PORTUGAL: BOM JESUS DO MONTE BASILICA

 June 30, 2022

We got on the road around noon for our two-hour drive back to Portugal and our next destination outside Braga, another pilgrimage site, Bom Jesus do Monte, or "Good Jesus of the Mountain." (We kept irreverently calling the place "Bomb Jesus" and giggling.)

We had eaten an extensive and delicious breakfast buffet in our hotel, so we weren't ready for lunch, but we did pick up some nutritious snacks for the drive. I didn't know Magnum made anything but ice cream bars! What a wonderful surprise! And the Sumol Laranja drink on the right tastes just like one of my favorites: Orangina.

We had zero interference crossing the border into Portugal. Everything we had read online about tight Covid restrictions in Portugal were either out-of-date or overblown.

Bom Jesus do Monte turned out to be one of my favorite churches in Portugal, in spite of the fact that the road to the church is a series of hairpin turns up a very steep mountain.

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019, the extensive property (64 acres) is stunning. The UNESCO document notes that "the landscape evokes Christian Jerusalem, recreating a sacred mount crowned with a church. . . . [It] illustrates a European tradition of creating Sacri Monti (sacred mountains), promoted by the Catholic Church at the Council of Trent in the 16th century." The rest of the UNESCO description is one of the most lavish documents of praise I have read on their site, and I wonder what took them so long to name Bom Jesus a World Heritage Site. 

Many churches have existed here, beginning in the 14th century, but the current  one was started in 1784 and consecrated in 1834. A zig-zagging series of 577 steps leading from the town of Braga up the mountain to the basilica were built between 1723 and 1837, and it is these stairs and accompanying artwork and landscaping that make the basilica such a special and unique place, which is why over 1.2 million people visit it every year.

TRUE Pilgrims begin at the bottom and go UP the stairs, traditionally on their knees, but we took the easy route, starting and the top and making our way down--on our feet. Along the way there are numerous fountains. Some represent the five senses (sight, smell, hearing, touch, taste). Others represent the virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Others represent other things, and altogether there are twenty fountains.

This photo shows what I think is just the third landing from the top. There are seventeen landings, so we had a LOT more to go.

Here are three of the "Five Senses" fountains with water coming from the figures' mouth, ears, and eyes:

A statue of Moses looms over visitors from one of the stairway walls:

Dozens of statues of religious, historical, and allegorical figures top the walls on each level.

Yet another feature on the never-ending staircase is a series of fourteen small chapels, each containing a life-size sculptural representation of an event related to the Way of the Cross, or the events that led to the crucifixion of Christ. Pilgrims can stop for a rest or to pray in each of the chapels. 

Of course, as TRUE Pilgrims begin at the bottom and we had started at the top, we saw the dioramas in reverse order. There are two at the top of the stairs that we didn't see before we began our descent, but which we saw later in our visit. One is the Chapel of  Lifting . . .

. . . and the other is the Chapel of Descent:

 On our way down the stairs, however, we began with the Chapel of the Crucifixion.

The Chapel of the Fall depicts when Jesus fell under the weight of the cross and was aided by Simon of Cyrene.

On the left is our view when looking up from further down, but nowhere near the bottom yet. On the right is an interesting fountain in front of one of the chapels.

The Chapel of the Ascent to Calvary includes Veronica holding the veil she used to wipe the face of Jesus and which now bears his image.

In another chapel, Jesus stands with Pilate to be judged:

Did I mention that every level also has a different cobblestone pattern? No wonder the stairway took over 100 years to build.

We made it to the main landing that separates the upper and lower stairways. Most of the iconic photos of Bom Jesus are taken from here. After this landing, there are long sideways paths with sharp turns and shorter flights of steps.  Here is another cobblestone pattern . . . 

 . . . and two more chapels, the Chapel of the Crown of Thorns and the Chapel of Flagellation.

This fountain shows a hand holding the staff and serpent, symbol of the medical profession.

A hand holding a bow and arrow represents . . . ?

The chapels in the lower part of the staircases are situated at the outside bends and are often sheltered by the forest.

The Chapel of Darkness illustrates when Jesus was questioned by Caiaphas.

The Chapel of the Betrayal shows Judas identifying Jesus with a kiss.

The Chapel of Agony shows Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane with the sleeping apostles on his right . . . 

. . . and an angel there to support him on his left.

And finally, for us (but first for TRUE Pilgrims), was the Chapel of the Last Supper.

This seems to be the moment when Jesus says that one of them will betray him, and each is asking, "Lord, is it I?" Except, of course, for Judas, who holds a bag of silver pieces in his hand and looks at the audience rather than at Jesus. I am a little confused by the guy on the far left holding the dish. Is he a waiter?

And . . . this is the photo I took at the very bottom.  I think this is the gateway to the stairs that lead to the cathedral--the place to start ascending on your knees if you are a TRUE Pilgrim.

Okay, we were in trouble. How were we going to get back up to the top, which is where we left our car? Lucky for us, 140 years earlier someone had the good sense to build a funicular. For a paltry 1 € each, we could RIDE back up the hill! I think we would have paid ten times that amount.

Completed in 1882, the funicular is the oldest water-powered funicular in the world. Every 30 minutes or so, one tram car goes up and one goes down the steep 900-foot incline, a trip that takes between 2.4 and 4 minutes. 

Water is loaded into the car at the top of the hill, weighing it down to aid in its descent and also so that it can simultaneously pull the second car (from which the water has been drained, making it much lighter) UP the hill. Genius.

So now, time for the basilica itself.  This cathedral was elevated to a Minor Basilica in 2015 by Pope Francis. Again, I wonder what took so long.

Stone sculptures stand in front of the Basilica overlooking the valley. All have to do with the Passion of Christ. For example, this is Pilate, who looks a lot like a 17th century gentleman.

Unfortunately, the sun was in the wrong place for most of my photos, but here are Herod, Caiaphas, and Nicodemus. Annas, Joseph of Arimathea, and the Centurion are also part of the club.

There are also statues of the four Evangelists--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John--but I didn't get their pictures.

The Bom Jesus Basilica definitely has a "WOW" interior.

I love the way the horns jut out perpendicularly from the organ pipes.

Chapels encircle the nave, each with a painting of a story from the Gospels, such as this one of Jesus and the woman at the well.

Here are a couple more of my favorites: Jesus healing a man and Mary washing and anointing Jesus' feet.

A wedding cake of saints was an interesting variation on the "Wedding Cake Jesus" we were used to seeing in Portugal.

Here is a blurry close-up of a few of the rows. I appreciate that many women are included.

I'm not sure who St. Clement was, but he is lying in a glass-fronted box in the basilica. There is a slot where visitors can deposit coins. 

Aha, here is the more traditional version of the wedding cake/stairway to heaven. Actually, it is a beautiful symbol of progression and adds to the staircase motif of the property.

One of the things I like most in this basilica is the generous use of color. Here is the inside of the dome and part of the ceiling next to it.

The main altar is very unique. Like the small chapels on the stairs, there is a life-sized diorama of the crucifixion including about twenty figures.

Okay, now take all those parts and combine them into one glorious whole, and this is what you get.

Even the little prayer chapel we passed on our way out is pretty exquisite.

A somewhat strange artificial grotto in behind the basilica. 

Visitors can walk through it and to the top of it.

From the top, I had a good view of the back of the basilica.

See the ladder to the top of the far bell tower? Nope, not one I want to climb.

We were on our way back to the car, when suddenly, "But soft! what light through yonder window breaks? It is the gelato, and Judy wanteth some!" (Roughly adapted from Romeo and Juliet.)

We figured we had earned TWO scoops each for all those stairs. It was an almost perfect ending to a wonderful visit. Now if only we could have hijacked one of these cute scooters from a group called La Oveja Negra, or "The Black Sheep," our drive down the twisty-turny mountain road might have been a little more fun.