Pope blesses Sagrada Familia's new tower, calls church world's tallest
En resumen
- Pope Francis blessed the new Jesus Christ tower at Barcelona's Sagrada Familia Basilica on Wednesday, marking it as the world's tallest church.
- The ceremony included a mass attended by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia.
Resumen generado por IA
Por qué importa
Pope Francis blessed a new tower at Barcelona's Sagrada Familia Basilica, making it the world's tallest church. The ceremony was attended by Spanish dignitaries and included a message against war.
Pope Leo on Wednesday blessed a giant new tower at Barcelona’s famed Sagrada Familia Basilica after celebrating mass inside what is now the world’s tallest church.
A choir of 600 singers performed at the service which lasted around 90 minutes and was attended by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez as well as King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia.
The stained-glass windows in various colours shone brightly in between the treelike columns of the temple as Leo delivered his homily in Spanish, Catalan and Latin
“We cannot believe in Jesus and promote war. We cannot believe in Jesus and kill the innocent,” the pope said in a thinly veiled reference to US President Donald Trump’s administration.
At the end of the service, the US-born pontiff blessed the Sagrada Familia’s soaring central Jesus Christ tower which was completed in February, bringing the basilica to its maximum height of 172.5 metres (566 feet).
The peak deliberately falls short of the 177 metres (581 feet) of Barcelona’s Montjuic hill – an act of religious respect from Gaudi who believed the hill was the work of God.
Preguntas abiertas
- What specific wars or conflicts was the Pope referencing?
- What is the significance of the tower's height relative to Montjuic hill beyond religious respect?
- What are the future plans for the Sagrada Familia Basilica?
