From Paris to Boston, the Role of Fire Chaplains

Chaplain of the Paris Fire Brigade, Jean-Marc Fournier, is credited with saving several items of great significance – such as the crown of thorns – from the Cathedral of Notre Dame as it burned.

Previously a military chaplain in Afghanistan, Fournier also cared for survivors from the 2015 terrorist rampage at the Bataclan in Paris that killed more than 100 people.

Fournier is not alone in placing himself at great risk in service of others. Mychal Judge, the first casuality of 9/11, was a Catholic chaplain to the New York City Fire Department.