Saint Ignatius Church, church in Tokyo, Japan
Saint Ignatius Church, also called Kojimachi Catholic Church, stands beside Yotsuya Station next to Sophia University. Its present form, completed in 1999, joins a low curved brick-clad hall with a taller tan block pierced by small square windows and vertical openings. A slender grey spire topped by a cross rises from the block; the design was by Jesuit Ignacio Gropper.
The first church on this site, Kōjimachi St. Teresa Church, was blessed in 1936 and burned down in the Tokyo air raid of 25 May 1945. The present church was designed by Jesuit Ignacio Gropper, begun on 2 December 1947 and consecrated on 17 April 1949. It was named after Gropper and Ignatius of Loyola, and rebuilt between 1995 and 1999.
The church stands directly in front of Yotsuya Station, served by the JR Chuo and Sobu lines and the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi and Namboku lines. It adjoins Sophia University, and the campus has its own separate chapel, so visitors looking for the parish church should head for the main building by the intersection. Sunday afternoons draw congregations from several language groups.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,466 contributors worldwide.
