Catholic Church - The Sacred Heart of Jesus
The founder of the Catholic parish in Bitola was Jozef Lepavek who in 1857 bought the Lokanda Hotel on Shirok Sokak. A small chapel was built in the building where the first Divine Liturgy was celebrated on Easter 1857.
In 1870 a new baroque church was built on the same site, which was burned in 1900, and the present building was built in the Neo-Gothic style in 1909. The construction plan was designed by a French architect, but realized by local builders.
On Shirok Sokak, which from the beginning to the end was formed with specific houses strung in a logical view, which never exceeded the vertical as a height that belongs to the spiritual, together with the minarets of the two mosques, the bell tower of the church of St. Constantine and Helena, another vertical was built, the vertical of the Gothic secret.
The main gothic chestnut altar was built in Munich, Germany. The other two smaller altars were built in the Neo-Gothic French style. The new altar as well as the pulpit were made in 1975 from walnut wood, and were made by Gjorgji Karadzhov.
The bell tower of the church, which was a gift from the Slovenian believers, was built in the period 1938-1940.
Today, the Catholic Church continues to serve believers in the Bitola region and proudly stands as one of the main tourist attractions in Bitola.
Photo Gallery
