Iglesia de Cristo Rey: A Beautiful Church in Guayabal in Medellín

Iglesia de Cristo Rey (Christ the King Church) is a notable and historic Roman Catholic church located in the Guayabal comuna in Medellín, which is worth seeing if you like old and historic churches.

In addition, Iglesia de Cristo Rey has many beautiful stained-glass windows. Furthermore, the church has many pieces of religious artwork.

The central nave inside Iglesia de Cristo Rey

History of Iglesia de Cristo Rey

Unfortunately, not many details of the history of Iglesia de Cristo Rey are available. The church was built over a period of several years and originally opened in 1951. So, it has been used as a Roman Catholic church for 67 years.

The bell tower of Iglesia de Cristo Rey is reportedly one of the oldest in Medellín and can be seen in the following video (in Spanish):

The traditional bells in the tower are made of bronze, iron and cast copper. And the bells ring at regular hours during the day.

Inside Iglesia de Cristo Rey

Inside the church you will find a beautiful white interior with some gold trim. And the church has wooden pews like most churches in Colombia. Also, the church has three longitudinal naves.

The left-side nave in the church

The right-side nave in Iglesia de Cristo Rey

The church has a many large and beautiful stained-glass windows, which are some of most beautiful stained-glass windows I have seen in the churches in Medellín.

Stained-glass window in Iglesia de Cristo Rey

Another stained-glass window in the church

And another stained-glass window in the church

Another of the many stained-glass windows

In addition, there are many pieces of religious artwork to be found throughout this church.

One of the many religious artwork pieces in the church

Another religious artwork piece

Another religious artwork piece

And another of the many religious artwork pieces

Also, like many other churches in the area, Iglesia de Cristo Rey has confessionals on both the right and left sides.

One of the confessionals in the church

How to Get to Iglesia de Cristo Rey

Iglesia de Cristo Rey is located in the Cristo Rey barrio of the Guayabal comuna in Medellín. One way to get to Iglesia de Cristo Rey is by using the Medellín Metro. To get there you would take Line A of the metro to the Poblado metro station.

After arriving at the Poblado metro station, exit the station to the left. And there is usually a line of taxis. Plus it’s about a minimum fare taxi (5,500 pesos) ride from the station to Parque Cristo Rey where Iglesia de Cristo Rey is located.

An alternate way to get to the church is via a taxi from your location. Most taxi drivers know where Parque Cristo Rey in Guayabal is located. If not, give the driver the address of the church below.

And it is relatively easy to catch a taxi at Parque Cristo Rey to return.

Address: Carrera 53 #1Sur-11, Guayabal, Medellín

Phone: +57 4 255 1639

Email: cristorey@arqmedellin.co

Hours: No mass hours are posted in the church but I’m aware they have mass at noon on Sunday. So, we recommend calling before going to make sure it will be open.

Parque Cristo Rey

Guayabal and Parque Cristo Rey

Guayabel is one of the 16 comunas in Medellín. It is located with Belén to the north and west, the Medellín river to the east and Itagüí to the south. Guayabel is a working-class neighborhood with a population of over 70,000. In addition, over 80 percent of the homes in Guayabel are estrato 3 or 4.

I have met a couple of foreigners living in Guayabel. And they told me it is similar to Belén but not as developed.

Iglesia Cristo Ray is located in the Cristo Ray barrio in the Guayabel comuna. The church is located next to a park that is named Parque Cristo Rey.

Another view of Parque Cristo Rey

Parque Cristo Rey is a one square block plaza that is has several trees for shade. And the park is surrounded by Iglesia Cristo Ray on one side and several small restaurants, bars and shops on the other sides of the park.

Furthermore, Parque Cristo Rey is considered by locals to be a convenient place in meet up with friends. And you will typically see many retired people as well as some families with kids in this park during the day.

The Beautiful Churches in Medellín and the Aburrá Valley

In the metropolitan Medellín metro area (Aburrá Valley), there are over 300 Roman Catholic churches. Most notably, there is a complete list of all the churches of the Archdiocese of Medellín.

We have looked at a total of 33 beautiful churches in the Medellín metro area and the Aburrá Valley in a series on this website. And 22 of the churches we have looked at in detail are in Medellín:

1. Catedral Basílica Metropolitana – the main church of the Archdiocese of Medellín and the largest church in the city.
2. Iglesia de La Candelaria – the oldest church in Medellín, which is also a National Monument of Colombia.
3. Iglesia San Antonio and Plaza San Antonio – the church with the largest dome in Medellín located next to Plaza San Antonio with four Fernando Botero sculptures.
4. Iglesia Jesús Nazareno – another of the most beautiful churches in Medellín.
5. Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro – a beautiful Gothic-style church in Medellín.
6. Iglesia del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús – a neo-Gothic-style church located in Barrio Triste in Medellín.
7. Iglesia de San José – a Boroque-style church located in El Centro, Medellín.
8. Iglesia del Señor de las Misericordias – a neo-Gothic-style church located in the Manrique neighborhood of Medellín.
9. Iglesia San José – a Romanesque-style church located next to Parque Poblado in El Poblado.
10. Iglesia de la Veracruz – a colonial church with a history that goes back to 1682, which makes it one of the oldest churches in Medellín.
11. Iglesia de San Ignacio – a beautiful church in El Centro with a Baroque-style exterior and colonial interior.
12. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora – a Roman-style church located next to Parque Belén in Medellín.
13. Iglesia el Calvario – a Romanesque-style church in the Aranjuez comuna in Medellín.
14. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Sufragio – a neo-Romanesque-style church in the Boston barrio in Medellín.
15. Iglesia de San Benito – a neo-Romanesque-style church with a history that traces back to 1678, which make it one of the oldest churches in Medellín.
16. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores – a Neo-Byzantine-style church in the La América comuna in Medellín.
17. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Sagrado Corazón – a beautiful Neo-Gothic-style church in the Buenos Aires comuna in Medellín.
18. Iglesia de Cristo Rey – a beautiful church in the Guayabal comuna of Medellín with many beautiful stained-glass windows.
19. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores – a beautiful Neoclassical-style church in the Robledo comuna of Medellín, which is also a National Monument of Colombia.
20. Iglesia del Cementerio San Pedro – a beautiful church built in 1929 that has some of the most beautiful stained-glass windows found in the churches in Medellín.
21. Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga – a beautiful church in the Villa Hermosa comuna in Medellín.
22. Iglesia San Joaquín – a beautiful church in the Laureles-Estadio comuna in Medellín that is reportedly the second largest church in Medellín.

Also, we have looked at the principal church in each of the other nine municipalities in the Aburrá Valley:

1. Iglesia de Santa Gertrudis – a beautiful church in Envigado located next to Parque Envigado.
2. Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Rosario – a church located in Bello that is arguably the most beautiful church in the Aburrá Valley
3. Iglesia de Santa Ana – a very popular church in Sabaneta located next to Parque Sabaneta.
4. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario – a historic church in Itagüí near Medellín with a history that traces back to 1743.
5. Nuestra Señora Chiquinquirá – a beautiful church in La Estrella with a Neo-Gothic-style.
6. Catedral Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes – a Neoclassical-style church with a history that traces back to 1793 and is located in the Caldas municipality south of Medellín.
7. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción – a Baroque-style church with a history that traces back to 1715 and is located in the Copacabana municipality north of Medellín.
8. Catedral de Nuestra Señora del Rosario – a Neo-Romanesque-style church located in the Girardota municipality northeast of Medellín.
9. Iglesia de San Antonio de Padua – a Neo-Romanesque-style church located in the Barbosa municipality northeast of Medellín.

Also, we looked at two smaller colonial-style churches while looking in detail at two nearby larger churches:

1. Hato Viejo Chapel – a colonial-style church in Bello built between 1772 and 1796. It’s also a National Monument of Colombia. We looked at Hato Viejo Chapel while covering Nuestra Señora del Rosario.
2. Capilla de María Auxiliadora – a colonial-style church in Barbosa built between 1773 and 1776. We looked at Capilla de María Auxiliadora while covering Iglesia de San Antonio de Padua.

In addition, we looked at Las Lajas Sanctuary located in Ipiales, Colombia, which is considered the most beautiful church in Colombia. Also, it’s considered by many to be one of the most beautiful churches in the world.

Iglesia de Cristo Rey in Guayabal

The Bottom Line: Iglesia de Cristo Rey

Iglesia de Cristo Rey is not found in any of the 10 English language Colombia travel guidebooks that I have. But it’s worth stopping to see this notable Roman Catholic church, particularly if you like stained-glass windows and old and historic churches.

Several of the most notable and beautiful churches in the Medellín area are located in El Centro in Medellín. But we have also been looking at notable and beautiful churches in other neighborhoods in Medellín like Iglesia de Cristo Rey in this article, which is located in the Guayabal comuna of Medellín and is across the river from El Poblado.

Seems like, in my experience, that most of the travel guidebooks in English about Colombia are missing many of the best places in the cities and pueblos in Colombia.

Consequently, we have covered the beautiful churches in the Medellín metro area in a comprehensive series on this website. Most noteworthy, we did this since a majority of the beautiful and notable churches in the city are missing from the English-language travel guidebooks about Colombia.

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