Giant Jesus Now Looms Over Polish Town

SWIEBODZIN, Poland (AP) — Workers have completed a giant statue of Jesus Christ in a small Polish town that its creators say ranks as the biggest in the world.

Hundreds of residents gathered to watch a towering crane lifting the crowned head onto the top of the statue in the town of Swiebodzin on Saturday.

The statue is the creation of a retired local priest, Rev. Sylwester Zawadzki. Many local residents and business people in Swiebodzin (shvee-eh-BOHD'-jeen) say they hope it will put their town of 22,000 on the map for Roman Catholic pilgrims and bring in money to their community.

The statue's completion had been delayed by strong winds.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

SWIEBODZIN, Poland (AP) — Workers in a small Polish town on Saturday lifted the shoulders and arms onto a giant statue of Jesus Christ that its creators say will be the biggest in the world.

After delays caused by strong winds, a towering crane lifted the massive piece and very slowly placed it onto the lower part of the figure's body. Later in the day, workers hoped to finish assembling the statue by hoisting the head.

The statue is the creation of a retired local priest, Rev. Sylwester Zawadzki. Many local residents and business people in Swiebodzin (shvee-eh-BOHD'-jeen) say they hope it will put their town of 22,000 on the map for Roman Catholic pilgrims and bring in money to their community.

"I'm thrilled," said Emilia Zoladz, a 58-year-old economist watching the statue being assembled as she took cover from chilly drizzle at a shopping center across the street.

"The statue will make Swiebodzin famous all over Poland."

Organizers say it will be the largest statue of Jesus in the world, rising even higher than Rio de Janeiro's iconic Christ the Redeemer statue. However, different people working on the project gave slightly differing measurements for the statue, and it was impossible to verify the claim.

An artist who worked on the design — which he said he modeled on the famous Brazilian Christ that towers over the beaches of Rio — put the total measurement at 167 feet (51 meters), including a mound it sits on and a golden king's crown on the head. By comparison, the statue in Brazil's Rio is 125 feet (38 meters) tall.

The artist would only give his first name, Tomek, saying he was afraid of having his last name made public until he knew for sure the statue would go up successfully.

The priest also refused to talk to reporters until the project is completed. An assistant, Hanna Sergiew, said the 78-year-old was exhausted and agitated and would only talk once the head is mounted.

The project has faced numerous problems along the way, and the "builder priest," as Zawadzki is known, has had to persuade a skeptical bishop to let him go ahead with it. Government officials also suspended the project for some time, fearing the size made it unsafe.

More recently, an attempt to finally mount the figure had to be aborted because it turned out that the crane was not powerful enough to lift the arms and shoulders — weighing 30 tons (27 metric tons) — onto the standing body. A new crane has now arrived but further delays were caused this week by heavy winds.

A local resident watching the arms go on, Wladyslaw Greszta, said he was confident everything would work out. He lives just down the road and said he looked forward to having a view of the completed statue.

"This is a great thing," said Greszta, 57, a retired tractor driver. "And this must be successful — there are no other options. Our priest has already had one heart attack and if this doesn't work out, he will die."

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Marta Kucharska contributed to this report.