Iglesia Matriz de las Hermanas de la Providencia, Catholic church in Providencia, Chile.
The Iglesia Matriz de las Hermanas de la Providencia was a Catholic church in Providencia, Santiago, belonging to the Sisters of Providence of Montreal. Beside the temple stood the congregation's mother house, a museum and the Nuestra Señora de los Dolores home for elderly sisters, all lost in the 24 January 2011 fire. In the entrance garden stands a statue of Mother Bernarda Morin, foundress of the congregation in Chile, with children; her remains lay under a marble slab at the centre of the temple, which the fire did not destroy.
The Chilean government donated the land for the church, which was founded on 27 April 1890 in the presence of President José Manuel Balmaceda, his ministers and Archbishop Mariano Casanova. In 1993 the architect Amaya Irarrázaval remodelled and restored the temple. A fire on 24 January 2011 destroyed practically the entire church, and the rescue of the remains for a possible reconstruction is still being evaluated.
The church shaped the neighborhood so significantly that the adjacent avenue and the entire district took its name. It remains a central landmark for residents and visitors navigating the area.
The church stood in the Providencia district of Santiago, at the site next to the congregation's mother house, museum and Nuestra Señora de los Dolores home for elderly sisters, all destroyed by the 24 January 2011 fire. The ruins are not open as a visitable church; whether the remains can be salvaged for reconstruction is still being assessed. Check locally before travelling to the site.
The 2011 fire spared the marble slab in the centre of the temple, which covers the remains of Mother Bernarda Morin, founder of the congregation in Chile. In the entrance garden stands a statue of her with children, and a niche under the main door holds an image of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
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