October 28, 2010. The Pope will visit the Sagrada Familia by Gaudi in Barcelona, in order to consecrate the church and turn it into a basilica. The construction of this beautiful church began in 1882 and is expected to be completed by 2025. Catholics from around the world have funded the construction since its beginnings.
Around 2.5 million people visit the site every year. But when the Pope holds Mass there, only 7,000 will be allowed to enter. Attendees will be made up of all the workers, the disabled, and city representatives.
Up to 40,000 seats and several giant screens will be distributed around the basilica so that the throngs of people can watch the ceremony.
Juan LaraCorrespondent of EFE News Agency (Vatican)
“Benedict will arrive in Barcelona and will come to Spain to encourage Christians in their faith and also to stress the importance of the family based on a marriage between a man and a woman... The family as a basic pillar of society.”
After the Mass, the Pope will pray the Angelus outside this basilica's facade, which was the only part that was fully completed by the artist Antonio Gaudi.
In Barcelona, the Pope will also meet with the Spanish royal family, including King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia, as well as the Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.
During his stay in Barcelona the Pope will try a typical Spanish dessert “crema catalana,” made from egg, milk, and sugar.
And the Pope will not return to Rome empty-handed. Pastry chefs have promised Catalan chocolate shaped in the form of the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia. The memory of his second trip to Spain will be a sweet one.
JMB/AE
PP
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