The cathedral is still in danger.

Notre Dame — an icon of France, a symbol of the West, and one of the most beautiful expressions of Catholic worship — burned Monday while the world watched and the faithful prayed. By morning, thanks to the brave first responders and solid Medieval construction, the thousand-year-old church stood tall and the worst had been averted — or so we hope.

James McCrery designs churches. With his firm McCrery Architects, he designs homes, altars, libraries, monasteries and even cathedrals — all in the traditional and classical styles. McCrery, who just recently completed Knoxville, Tennessee’s Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, sat down with The Daily Caller News Foundation to explain how close Notre Dame came to complete disaster — and how she might still be ruined.

Videography by Grae Stafford