Why you will hear this Leeds Minster bell being tolled for seven minutes

The tenor bell at Leeds Minster will be tolled for seven minutes as a mark of solidarity following the devastating fire at Notre Dame Cathedral.
The Rector of Leeds, the Reverend Canon Sam Corley, will ring the Minster's tenor bell for seven minutes in solidarity with Notre Dame Cathedral.The Rector of Leeds, the Reverend Canon Sam Corley, will ring the Minster's tenor bell for seven minutes in solidarity with Notre Dame Cathedral.
The Rector of Leeds, the Reverend Canon Sam Corley, will ring the Minster's tenor bell for seven minutes in solidarity with Notre Dame Cathedral.

The request was made of all churches and cathedrals by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York in response to a suggestion by the British Ambassador to France, Edward Llewellyn.

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Leeds Minster is among a number of other churches and cathedralsacross the diocese taking part.Leeds Minster is among a number of other churches and cathedralsacross the diocese taking part.
Leeds Minster is among a number of other churches and cathedralsacross the diocese taking part.

It comes as France pays a day-long tribute to the Paris firefighters who saved the internationally revered Notre Dame Cathedral from total collapse and rescued its treasures.

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More than 400 firefighters took part in the nine-hour battle to save the 12th-century cathedral on Monday evening.

Its spire collapsed and the roof was destroyed, but its famous towers, rose windows, organ and precious artworks were saved.

No one was killed in the fire, which occurred during a mass, thanks to firefighters and church officials speedily evacuating the building.

The Rev Sam Corley began ringing bells when he was just 10 years old.The Rev Sam Corley began ringing bells when he was just 10 years old.
The Rev Sam Corley began ringing bells when he was just 10 years old.

The tenor bell at the Minster will be rung from 7pm this evening (Thursday) by the Rector of Leeds, the Reverend Canon Sam Corley.

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Mr Corley has rung bells since the age of 10 and remembers visiting Notre Dame on a school trip when he was 12.

"I was incredibly fortunate," he said. "My French teacher knew I loved bells and while we were up the north tower at Notre Dame she arranged for the steeple keeper to take me through into the south tower to see the large bell, called ‘Emmanuel’, which produces one of the most iconic sounds of Paris.

The tenor bell at Leeds Minster will be tolled for seven minutes as a gesture of solidarity.The tenor bell at Leeds Minster will be tolled for seven minutes as a gesture of solidarity.
The tenor bell at Leeds Minster will be tolled for seven minutes as a gesture of solidarity.

"I remember standing inside the bell, amazed by its scale and size."

Mr Corley said: "The noise of bells is so evocative in times of tragedy and celebration. Like the buildings in which they hang, bells stir and evoke longings for permanence and connection, and they point to and proclaim, a message of redemption and hope beyond ourselves.

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"We will see that story unfolding as Notre Dame is rebuilt and, of course, it is also the heart of the Easter story we shall be celebrating this weekend: out of death and destruction arises new life and fresh possibilities."

Other churches and cathedrals across the diocese, including Ripon, Wakefield and Bradford Cathedrals, will join Leeds Minster in tolling their bells for seven minutes to show their solidarity.

French President Emmanuel Macron wants to rebuild the cathedral within five years - in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics that Paris is hosting - but experts have questioned whether that is realistic, given the vast scale of the work.

More than £750m has been pledged for the restoration work to date.