Pope Leo XIV Blesses the Tower of Jesus Christ on Gaudí’s Centenary
“In this centenary year of Gaudí's death, amid a wealth of events, publications and exhibitions, one moment stands out: the visit of Pope Leo XIV to inaugurate and bless the tower dedicated to Jesus Christ. Once again I seize the occasion to recall the Act of the first stone, dated 19 March 1882, which clearly sets out the purpose for which the temple is being built—beyond figures, beyond visitors, beyond dimensions.”
At the Sagrada Família, Pope Leo XIV celebrated the Mass marking the centenary of Antoni Gaudí's death, blessed the new Tower of Jesus Christ and knelt in prayer before the architect's tomb. José Manuel Almuzara experienced the day as a milestone in the cause of beatification he has championed for more than thirty years.
On 10 June 2026, on the exact centenary of Antoni Gaudí's death, the Basilica of the Sagrada Família in Barcelona hosted a day destined to remain in the memory of the Church. On that same day in 1926, the architect died after being struck by a tram as he made his way to pray—an end that sums up the life of a man given wholly to his faith and to his work. A hundred years later, Pope Leo XIV presided over the centenary Mass in the temple Gaudí conceived as a prayer raised in stone. The celebration was broadcast live by TVE.
The high point of the visit was the blessing of the Tower of Jesus Christ, completed in February 2026. Rising to 172.5 metres, this tower lifts the Sagrada Família to become the tallest church in the world. The Holy Father knelt before Gaudí's tomb, in the temple's crypt, and lit a candle in his memory. It was a simple and profound gesture that united the successor of Peter with the architect who devoted the last decades of his life to this project.
“He was a man in love with his work and with the Almighty”
José Manuel Almuzara followed the day with deep emotion and describes it as a historic milestone in the cause he has championed for more than three decades. In 1992 he co-founded the Association for the Beatification of Antoni Gaudí, which he chaired until 2023; today the cause is carried forward by the Canonical Association for the Pro-Canonisation, under the Archdiocese of Barcelona. The path has taken decisive steps: Pope Francis declared Gaudí Venerable on 14 April 2025, and a Vatican commission is now studying a possible miracle that could lead to his beatification. For those who have accompanied this cause, the Pope's presence at the Sagrada Família represents a singular impetus to the recognition of the architect's holiness.
The visit also invited reflection on the deeper meaning of the work. Gaudí wished the Tower of Jesus Christ not to exceed the height of Montjuïc hill, which stands at 177.7 metres, for he understood that a human work should never rise above God's creation. On its pinnacle appears the Latin inscription «Tu solus Sanctus, Tu solus Dominus, Tu solus Altissimus»—You alone are Holy, You alone the Lord, You alone the Most High. In that same spirit, Almuzara recalls the Act of the first stone of the temple, signed on 19 March 1882, in which was set down the true purpose for which the Sagrada Família is raised.
“May it awaken slumbering hearts from their lukewarmness. May it exalt the faith. May it give warmth to charity”
That founding document asked that the temple awaken slumbering hearts, exalt the faith and give warmth to charity—a wish that today, with the Pope praying before his tomb, takes on full relevance. For Almuzara, beyond the figures, the visitors and the dimensions, this is the message the Sagrada Família continues to proclaim a hundred years after the death of its author. The image of Leo XIV kneeling before Gaudí and blessing the Tower of Jesus Christ distils the bond between faith and beauty that the architect sought to offer to God. In a year of events, publications and exhibitions, the centenary day recalls that Gaudí's greatest work was, above all, an act of love for the Almighty.
📰 Artículo original: https://www.vaticannews.va/es/papa/news/2026-06/papa-leon-xi…
📄 Download José Manuel Almuzara's essay 'Arquitecto de Dios y del alma' (PDF, in Spanish)