The Light Show Upon the Facade of the Basilica of St. Peter

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This evening at the Vatican, a wonderful light show illuminated the facade of St. Peter's.

Oddly enough, Fr. Z and some of his readers found it sacrilegious.  Such holographic light shows are wonderful examples of contemporary visual art which often take for its canvas the great facades of historic buildings.  It is very common in Europe and larger cities, such as NYC where several displays have been projected upon the facades of landmark buildings.  The technology is also used to create backdrop for theatrical performances and concerts.  All sorts of themes can be digitally displayed on just about any surface.

From what I understand, the light show was a gift to the Holy Father on the occasion of the opening of the Holy Year and to coincide with the climate change summit in Paris.

The initiative, featuring images by National Geographic and well-known photographers including Sebastiao Salgado, is similar to ones that used the U.N. headquarters and the Empire State Building in New York as backdrops. - Source

At least one reader at WDTPRS understood the event, and left the following comment:

1. Polycarpio says:

   8 December 2015 at 2:18 PM

   Let me take a stab at defending the light show, which coincides with established light shows in Europe which commingle secular and sacred objectives. December 8 is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, celebrated in France since the 1800s with the Fête des Lumières, in which the Basilica of Fourvière and other buildings are lit up with flares, fireworks and other light-based decorations including similar projections as the one today. Obviously, the tie-in with the environmental imagery is the recent papal encyclical ‘Laudato Si’ by Pope Francis. Moreover, the presentation today was entitled “Fiat Lux,” an obvious reference to Genesis, and the showcasing of the wondrous biological and natural diversity in the slide show is a great tribute to God’s mercy as reflected in the Creation. In short, the projection can be argued to constitute the technological 21st century version of the Sistine Chapel ceiling for a digital age. I thought it was beautiful.

To each his own, of course, but I especially like public art events like this.

I'm not trying to defend the Pope or engage in a dispute over the subject, but I see nothing wrong with the light show and certainly agree that it is a sort of 21st century version of not a few frescoes which embellish halls and corridors, chapels and chambers, facades and doorways in the Vatican.