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Iglesia Escuela de Cristo is a beautiful Spanish colonial, and still active, church located on the southeast side of Antigua. The original church and hermitage were built by the Franciscans in the early 16th century. It remained under their care until the Escuela de Cristo was founded in 1664. In 1730, Master Architect Diego de Porras rebuilt the church that you see here today. The church is particularly famous for its Holy Week processions, which draws large crowds of locals and visitors alike.
The Franciscans, founded in 1209 by St. Francis of Assisi, were the first evangelists to settle in the Panchoy Valley, present day Antigua, in 1541. Initially, they built a small chapel and hermitage on the site where Escuela de Cristo is now located.
The original chapel was damaged in 1565, accelerating their plans to construct a much larger complex two blocks away, Iglesia San Francisco El Grande, completed in 1579. However, the hermitage at the site where Escuela de Cristo was founded remained under their care until 1664.
“The Brotherhood of the Buried Lord and Holy Mary of the solitude of the Temple of the School of Christ,” as they’re called today, were a group of Franciscan friars who had banded together to form the new institution. Because the official records were either lost or destroyed by humidity, there aren’t many details about how the school evolved and when and if the original church was repaired or if a new one was erected at that time.
What information we do have, in 1689, Escuela de Cristo became known as the “Congregation of San Felipe de Neri.” Their church was badly damaged in the earthquake of 1717. The new church that we see today was designed and built by Master Architect Diego de Porras in 1730. Forty-three years later, the church would survive a major earthquake almost completely intact.
References:
“Antigua Guatemala” by Elizabeth Bell, pages 68-71
https://omnesmag.com/en/focus/brotherhood-of-the-school-of-christ/
Please note that many of the entrance fees for landmarks, parks, and museums are subsidized by the government for Guatemalan citizens. You may notice a price difference for foreigners.
