
The Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family
FREE Catholic Classes
The Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family is large, Roman Catholic Church in Barcelona, Spain. Although the church is incomplete, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and in November of 2010 Pope Benedict XVI consecrated the church and proclaimed it a minor basilica.
Highlights
Catholic Online (https://www.catholic.org)
5/13/2014 (1 decade ago)
Published in Travel
LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - While construction of Sagrada Familia, the church's Spanish name, began in 1882, Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi took over in 1883, transforming the project with his architectural and engineering style - combining Gothic and curvilinear, Art Nouveau forms with ambitious structural columns and arches.
Join the fight against world hunger.
Gaudi devoted his last years to the project and at the time of his death in 1926, less than a quarter of the project was complete. Sagrada Familia's construction progressed slowly as it relied on private donations and was interrupted by the Spanish Civil War - only to resume intermittent progress in the 1950s. Construction passed the mid-point in 2010 with some of the project's greatest challenges remaining and an anticipated completion date of 2026 - the centennial of GaudĂ's death.
The basilica has a long and divisive history amongst the citizens of Barcelona: over the fear that it might compete with Bercelona's cathedral, over Gaudi's design itself, over the possibility that work after Gaudi's death disregarded his design. Recently, the proposed high-speed rail link to France also brought up controversy over fears that it would disturb the basilica's stability.
Art critic Rainer Zerbst said of the basilica: "It is probably impossible to find a church building anything like it in the entire history of the art."
Pulitzer Prize winning architectural critic Paul Goldberger called it: "The most extraordinary personal interpretation of Gothic architecture since the Middle Ages."
---
'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'
Copyright 2021 - Distributed by Catholic Online
Join the Movement
When you sign up below, you don't just join an email list - you're joining an entire movement for Free world class Catholic education.
-
- Easter / Lent
- Ascension Day
- 7 Morning Prayers
- Mysteries of the Rosary
- Litany of the Bl. Virgin Mary
- Popular Saints
- Popular Prayers
- Female Saints
- Saint Feast Days by Month
- Stations of the Cross
- St. Francis of Assisi
- St. Michael the Archangel
- The Apostles' Creed
- Unfailing Prayer to St. Anthony
- Pray the Rosary

IRS Declares Churches Can Now Endorse Political Candidates Without Losing Tax-Exempt Status

Judge Temporarily Blocks Federal Defunding of Planned Parenthood Amid Legal Battle

Pope Leo XIV Shows Us the Only Way to Peace: Start with the Children
Daily Catholic
Daily Readings for Thursday, July 10, 2025
Bl. Emmanuel Ruiz: Saint of the Day for Thursday, July 10, 2025
Prayer to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart: Prayer of the Day for Thursday, July 10, 2025
Daily Readings for Wednesday, July 09, 2025
St. Veronica Giuliani: Saint of the Day for Wednesday, July 09, 2025
- Prayer for a Happy Death: Prayer of the Day for Wednesday, July 09, 2025
Copyright 2025 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2025 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.
Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.