Cathedral of John the Baptist (Catedral San Juan Bautista) description and photos - Chile: Calama (Topic)

Cathedral of John the Baptist (Catedral San Juan Bautista) description and photos - Chile: Calama. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The title in English is Catedral San Juan Bautista.

Photo and description

One of the first chapels in the city of Kalama (2250 meters above sea level and 215 km northeast of the city of Antofagasta) was located on Balmakeda Avenue, opposite the city railway station, and burned down in 1906, after a devastating earthquake. In the same year, the episcopate issued a decree on the construction of a new church with its parish in the city of Kalama. The document was signed on January 22, 1906, by the Apostolic Vicar of Antofagasta, Monsignor Luis Silva Lezaeta, bishop of the Church of San Francisco de Chiu Chiu.

The first entry made in the registration book of the parish of Calama by the priest Pedro Durango said that the first person who was dipped into the font of the new parish was Carolina Vasquez Garcia, the entry dates from April 1, 1906. For many years, the church of Kalama did not work regularly, but as a temporary chapel. Priest Jose Franta insisted that the long-awaited building of the temple be finally erected on the square named after March 23rd. Frant's father himself, dressed in simple overalls, worked tirelessly from dawn to dusk. He laid the foundation and erected the walls with his assistants, did everything to speed up the process of building the church.

In 1927, the walls and roof of the Church of Calama were completely built, in which Bishop Luis Silva Lezaeta held the first mass. But the final temple will be built only many years later.

His Holiness Pope Paul VI in 1965 issued a bull about the separation of Kalama from the Archdiocese of Antofagasta and the construction of the Church of Kalama to the rank of a cathedral.

In 2001, the building of the cathedral was renovated with donations from the Chilean National Corporation Codelco (the world's largest copper producer).

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Topic: Cathedral of John the Baptist (Catedral San Juan Bautista) description and photos - Chile: Calama.