Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga (Church of the Infant Jesus of Prague) is a notable and historic Roman Catholic church located in the Villa Hermosa comuna in Medellín, which is worth seeing if you like old and historic churches.

Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga is dedicated to the Child Jesus of Prague and to Saint Lucia and it has many beautiful pieces of religious artwork. And it is located high up the eastern hills of Medellín.

A Colombian friend living in Villa Hermosa recommended this church to me and said it’s the most popular and most beautiful church in the Villa Hermosa comuna, which has a population of over 140,000.

The central nave inside Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

History of Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

Unfortunately, not much history of Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga is available.

The first stone of this church dedicated to the Child Jesus of Prague and to Saint Lucia was reportedly placed and blessed by Tiberio de Jesús Salazar y Herrera, Archbishop of Medellin, on August 24, 1941.

Work continued on the church until it opened in 1951. And the church was designated a parish in 1952.

The infant Jesus of Prague is considered important, as legends maintain that the image of the Holy Child of Prague once belonged to Saint Teresa of Jesus and is considered a miraculous image, especially among pregnant women.

Inside Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

Inside the church you will find a beautiful white, tan and cream color interior. And the church has wooden pews like most of the churches in Colombia. In addition, the church has three longitudinal naves.

The right-side nave in Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

The left-side nave in the church

The church has a couple of beautiful stained-glass windows.

One of the beautiful stained-glass windows

The other beautiful stained-glass window in the church

And 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 in the church

And another of the many religious artwork pieces

Several more religious artwork pieces

Also, unlike most churches in the Medellín area which have several confessionals located on both sides of the churches, Iglesia de Cristo Rey has only one confessional on the right side.

The right-side confessional in the church

The main altar in the church

A statue outside of Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

How to Get to Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga is located in the Villa Hermosa comuna in Medellín.  There is no metro station nearby, so the best way to get to the church is via a taxi. From El Centro to the church, the cost of a taxi is about 10,000 pesos. Just, give the driver the address of the church below.

And it is relatively easy to catch a taxi on the street below where the church is located to return.

Website: https://www.facebook.com/parroquianinojesusdepragamedellin/ 

Address: Carrera 29A # 58-08 – Enciso barrio in Valla Hermosa, Medellín

Phone: +57 4 284 8366

Email: bambinojesusdepraga@gmail.com

Hours: The church is normally open Monday to Friday from 9 am to noon and again later in the afternoon for mass. But we recommend calling to make sure the church is open.

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 El Niño Jesús de Praga in Villa Hermosa in Medellín

The Bottom Line: – Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga

Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga in the Villa Hermosa comuna 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 if you like 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 El Niño Jesús de Praga in this article, which is located in the Villa Hermosa comuna of Medellín.

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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