Showing 1 - 10 of 2,017
St Louis Church
Published on 19/11/2019
» St Louis Church----------------------------St Louis Catholic Church Standing on Bangkok’s Sathon Road, the St Louis parish compound of a hospital, church and school makes history by welcoming Pope Francis today.Its name devotes to Louis IX, the only French king to be canonised a Catholic saint. Dating to the reign of King Rama V, Bishop Jean-Louis Vey set up the hospital to provide local communities advanced medical services and strengthen the relationship between Siam and France after political conflicts. In 1957, Bishop Louis-August Chorin expanded the complex to accommodate a growing assembly. Simple and venerable in contemporary style, the masonry building is designed to resemble a crucifix with the arched ceiling making it lofty. Inside, it houses a beautiful Italian marble altar and sculptures of St Louis, Christ and the Virgin Mary. The red-brick walls are graced with a series of 14 colourful stuccoes that depict the chronology of Jesus.
St Louis Church
Published on 19/11/2019
» St Louis Church----------------------------St Louis Catholic Church Standing on Bangkok’s Sathon Road, the St Louis parish compound of a hospital, church and school makes history by welcoming Pope Francis today.Its name devotes to Louis IX, the only French king to be canonised a Catholic saint. Dating to the reign of King Rama V, Bishop Jean-Louis Vey set up the hospital to provide local communities advanced medical services and strengthen the relationship between Siam and France after political conflicts. In 1957, Bishop Louis-August Chorin expanded the complex to accommodate a growing assembly. Simple and venerable in contemporary style, the masonry building is designed to resemble a crucifix with the arched ceiling making it lofty. Inside, it houses a beautiful Italian marble altar and sculptures of St Louis, Christ and the Virgin Mary. The red-brick walls are graced with a series of 14 colourful stuccoes that depict the chronology of Jesus.
Holy Rosary Church
Published on 19/11/2019
» Holy Rosary Church----------------------------Holy Rosary ChurchLocally known as Wat Kalawar, this parish is located in Samphanthawong district, just 2km from the Assumption Cathedral.After the second fall of the Ayutthaya kingdom, a group of Portuguese Catholics, who had spurned the authority of the French Mission, settled on the east bank of the Chao Phraya River and created the wooden Thai-style house in 1787. The worn-out structure was pulled down in 1838 and Bishop Jean-Paul-Hilaire-Michel Courvezy built a new wooden building on a masonry base. Rebuilt in 1890 by Father Desalles, the construction took seven years and this time was built in a neo-Gothic style with cross-topped spire on the facade. Besides a white marble altar featuring St Lucia, St Agnese, St Philomena, St Cecilla, St Agatha, it is enshrined with an archaic statue of Our Lady of the Rosary and a lifelike wooden sculpture of the Corpse of Christ, which shows top-class craftsmanship from the Ayutthaya period. Another highlight includes a series of 32 colourful stained glass windows and stuccoes depicting both Old and New Testamant.
Holy Rosary Church
Published on 19/11/2019
» Holy Rosary Church----------------------------Holy Rosary ChurchLocally known as Wat Kalawar, this parish is located in Samphanthawong district, just 2km from the Assumption Cathedral.After the second fall of the Ayutthaya kingdom, a group of Portuguese Catholics, who had spurned the authority of the French Mission, settled on the east bank of the Chao Phraya River and created the wooden Thai-style house in 1787. The worn-out structure was pulled down in 1838 and Bishop Jean-Paul-Hilaire-Michel Courvezy built a new wooden building on a masonry base. Rebuilt in 1890 by Father Desalles, the construction took seven years and this time was built in a neo-Gothic style with cross-topped spire on the facade. Besides a white marble altar featuring St Lucia, St Agnese, St Philomena, St Cecilla, St Agatha, it is enshrined with an archaic statue of Our Lady of the Rosary and a lifelike wooden sculpture of the Corpse of Christ, which shows top-class craftsmanship from the Ayutthaya period. Another highlight includes a series of 32 colourful stained glass windows and stuccoes depicting both Old and New Testamant.
Santa Cruz Church
Published on 19/11/2019
» Santa Cruz Church----------------------------Santa Cruz Church Crossing to the Thon Buri side, the revered Santa Cruz Church stands on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River and is home to the old Christian-Chinese community, known as Kadeejeen.Dating to 1769, King Taksin allocated the land to Portuguese migrants and allowed French missionaries to build a wooden chapel so that residents could conduct the daily rites. To enhance the facilities, Bishop Jean-Paul Courvezy spent two years reconstructing the new church in a mixture of Thai, Chinese and Western architecture. In 1913, the church was refurbished in a Renaissance and Neoclassical style. The interior decor is simple yet luxurious with a high, gold-gilded ceiling adorned with hundreds of glittering stars and arched stained glass windows inspired by the life of Christ. Just a few minutes’ walk from Santa Cruz, Navinee Pongthai and her family transformed their Thai-Portuguese wooden house into a cafe-cum-museum called Baan Kudeejeen and boasts an interesting exhibition that explains the history of Portuguese communities from the Ayutthaya era to present. Here, visitors can take a break with fresh herbal drinks and sample the community’s much-loved kanom farang kudee jeen, a cupcake-like pastry that is soft on the inside but crispy on the outside.
St Peter Church
Published on 19/11/2019
» St Peter Church in Sam Phran district-----------------------------------St Peter’s Church Tomorrow, Catholics living in Nakhon Pathom will have a chance to greet Pope Francis visiting St Peter’s Church in Sam Phran district.Dating to the reign of King Rama III, Father Albrand cruised along the rivers from Holy Rosary Church to Sam Phran aiming to spread the faith in the Chinese communities. He started by building a mobile seminary with bamboo. In 1886 Father Andre Jeng set up the first mansory building, which eventually became a school. “The meaning of building a temple is to set up a community. A priest didn’t only teach religious beliefs but also educated local residents about agriculture.“Initially, this area was lined with sugar cane plantations and Father Andre taught villagers to grow rice. We opened a school 160 years ago because we believed that education can help enhance the quality of life,” said Father Anusorn Kaewkhachorn, who serves as a director of the Shrine of Blessed Nicolas Bunkerd Kitbamrung. “We’re the second biggest Catholic community following Baan Tharae in Sakon Nakhon. Nowadays, our Chinese-Catholic descendants, who have been working in Bangkok or other countries, will come home during the Chinese New Year celebration. We will conduct the Holy Mass here and then youngsters will perform a dragon dance to maintain Chinese traditions.” In 1971, the compound expanded with a striking boat-like church paying tribute to St Peter, who tradition holds was a fisherman. But the church was burned down and the present building was rebuilt in 1989 on the same site.The design remains the same as the original. Simple but modern, the high wood ceiling and deck encourage visitors to imagine they’re boarding a boat to heaven. At the end of the church, there’s a white marble altar and a statue of Christ accompanied by a sculpture of the Virgin Mary.Spread over the 100 rai land, a sacred site was filled with the Shrine of Blessed Nicolas Bunkerd Kitbamrung in 2003 — a memorial to sacrifice. Its octangular structure refers to the Beatitudes recounted by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew’s gospel.The wall boasts two large oil paintings depicting Blessed Nicolas’ life. Alongside, a fibreglass figure of Blessed Nicolas and his relics are enshrined in a glass coffin. A Makha wood altar features carved teak statues from a scene of the last supper. There’s also the 100-year-old cemetery behind the church.
Knifeman kills three at French church
AFP, Published on 29/10/2020
» NICE: A knife-wielding man killed three people at a church in the French city of Nice on Thursday, slitting the throat of at least one of them, in what officials are treating as the latest jihadist attack to rock the country.
Japan orders dissolution of Unification Church
Published on 25/03/2025
» TOKYO - A court in Tokyo has ordered the dissolution of a religious group whose fundraising methods and ties with ruling party politicians came under scrutiny following the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe more than two years ago.
Orthodox Church snubs pope's Balkan visit
AFP, Published on 05/05/2019
» SOFIA - Pope Francis arrives in Bulgaria on Sunday, where he will meet members of the tiny Catholic community, but the Orthodox Church has rejected the idea of holding joint prayers with the pontiff.
Spain shaken after deadly church attacks
AFP, Published on 26/01/2023
» ALGECIRAS, Spain: The southern Spanish city of Algeciras was reeling Thursday, a day after a machete-wielding assailant stormed into two churches killing a verger and badly injuring a priest.