On Sunday 18 October 2026 at 4 p.m., inter-Orthodox Vespers will be served in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris for the feast of the holy hieromartyr Dionysius the Areopagite. All the faithful are invited to attend.
A saint shared by East and West
Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus in Athens, came to Christ through the preaching of the Apostle Paul (Acts 17:34). Tradition holds that he became the first bishop of Athens. For centuries the West identified him with Saint Denis, the first bishop of Paris — which is why his memory is so closely tied to the French capital, whose diocese honours him as its patron.
A Notre-Dame tradition
The custom of inviting the Orthodox to pray in the cathedral of Paris on the feast of Saint Denis was begun by Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger and continued by Cardinal André Vingt-Trois and Archbishops Michel Aupetit and Laurent Ulrich. While the cathedral was being restored after the 2019 fire, Vespers were held in the church of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont.
Last year, on 12 October 2025, Vespers in the restored cathedral were led by Metropolitan Dimitrios of France, Bishop Marc (Romanian Orthodox Metropolis) and Bishop Symeon (Moscow Patriarchate). The choir of the Greek Cathedral of Saint Stephen and a choir of seminarians from the Russian Orthodox Seminary in Épinay-sous-Sénart sang. Before the altar stood an icon of Saint Denis and the icon that the Metropolitan of France presented to the cathedral at its reopening.
Practical information
- Sunday 18 October 2026, 4 p.m.
- Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, 6 parvis Notre-Dame – place Jean-Paul II, 75004 Paris
The announcement was published on orthodoxie.com; a report on the 2025 Vespers is available on the website of the Diocese of Paris.