On April 15, Paris watched with teary eyes as the famous Notre Dame Cathedral went up in flames.

After 12 hours of firefighter assistance, the fire was put out but the damage is far beyond repair. Stained glass windows and major architectural elements have been severely damaged and the oak frame is completely destroyed. In addition to the fire, the water used to put the flames out penetrated the limestone of the walls and weakened them, making them brittle. The roof is now non-existent. The results of the fire devastated the people of Paris. More than $1 billion had been raised in the span of three days to repair the historic church. The donations have raised the question of whether or not the financial priorities of the world are completely moral and logical.

Of course, rebuilding the monument is very important but I think it is safe to say that the financial support could have been used to resolve other social issues such as the recent bombings in Sri Lanka, mass flooding in Dhaka, and lack of education around lesser developed and overpopulated countries. The mass amount of donations to the Cathedral shows just how many issues can be solved around the world if rich people felt so inclined to help.

Groups in France, such as the Yellow Vests, have shown their anger toward the topic through several, violent, protests. The Yellow Vests’ main priority is to rebel against Frances socioeconomic inequality. The Yellow Vests hope to convince donors to donate their money to more beneficial things. They see President Emmanuel Macron’s pledge to rebuild Notre Dame within five years as further proof that he’s prioritizing the wrong causes.

Many people have turned to religious ideologies to support their donations toward Notre Dame, but those arguments have been shut down as there are far more important things in the world such as helping people below the poverty line all across France.