St. Monica Parish - St. Mary of the Angels Chapel

The Santa Monica parish has as its main temple the St. Mary of the Angels Chapel, originally the vicarage of the parish Church of Our Lady of the Angels - La Porciúncula. 

It was built in 1910 and founded as a parish in 1954; since then, it has been administered by the Augustinian Fathers (O.S.A.).  In its early days, it was just a chapel in the “El Nogal” area, an exclusive sector of the capital. In the early 20th century, it belonged to a renowned lay artist, Margarita Holguín y Caro, who bought the land and built this chapel, copying a small church she had seen in a small village in Normandy, France. 

Its baroque design and history reflect Colombia's cultural richness during the colonial era. Inside, the parish has a place called the Refugio de los Santos (Refuge of the Saints), where there are religious works of art with various images of some saints of the Catholic Church, such as St. Joseph, St. Laura Montoya, the Virgin Mary in different invocations, St. Monica, St. Rita of Cascia, St. Carlo Acutis, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, among others.

Besides its religious importance, the temple has been the scene of historical and cultural events that have marked the city's life. It is a place of pilgrimage and devotion for the faithful and visitors.