Padre Pio Pilgrimage Church
San Pio da Pietrelcina (Saint Pio of Pietrelcina ) is a pilgrimage church in San Giovanni Rotondo ( Foggia Province, Apulia).
The church, a huge central building on a shell- floor plan, built 1991-2004 after a design by the Italian architect Renzo Piano. Since 19 April 2010, she is resting place of St. Padre Pio (1887-1968), Capuchin friar, priest and confessor, who lived in the convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in San Giovanni Rotondo from 1916 until his death and is now probably the most popular saints of Italy. His body is on display in the lower church in a glass coffin for worship.
The new building of the pilgrimage site for Padre Pio consists of the square and the church with lecture halls, lounges and over 30 confessionals and the lower church, which holds 1,000 people and is equipped with mosaics by Marko Ivan Rupnik. The sanctuary itself has space for 6,500 people; on the forecourt to a further 30,000 people to gather. The church after St. Peter's, the second largest church in Europe.
The interior of the church taught Renzo Piano in space planning and lighting from the central altar. The Floor arise anywhere burly arches Kalkquadern that come together at the altar like a calyx.
In the upper and the lower church is in each case an organ. The organ of the upper church was built in 2005 by organ builder Pinchi. The organ case was designed by Renzo Piano. The instrument has sliderchest register 78 ( 5,814 pipes ) on four manual and pedal works. The Spieltrakturen are mechanical, the Registertrakturen are electric.