Saint Joseph's Church, Brussels : History, Description Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Saint Joseph's Church, Brussels

Church in Brussels, Belgium

Church in Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium

50°50′34″N 4°22′15″E / 50.84278°N 4.37083°E / 50.84278; 4.37083LocationSquare Frère Orban / Frère-Orbansquare
1000 City of Brussels, Brussels-Capital RegionCountryBelgiumDenominationRoman CatholicHistoryDedicationSaint Joseph (patron saint of Belgium)ArchitectureFunctional statusActiveHeritage designationProtected^[1]Designated13/05/1981Architect(s)Tilman-François SuysArchitectural typeChurchGroundbreaking1842Completed1849SpecificationsNumber of towers2

Saint Joseph's Church (French: Église Saint-Joseph; Dutch: Sint-Jozefkerk) is a church situated on the Square Frère Orban/Frère-Orbansquare in the Leopold Quarter of Brussels, Belgium. Built between 1842 and 1849 in eclectic style, it is a national sanctuary dedicated to Saint Joseph, who has been the patron saint of Belgium and its predecessor states since 1679.

History

Inspired by the church of Trinità dei Monti in Rome, the architect Tilman-François Suys decided to create a church resembling one of Rome's many basilicas with a flat apse choir. The first stone of the building was laid by Cardinal Engelbert Sterckx on 6 April 1842. The Apostolic Nuncio, Cardinal Giacomo Cattani, consecrated the church on 24 June 1874 and also made it the National Shrine of Saint Joseph.

The church was occupied by the Redemptorists for many decades until it was looked after by the Syriac Orthodox from 1989 to 2001. It was then acquired by the Priory of Christ the King of the Society of St. Pius X, offering a much needed place of worship for their growing number of parishioners.

The building received protected status through a royal decree issued on 13 May 1981.^[1]

Description

The church has three naves measuring a total of 66 metres (217 ft) in length and 26 metres (85 ft) in width. Its vault is 18 metres (59 ft) high and is supported by two rows of Corinthian columns that separate the two aisles of the main church.

References

^ ^a ^b "Bruxelles Extension Est - Eglise Saint-Joseph - Square Frère-Orban 1-3-5 - SUYS Tilman-François". www.irismonument.be. Retrieved 11 August 2019.