Sagrada Familia nears completion

The new rival to Cologne Cathedral and Ulm Minster, and to the former claim of Lincoln Cathedral, to be the tallest churches in the world is, of course, Antonio Gaudi’s astonishing Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. 

In recent days the basilica’s central tower and spire were completed when the cross was placed on top of the Jesus tower. There remains another decade to work to finish the decoration and details of a building whose foundation stone was laid in 1882. At 566 feet the spire is the tallest in the world - but even then just possibly lower than that which once crowned Lincoln Cathedral.

There is a good video about Sagrada Familia, its architect Gaudi, and the travails faced by the builders during the horrors of the Spanish Civil Wat - building so great a statement of faith in anarchist Catalonia was likely to attract hostility and violence.

As a boy I remember having books in which one pasted pictures of other countries, and a recurring image was of the one completed facade of this extraordinary looking building. I am grateful for having lived to see the verge of its completion, and to do so as a Catholic.

The video about it can be viewed at Sagrada Familia Finally Nears Completion After 144 Years