The Beauty of a Gothic Church in Panama
(epiac1216.wordpress.com) Panama is predominantly a Roman Catholic country. It is estimated that 75 to 85 percentof the population identifies itself as Roman Catholic and 15 to 25 percent as evangelical Christian. The Roman Catholic religion came from Spain, which was the superpower of the XVIth century which colonized the country and the rest of Central and South America with the exception of Brazil. Brazil was colonized by Portugal.
Panama has a rich Spanish religious architecture. I will do my best to bring these architectural treasures to Lingua Franca for your enjoyment in the near future. Today, I will take you by the hand and visit the most beautiful and most visited church in Panama by international tourists. It is often confused with the Metropolitan cathedral which is another impressive building.
The name of this church is Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen (Church of our Lady of Mount Caramel). It is located in the heart of Panama City, and considered by many as one of the most treasured religious icons in Panama inspired by medieval Gothic architecture. As its name indicates, the church is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Mount Caramel (or Carmen). This church is the only Gothic architectural style building in the country.
This structure was built by the congregation of the Carmelites which have been in Panama since 1940. The first stone was placed on July 7, 1947 and the church was inaugurated on July 16, 1953, even though the termination of the building was two years later when the two imposing towers were finished.
La Iglesia del Carmen is an imitation of the Gothic architectural style which flourished during the Middle Ages, and is perhaps the most beautiful architecture style conceived for sacred art.
The structure includes two slender and elaborated towers which stretches upwards towards the sky with the purpose of elevating to heavens the prayers of the people. It symbolizes the extended hands of a man in an effort to embrace God. According to architecht Alberto Arosemena, the Iglesia del Carmen was inspired on the gothic style of the late XIV century representative of Toledo, Spain.
Last week, while waiting outside Profuturo to pick up a check, I took several pictures of this architectural treasure of Panama.
