The Phase of the Process of Beatification of Gaudí in Barcelona is Finished

Important step in the Beatification of the Architect Antoni Gaudí

The Cardinal Ricard Maria Carles will preside the closing ceremony of the process of Beatification of Antoni Gaudí i Cornet at Barcelona by next Tuesday 13 May 2003 at 12,30 hours in the Episcopal Palace in Barcelona.

The Association Pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí

The Architect Antoni Gaudí i Cornet died in the Hospital of the Holy Cross in Barcelona (which was a hospital dedicated to charity) on June 10, 1926. He was buried in the crypt of the Expiatory Temple of the Sagrada Familia.

Since Gaudí was neither a priest nor a member of a religious order nobody started up officially his beatification.

It was sixty-six years later, on June 10, 1992, when a group of two architects, a sculptor, a writer and a priest started up the process of Beatification, being promoted by this last, the priest Dr. Ignasi Segarra. This means that the process was not promoted by any religious institution, the Archbishopric of Barcelona or the Board of Works of the Expiatory Temple of the Sagrada Familia, but just by a group of seculars.

The Association Pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí has juridical status and is registered in the Civil Register of Associations of the Catalan autonomous Government.

It has nothing to do with other associations of Gaudí as the Board of Works of the Expiatory Temple of the Sagrada Familia. The main subject of the Association is promoting the Beatification of Gaudí, and for this purpose only count on the work of several volunteers and the donations income in the account-number of the Association or put in the moneybox placed in the grave of the Architect of God.

Internationally of the devotion to Antoni Gaudí

When the idea to beatificate Antoni Gaudí was started up, the public opinion around the world - either Catholic or non-Catholic - was absolutely favourable to it. There were just a few people of Barcelona who opposed to the idea of Beatification because they had personal interests in the work of Gaudí.

The Association Pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí distributed thousands of prayer cards for the private devotion in Catalan, Spanish, English, Japanese, Germany, French, Italian, Portuguese, Polish, and Korean. The next languages will be Euskera, Dutch, Russian and Hungarian.

Chronology of the process of Beatification:

- June 10, 1992. The Association Pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí is incorporated. The Association is the claimant party in the juridical process of the Beatification.

- July 10, 1992. The Association Pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí requests to the Archbishopric of Barcelona the authorisation for divulging the private devotion to Gaudí and the introduction of the process. It means the constitution of a Court for examining the evidences presented by the Association and for deciding whether Gaudí can be beatificated or not.

The first person in favour of the Beatification was the Bishop Joan Carrera and the first donation received by the Association was made by Mons. Joan Martí Alanís, Archbishop of Urgell.

- December 29, 1992. The Association pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí is registered in the Register of Associations of the Catalan autonomous Government with the number 13.842.

- May 13, 1994. The Association pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí officially requests to the Archbishopric of Barcelona the initiation of the process.

- February 6, 1998. The Association pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí insists once again on the Archbishopric of Barcelona to officially initiate the process.

- March 19, 1998. The Association pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí restores the gravestone of the Architect of God and inaugurates beside it a moneybox, work of the Japanese sculptor Etsuro Sotoo. It represents three hearts - JesusChrist, Mary and Joseph -, following the pattern of the "Provisional Schools" made by Gaudí.

- April 18, 1998. The Cardinal - Archbishop of Barcelona aproves the nomination of the priest Lluís Bonet i Armengol as vice-postulant of the process, made by the members of the Association. The vice-postulant has the commitment to handle the juridical steps (similar to the Barrister in the Civil Order).

- May 5, 1998. The bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Tarragona - that aglutinates the diocese with seat in Catalonia - give their consent for the introduction of the process of Beatification of Antoni Gaudí in the Archbishopric of Barcelona.

- October 23, 1998. The Cardinal- Archbishop of Barcelona, taking into account the advance age of the people alive who met Antoni Gaudí, nominates a Court "ad casum" for listening their testimonies.

- February 22, 2000. The Holy See gives the authorisation for the introduction of the process of Beatification of Gaudí in the Archbishopric of Barcelona by means of the "nihil obstat" (there is not opposition).

- April 12, 2000. The Cardinal - Archbishop of Barcelona incorporates the diocesan Court for the process. It is formed by the priest Josep Maria Blanquet (who belongs to the Christendom of the Sagrada Familia's Sons) as delegated judge, by Dr. Jaume Riera as the justice promoter (equivalent to the Prosecutor in civil proceedings) and the priest Jesús Díaz Alonso (who also belongs to the Christendom of the Sagrada Familia´s Sons) as the Notary.

From April 2000 to May 2003. The diocesan Court examines the evidences and listens the testimonies about the possible holiness of Antoni Gaudí. People who personally met Gaudí or had talked to direct testimonies of Gaudí, experts and students of his life and work form part of the testimonies.

- May 13, 2003. The Cardinal - Archbishop of Barcelona closes the process made in Barcelona.

Continuation of the juridical process of Beatification of Antoni Gaudí

The Association pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí will deliver the deeds of the process in Barcelona in the coming days - 1.024 pages and one CD ROM - to the Christendom of the processes of the saints, an organism belonging to the Holy See that is in charge of these matters.

At the same time, there will be a parallel juridical process related to any miracle attributed to the intercession of Antoni Gaudí in any part of the world.

Finally, the Pope will beatificate Gaudí whether He considers it appropriated.

Gratitude

The Association pro Beatification of Antoni Gaudí wants to thank publicly to all the people who have made possible the process of Beatification of Antoni Gaudí.

Barcelona, May, the 5th 2003