Some of São Paulo’s historic churches are of great importance when it comes to telling us about the different periods the city has lived through, through the architecture of their buildings.
As well as discovering a little more about the role of the Catholic Church in the history of São Paulo, the list serves as inspiration for a themed tour. Check it out:
Pateo do Collegio
It was at the Pateo do Collegio that the city’s official founding ceremony took place. The Jesuits settled there in order to catechize the indigenous people of the region. Nowadays, daily Masses are celebrated there at noon. On Sundays, Mass is celebrated at 10am.
Where: Praça Pateo do Collegio, 2 – Historic Center of São Paulo
St. Benedict’s Monastery
The history of the Benedictines in São Paulo begins in 1598. Construction began in the 1600s, but it wasn’t until 1922 that the building as we know it today was completed. This is because it has been altered over the centuries to keep up with the modernization of the city.
Where: Largo de São Bento, s/n – Historic Center of São Paulo
Church and Convent of San Francisco
The Convento de São Francisco was a religious institution set up in the town of São Paulo in colonial Brazil. In the 19th century the convent was converted into the Faculty of Law, but the São Francisco Church still exists and the building is listed by CONDEPHAAT.
Where: Largo São Francisco, 133 – Sé
St. Anthony Church
The church is a state heritage site. It is also considered to be the oldest remaining church in the city (apart from the Pateo do Collegio). Its foundation, according to documents, dates back to 1592.
Where: Praça do Patriarca, 49 – Historic Center of São Paulo
Monastery of Light
The Monastery of Luz arose from a chapel built in the 16th century. Friar Galvão was the creator of what is considered to be the most important colonial architectural building of the 18th century.
Where: Avenida Tiradentes, 676 – Luz
Church of Our Lady of the Rosary of Black Men
The church was originally located in Praça Antônio Prado, where it was built between 1721 and 1722. There, blacks and slaves celebrated Catholic rites mixed with beliefs of Bantu origin. Later, at the beginning of the 20th century, the church was rebuilt in Largo do Paissandú and opened to the public in 1906.
Where: Largo Paissandú, s/n – Historic Center of São Paulo
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Basilica
According to the Archdiocese of São Paulo, the Carmelites began their foundation in São Paulo in 1594. That year, Friar Antonio de São Paulo built the small church that would become part of the Carmo complex in the following centuries. Inaugurated in 1934, the church is one of the temples of colonial Brazil.
Where: Rua Martiniano de Carvalho, 114 – Bela Vista
Sé Cathedral
The Cathedral was inaugurated on the 400th anniversary of the city’s foundation in 1954. The remains of the Jesuit priests Manuel da Nóbrega and José de Anchieta are in the cathedral crypt. The building is considered to be the fourth largest neo-Gothic temple in the world.
Where: Sé Square, s/n – Sé
