''Cristo Rey'' is a statue on top of

Cerro del Cubilete The Cerro del Cubilete ('Dice Cup Hill') is a tall mountain-hill in Silao Municipality in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North Ame ...

, ('Dice Cup Hill'), a mountain in Silao Municipality in

Guanajuato Guanajuato (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Guanajuato), is one of the 32 states that make up the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 46 municipalities and its capital city i ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Description

Cerro del Cubilete is one of the most historically important religious shrines in

and marks the country's geographical center. The current structure and base for the statue was created by artist Nicholas Mariscal in 1944 to honour the struggle of the Cristeros. In the words of former Mexican President

Vicente Fox Vicente Fox Quesada (; born 2 July 1942) is a Mexican businessman and politician who served as the 62nd president of Mexico from 1 December 2000 to 30 November 2006. After campaigning as a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist, Fox was elec ...

, the statue serves as a "rebuke to the suppressors of

religious freedom Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

" who sought to quash the Church during the

persecution of Christians in Mexico The modern history of anticlericalism has often been characterized by deep conflicts between the government and the Catholic Church, sometimes including outright persecution of Catholics in Mexico. Beginning of anticlericalism and persecution ...

during the first half of the twentieth century.Fox, Vicente and Rob Allyn Viking, 2007 Located 20 kilometers from Silao and 30 kilometers from León. It has a height of 2579 meters above sea level, 150 meters more than

Machu Picchu Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain range.UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It is located in the Machupicchu District within Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

History

In Silao, the

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Valverde y Téllez was the promoter of the monument construction project and petitioner of the authorization. This was achieved, thanks to the remoteness of the moderate constituent of religious and governmental radicalism prevailing in that historical moment. Shortly after the bishop Valverde y Téllez celebrated a mass on the hill, the

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

Eleuterio de María Santísima Ferrer promoted to place a

commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

, the idea was consolidated to also add an image of the

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ( la, Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devo ...

. The project was accepted by the bishop who attended the place on March 12, 1920 to lay the first stone and on April 11 to celebrate the first dedication. The site was originally occupied by a smaller statue of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, ''Christ the King''. It was destroyed in 1928 by the anti-religious (and particularly anti-Catholic) regime of President

Plutarco Elías Calles Plutarco Elías Calles (25 September 1877 – 19 October 1945) was a general in the Mexican Revolution and a Sonoran politician, serving as President of Mexico from 1924 to 1928. The 1924 Calles presidential campaign was the first populist ...

, as part of his mission to kill Christian rebels and destroy all Christian symbols during the nation's critical "

Cristero War The Cristero War ( es, Guerra Cristera), also known as the Cristero Rebellion or es, La Cristiada, label=none, italics=no , was a widespread struggle in central and western Mexico from 1 August 1926 to 21 June 1929 in response to the implementa ...

" when

state atheism State atheism is the incorporation of positive atheism or non-theism into political regimes. It may also refer to large-scale secularization attempts by governments. It is a form of religion-state relationship that is usually ideologically li ...

was enforced. The current installation was completed in 1950.

Design

Both the building at Cerro del Cubilete and the statue of Christ follow the style known as

art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

. The current building serves as the basis for the gigantic statue which measures 20 meters and weighs 80 tons being this statue of Christ the biggest in the world made of

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

and not

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

like those of other sites. Inside, an altar sits on a circular platform of three steps. A symbolic royal crown hangs above the altar, suspended in a large polished metal dome. Natural light filters through carved slots in the fine marble walls, creating a mystical glow. The outside of the large, ribbed dome serves as the base of the newer statue, also named "Christ the King". Its arms are open, with angels kneeling at either side - one holding the

crown of thorns According to the New Testament, a woven crown of thorns ( or grc, ἀκάνθινος στέφανος, akanthinos stephanos, label=none) was placed on the head of Jesus during the events leading up to his crucifixion. It was one of the instru ...

, the other a royal crown. At the foot of the statue of Christ the King, is the modern basilica shaped like a globe. The Sanctuary has the capacity to accommodate a large number of pilgrims who attend all year round, but in particular for the feast of Christ the King, the last Sunday of the liturgical year, during the month of November.

In popular culture

The sanctuary of Christ is one of the most visited in Mexico, after the

Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe The Basilica of Santa María de Guadalupe, officially called Insigne y Nacional Basílica de Santa María de Guadalupe (in English: Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe) is a sanctuary of the Catholic Church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary in her invo ...

and Cathedral Basilica of San Juan de los Lagos.

José Alfredo Jiménez José Alfredo Jiménez Sandoval (; 19 January 1926 – 23 November 1973) was a Mexican singer-songwriter of rancheras, whose songs are considered the basis of modern Mexican music. Biography Jiménez was born in Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, M ...

mentions the Christ and the mountain in his song “Caminos de Guanajuato” (Roads of Guanajuato). A mass is celebrated every January 5 in the churchyard, where thousands of riders usually go with their banners, representing their villages. Also, a representation is made of the

Biblical Magi The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the G ...

and the baby Jesus. Also, every first Sunday of October the Monument to Christ the King is visited by thousands of pilgrims or faithful coming mainly from the cities of León, Irapuato, Celaya, Mexico City; and of the states of Michoacán, Jalisco, Aguascalientes, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Hidalgo, Zacatecas, Estado de México, Tlaxcala, Puebla, among others. To reach the place one most go by means of a

cobbled Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct fr ...

road that surrounds the hill until you reach an upper roundabout, which functions as a viewing point.

References

{{coord, 21.012, N, 101.369, W, display=title, source:eswiki Colossal statues of Jesus Mountain monuments and memorials Monuments and memorials in Mexico Religious buildings and structures completed in 1944 1944 sculptures Buildings and structures in Guanajuato Tourist attractions in Guanajuato

Description

History

Design

In popular culture

See also

References