[ENG] Holy Rosalía de Palermo Parish Church / [ESP] Templo Parroquial Santa Rosalía de Palermo.

_{[ENG] This tile plate is glued to the main façade of the temple, which reads the following verbatim: Holy Rosalía de Palermo Church
Parish church and spiritual heart of the town of El Hatillo. Its construction began on December 19, 1784 and was blessed on September 3, 1786, on the eve of the day of Santa Rosalía de Palermo, patron saint of the town.
Photograph property of the author Hive account@marcosmilano71 Municipality of El Hatillo, February 18, 2022
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela}

     

Yesterday I visited this Church with my wife and my great friends the War Figueroa Family who are going through a of sadness for the death of a very dear young man, a member of the Figueroa family, nephew of my friend Aída. My wife, children and I sympathize with them because they are our spiritual family, the one we decided to have.

     

Upon arriving at the Church I realized that it has a single long and narrow nave, the architectural design surprised me because most of the temples that I have visited have three naves, a central one and two lateral ones. The Santa Rosalía de Palermo Parish Church has a main entrance with two wooden doors in the colonial style with an arch in its highest part. Wooden benches are located on each side of the narrow corridor that leads to the main altar, which is at the back of the religious building. Upon entering the temple, on the right is a small chapel where I could see the tabernacle, I also saw a painting of Jesus of Divine Mercy and a beautiful stained glass window that allows light to pass through for that small prayer and devotion annex.

     

The church has two side gates; the one on the right leads to an internal patio that has some metal crosses that represent the Via Crucis of Christ, there is a small circuit with medium-sized ornamental trees, this site adjoins the parish house. The other door that is on the left side of the church leads to a small space without a roof and with a closed warehouse; I saw a small bathroom, some ornamental plants; In addition, there is a meeting room and I suppose it is also used for catechism. The spaces are fresh, clean and very pleasant, with an aged style that pays tribute to time and is in harmony with the historic center of the El Hatillo Municipality.

     

During my visit I was able to reach every corner of the temple, as well as the annexes and surroundings. I was at the High Altar where I observed another tabernacle on one of the sides. In addition, I was struck by the ceiling of the dome over the High Altar because, although it is made of wood, it is different from the rest of the ceiling of the entire Church. The Church has some stained glass windows and windows that allow the entry of natural light, it also has lights that work with electricity; although in honor of the truth, in the day and with the three doors open (central and the two lateral ones) it enters quite clearly. The main altar is simple, on its main wall you can see a wooden Christ that presides over and watches over the entire central nave of the Church, impossible not to see when entering the temple. On the sides of the Cross are two images mounted on shelves, on the right the Virgin of Coromoto, patron saint of Venezuela and on the left the patron saint of the Municipality of El Hatillo, Santa Rosalía de Palermo. Part of the church wall is halfway paneled. On the walls there are also chandeliers and religious images such as paintings and figures. The floor is polished caico tile. The Choir, its staircase and the wooden ceiling of the entire Church caught my attention.

     

The bell tower is relatively low, proportional to the structure of the small Church. This sacred temple is very beautiful and cozy, it has little capacity because it was conceived for a small town that, according to information collected, did not exceed 180 families in 1784. The construction of this Church began in 1784 and was completed two years later, in 1786.

     

At the end of this publication, I must say that the historic center of El Hatillo is a tourist site par excellence, pleasant mountain climate, with old but well-preserved houses, many of which have been transformed into commercial premises but maintaining their original facade ( restored), so the church is part of the colonial architecture that stands out around Plaza Bolívar.

      Allow me to raise a prayer to heaven for the eternal rest of the soul of my friend Aída's nephew, as well as ask God for comfort and peace for his family and friends. Amen.

     

Finally, my beloved wife and I thank you for coming this far. Receive a strong and warm spiritual hug full of blessings, positive energy and lots of light.