour. "The basilica is not involved in these gatherings, which are a legitimate exercise of freedom of expression in an emblematic public space of Montreal," the spokesman said in a July 29 email. The Canadian Press reported one of the earliest versions of the clip uploaded to social media claimed the footage was taken on June 8 at around 6 pm (2200 GMT). Six o'clock is the final hour the bells are struck each day, ending the schedule with a more complex flurry of rings, according to the basilica's website (archived here). Rather than a consistent chiming, the bells heard in the video circulating on social media are more frenetic. The Canadian Press fact-check also noted a protest advertised by the advocacy group Montreal4Palestine took place on June 8 within walking distance of the church (archived here and here). AFP reached out to the organization for a comment but did not receive a response. AFP previously fact-checked claims misrepresenting Muslim beliefs and engagement with pro-Palestinian advocacy in Canada. July 30, 2025 This story was refiled for a technical reason.
CTV News
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
CTV National News: Modern music helping to raise money to restore historic Montreal church
Watch A century-old piano is taking centre stage at Notre-Damage Basilica to help pay for a restoration project. Genevieve Beauchemin has the details.
CTV News
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Century-old piano fine tuned to restore Montreal's Notre-Dame Basilica
The piano was made by famed Parisian manufacturer Gaveau, founded in 1847. A century-old piano has taken centre stage in one of North America's most visited monuments. The Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal is hosting a series of concerts featuring music from its newly acquired instrument to raise money for a years-long restoration project to preserve this jewel of history. The piano was made by famed Parisian manufacturer Gaveau, founded in 1847. Montreal restorer Daniel Farah bought the piano from an estate in 2008. Farah has been in the business of giving new life to old pianos for a quarter of a century. The instrument was in far from mint condition at the time. 'My first thought was that it was a wreck,' says Farah. 'But I could see it was a wonderful design.' Montreal piano Montreal restorer Daniel Farah bought the piano from an estate in 2008. Years of dry winters and summer humidity had inflicted a lot of damage. The piano had to be rebuilt from the strings to the sound board to the housing (the outer structure). 'I stopped counting how much time I spent on it when I reached 800 hours,' he says. His goal was to respect the history of the piano while bringing it into a new era. 'This piano will surprise you sometimes,' says Farah. 'It is from the Impressionist era, where people were trying a lot of different things with music, so it has to have a more open, varied sound.' A sponsored donation led the piano to a new home at the Basilica, through the foundation which is raising money to complete a major undertaking to restore the masterpiece of Gothic revival architecture. From the Maurice 'Rocket' Richard funeral to Celine Dion's wedding, the Basilica has been the site of ceremonies that captured Canada's attention. However, parts of the building were threatening to crumble as the jewel of patrimonial history began to show its age. Workers have been fixing the towers and rebuilding the stone facades since 2020, but still have five years of repairs left. 'The main challenge we have is expertise,' says Notre-Dame Basilica Director of Operations and Tourism Activities Mathieu Verreault. The piano will feature in a series of concerts with proceeds going to the restoration project. The program includes a performance spotlighting jazz music in cinema, which is not exactly traditional church fare. 'It's pretty new that we feature jazz music,' says Verreault, adding that he hopes this will attract young and old. 'Before other Reverends did not allow it. They were not into that modern music.' That modern music will come from an old piano, marking a new chapter in the history of the Notre-Dame Basilica. Inaugural concerts for the restored Gaveau piano will be held at the Sacred Heart Chapel of the Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal: Jazz in Cinema on Saturday July 19, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Mozart and Schubert Piano trio on Saturday August 9, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
