BARCELONA, Spain (AP) 鈥� Pope Leo XIV honored Barcelona鈥檚 Wednesday with a noontime prayer at a mountain-top abbey and an evening Mass planned at the famed Sagrada Familia Basilica on the centenary of the death of its architect, Antoni Gaud铆.
The celebration of Barcelona’s Christian traditions, past and present, marked the highlight of Leo’s weeklong visit to Spain. It has underscored how the country of 50 million, which experienced a religious crisis after its 20th-century dictatorship ended, still has plenty of faithful Catholics who have t to welcome the American pope.
Leo opened his day by visiting inmates at a Barcelona prison, keeping up a tradition of Pope Francis, who often used his foreign trips to minister to those who can鈥檛 join in the public celebrations when a pope comes to town. He told the inmates that their mistakes don’t define them and that “the past does not condemn the future, but rather offers us the possibility of changing our decisions and choices.鈥�
Leo is in Spain on a weeklong visit that has highlighted how the country of 50 million, which experienced a religious crisis after its 20th-century dictatorship ended, still has plenty of faithful Catholics who have t to welcome the American pope.
The Bible carved in stone
Leo celebrated their centuries-old tradition of popular piety by praying at Montserrat, a mountain complex outside the city that is dear to many Catalanas. The complex, which includes an 11th-century Benedictine abbey and a 16th-century basilica, is revered for its Black Madonna statue and is home to a boy’s choir that has existed since the 13th century and is Europe’s oldest.
Thousands of faithful arrived early at the monastery, with groups of nuns and school children singing and waving signs and photographs of the pope outside the basilica. Bells rang out over the spire-like rock formations that top Montserrat and the valley below as Leo arrived in a golf cart.
In recent years, the Montserrat abbey has faced numerous accusations from survivors of clergy sexual abuse and was included in the Spanish ombudsman鈥檚 800-page report on the crisis in 2023. The report found 15 victims and three alleged perpetrators linked to the abbey.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very painful because there are members of the church who committed errors,鈥� said the Rev. Cesario Escarda, a Toledo priest who waited for Leo. 鈥淲hat the pope wants to do is shine a light on the truth and ask forgiveness and bring in the victims and listen to them and accompany them.鈥�
The highlight of Leo鈥檚 visit was expected to be his Mass on Wednesday evening back in town at Sagrada Familia. The Mass commemorates the 100th anniversary of the death of its designer, Gaud铆, who died at age 73 three days after he was hit by a tram.
A century after construction began during the pontificate of Leo鈥檚 namesake, Pope Leo XIII, the basilica has become one of the world鈥檚 most visited but unfinished monuments, annually drawing upward of 5 million visitors a year.
Gaud铆, the famed Catalan architect who is on the path to possible sainthood, spent four decades designing and building the temple as the . The most important stories of Jesus鈥� life, the Nativity and Passion, are etched into the basilica鈥檚 east and west fa莽ades. A third fa莽ade facing south, the Glory, will serve as the basilica鈥檚 main entrance when finished.
The temple is an architectural and geometrical masterpiece inside and out, a celebration in form and symbol of Christianity and God鈥檚 creation through stone and light, based on the architectural tradition of Byzantine and Gothic churches.
A total of 18 sandcastle spires rise up from the top and pierce Barcelona鈥檚 skyline: 12 to symbolize Christ鈥檚 12 apostles, four for each of the four Evangelists who recorded Christ鈥檚 life in the Gospels, one topped with a star over the apse honoring the Virgin Mary and, tallest among them, the Tower of Jesus Christ.
When the final Christ tower was finished last year at a height of 172.5 meters (564 feet), it made Sagrada Familia the . Leo will formally consecrate the tower Wednesday night.
An interior that looks like a forest
The cross-shaped interior, with the altar at the apse, is an homage to light and nature. Treelike columns soar to the sky, colored by constantly changing light filtered through stained glass windows like the sun poking through leaves in a forest.
鈥淣ature is my teacher,鈥� Gaud铆 once said. 鈥淓verything comes from the great book of nature, always open that we must read.鈥�
Historian M貌nica Sant铆n, who leads tours of the basilica, said that in designing Sagrada Familia, Gaud铆 was essentially guided by two books: the Gospels and nature.
鈥淭he way he lets in the natural light is also an invitation to the Christian mystery,鈥� she said, citing the three facades depicting Christ鈥檚 birth, death and glory.
鈥淎nd when you enter inside, it is all light,鈥� Sant铆n said. 鈥淲hat is that the symbol of? We can鈥檛 see God, but we perceive his light all around us. I think that is how you can read this message, and it is fascinating.鈥�
___
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP鈥檚 with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
