The Pope blessed the new tower of the Sagrada Familia temple in Barcelona

Barcelona – Pope Leo XIV today blessed and ceremonially opened the Jesus Christ tower at the Holy Family temple (Sagrada Familia), which has become the tallest church structure in the world. This took place after the evening mass in a temple filled with thousands of people. In his homily, the pope reminded that one cannot believe in Jesus Christ and support wars.

The pope addressed the faithful in Spanish and Catalan. He mentioned that the Sagrada Familia has become the tallest Christian temple in the world. In his speech, he recalled his predecessor Benedict XVI, who referred to the Barcelona temple during his visit in 2010 as a "visible symbol of the invisible God." "We cannot believe in Jesus and support war. We cannot believe in Jesus and kill the innocent," the pope stated in his homily.

The pope blessed the tower after the mass, in front of the eastern façade of the nativity with a shining cross on top of the structure. The Jesus Christ tower, which was structurally completed a few months ago, stands at 172.5 meters tall, surpassing the record held for many centuries by the cathedral in Ulm, Germany. Today's blessing was scheduled for the 100th anniversary of the death of architect Antoni Gaudí, who designed the temple. Gaudí was a devout Catholic.

The mass at the Barcelona temple was attended by King Felipe VI and his wife, a large part of the Spanish government, including Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, and Catalan Prime Minister Salvador Illa.

The pope arrived at the Holy Family temple by car shortly after 7:00 PM. People gathered along the route, whom the head of the Catholic Church greeted, and during stops, he blessed infants that were handed to him from the crowd by security. After arriving and before the mass, Leo XIV visited the crypt where architect Gaudí is buried. According to EFE agency, the pope has blessed dozens of small children since his arrival in Barcelona on Wednesday.

Today, among other things, the pope visited the Brians 1 prison near Barcelona, where he delivered a speech to the prisoners. "In our life, the past is not a judgment over the future," the pope stated. Later, he flew by helicopter to the monastery in Montserrat, which is an important pilgrimage site in Catalonia. There, he urged the faithful to cultivate love "in the family, among friends, at workplaces, on social networks, in political debates, and in Christian communities." At the same time, he rejected "criticism that humiliates, condemnation that destroys, and aggression that divides." However, some media pointed out that the pope did not mention many sexual scandals that the monastery has faced in the past.

On Thursday, the pope will move to the Canary Islands, where he will conclude his seven-day visit to Spain on Friday.