France is already bickering about how they will rebuild Notre Dame Cathedral

Maybe trying to decide how to include the numerous modern genders.

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PARIS —Only two days after a devastating fire at Notre Dame Cathedral, France on Wednesday launched into a contentious debate over how to restore one of the world’s most treasured architectural wonders.

At issue is whether the French government should seek to re-create the famed cathedral as it was before the blaze, sticking as close as possible to the 850-year-old structure’s pre-fire style and substance. Before Wednesday, many preservationists had assumed that it would.

But Prime Minister Édouard Philippe upended expectations with an announcement of an international competition to replace the iconic spire that collapsed into Monday’s inferno. He also raised the prospect of a 21st-century twist atop a 12th-century creation.

“This is obviously a huge challenge, a historic responsibility,” Philippe said, noting that the new design would have to be “adapted to technologies and challenges of our times.”

He questioned whether “we should re-create” the spire as it was or “as is often the case in the evolution of heritage, we should endow Notre Dame with a new spire.”

Those words were heresy to many traditionalists. “The spire is a masterpiece. It must be rebuilt as it was,” said Benjamin Mouton, Notre Dame’s former chief architect.

“In the coming months we’re going to have a terrible debate,” predicted Stéphane Berhault, an architect who specializes in restorations of historic structures. “It’s always the same in France. Everyone will want to impose their point of view.”

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