The Sagrada Familia will become the world's tallest church when finished
Posted on 11/07/2010 1:48:11 AM PDT by JoeProBono
Pope Benedict XVI is to visit the Spanish city of Barcelona to consecrate Antoni Gaudi's unfinished cathedral, the Sagrada Familia, as a basilica.
Gaudi's greatest work has been under construction for more than a century, and will not be finished before 2026.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
The Sagrada Familia will become the world's tallest church when finished
Gaudí was a devout Catholic, to the point that in his later years he abandoned secular work and devoted his life to Catholicism and his Sagrada Família. He designed it to have 18 towers, 12 for the 12 apostles, 4 for the 4 evangelists, one for Mary and one for Jesus. One of his closest family members – his niece Rosa Egea – died in 1912, only to be followed by a "faithful collaborator", Francesc Berenguer Mestres, two years later. After these tragedies, Barcelona fell on hard times economically. The construction of La Sagrada Família slowed; the construction of La Colonia Güell ceased altogether. Four years later in 1918, Eusebi Güell, his patron, died.
Perhaps it was because of this unfortunate sequence of events that Gaudí changed. He became reluctant to talk with reporters or have his picture taken and solely concentrated on his masterpiece, La Sagrada Família.[11] He spent the last few years of his life living in the crypt of the "Sagrada Familia".
I hope someday the church becomes just a little more practical. It’s a monstrosity from my chair. I’m sure it’s superb....just wasteful.
this church is not a cathedral
gaudy: adj gaudier, gaudiest
gay, bright, or colourful in a crude or vulgar manner; garish
This memorial, located in the Valley of the Fallen in Spain, was conceived by Fernando Franco, dictator of Spain, to honor those killed in the Spanish Civil War. The memorial contains one of the world's largest basilicas, which was hollowed out of a granite ridge. The cross, also of granite, is one of the world's tallest. Franco was buried in the basilica.
It’s actually very beautiful - or I suppose, could be depending on what they do with the interior. The outside has carvings of different scenes related to the Holy Family (the Nativity, Adoration of the Magi, etc.) and the little details in the carving are wonderful. If you go up into the towers and out onto the roof, you see that it is all designed as a mass of foliage, and there are porcelain birds nesting in the stone tracery here and there.
Gaudi died without completing the designs and in fact before they completed even the part he had designed. There has been some controversy over the sculptor hired to finish some parts (I think he’s awful, personally, creator of those faceless religious statues that were so popular post Vatican II), but the basic Gaudi part is not a waste at all.
Another thing to remember is that Gaudi was designing for the pre-Vatican II Church, which understood splendor, beauty and faith, and not for its dreary, utilitarian and barely believing post-Vatican II version.
Nice picture.
“originality consists of returning to the origin”
Gaudi
I spent a week in Barcelona a few years ago. Saw this close up. Its very strange, but cool. Gaudi had a wild imagination. I think died when he was hit by a car crossing the street. Damn european drivers!
CC
CC
this church is not a cathedral
Anyone who has seen this incomplete cathedral up close will understand why we have adopted the name into our language as you define it. The cathedral is speckled with variegated tiles which make it look like South Beach on a bad day.
Was Solomon's Temple wasteful?
If God is Beauty, shouldn't his House be beautiful?
There's an old saying that skimping on a church is stealing from the poor.
The adjective actually dates back to the Middle Ages.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.