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Comment by cmpalmer52 | Hacker News Reader

I’m not particularly religious and not Catholic, but the Sagrada Familia brought me to tears. The interior is one of the most beautiful man-made spaces I’ve ever seen.

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"How Beauty Draws Us to God":

* https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/how-beauty-d...

See also perhaps longer presentation (50m) from Bp. Robert Barron, "Beauty in the Catholic Tradition":

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbfWTlPt8mU

The debate of religion and (forms of) art has an interesting history:

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iconoclasm

Agreed, went last summer and have told at least a dozen people how it’s the most impressive interior I’ve been inside in my 48 years.

Stayed for 3 hours just to observe the shifting light. I’ll be in Barcelona again on Thurs, can’t wait to go back.

I hope you have a great trip! If you find yourself with a window of free time, there is a bakery called Pastisseria Hofmann that makes a sweet cream filled croissant that is dangerously good. We got one in ~2018 and have wanted another one since haha

Spent two months in Barcelona over the last year, and I second the recommendation. The mascarpone croissant is excellent, but I would actually recommend the raspberry jam croissant even more highly. I haven’t had a thing from Pastisseria Hofmann that I didn’t like.

I have the same problem, but with a bakery in St. Louis Senegal. That darn brown butter filled pastry is still in my dreams.

Absolutely will... that's right down my alley. Thanks for the suggestion!

If you haven't been to Park Güell, it's also worthy a visit.

Agree! Along with the Mies van der Rohe pavilion — one of my favorite spots.

Same for me. It took me completely by surprise, but as soon as I stepped inside, I started to cry. I don't like it that much from the outside (though I don't mind it either and appreciate it's unique style in contrast to a lot of people that seem to hate it) but on the inside, it really is amazing. I'd visit Barcelona just for the Sagrada Familia

Atheist here; I love visiting buildings like that. Sagrada Familia is truly beautiful. I like it way better than St.Peters in Rome.

Another atheist with a deep appreciation and love for churches/cathedrals/etc checking in. I have wanted to visit Sagrada Familia for a long time.

My wife teared up and I was stunned. We arrived in the morning and the light was pushing the color out of the stain glassed windows! My neck was sore for a few days after looking up at the ceiling so much.

Waiting in line outside was even fun, just looking at all the detail.

Same; the most spiritual experience I've had in a man-made structure. Had chills the entire time.

I had this exact same experience - it was (and is) hard to explain to other non-religious people who haven't seen it. I'm not even particularly prone to being moved to tears by beauty... one of the few times in my life this happened to me.

This makes me happy as a Catholic.

Same. Just from sheer beauty of the place got me

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