Saint Paul Church (), alternatively known as the ''Bebekli Kilise'', is a

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

. The church was built by the

Jesuit Order The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 by ...

in 1870, and served the

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

and European Catholic communities. The church was handed over to the

Apostolic Vicariate of Anatolia The Apostolic Vicariate of Anatolia (, ) is a Roman Catholic Latin apostolic vicariate in the eastern half of Anatolia (Asian Turkey). The missionary pre-diocesan jurisdiction is not part of any ecclesiastical province. It is under the directi ...

with the foundation of the

Republic of Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. St. Paul Church is located close to the 5 Ocak Square, off the Cemal Gürsel Street. The 2.5 meter high bronze statue of Mary resembled a baby to the people walking by and the church became known as the "Church with Baby" (Bebekli Kilise).
" Adana Catholic Church. Retrieved on 28 September 2015. The building just east of to the church was the Jesuits, Jesuit St.Jeanne d'Arc High School which had opened in 1870s and served until it was burned at the Massacre of 1909 against the

population. The Jesuit church and the school was built by the French Jesuits as a complex, therefore the language of both was French. The school was demolished after the burning and the site is now used as a parking lot. Behind the church and the Jesuit school, a Protestant school for Girls was built by American missionaries. The girls' school was restored and now serves as Tepebağ High School. File:Adana Saint Paul Catholic Church.jpg, Church front File:Adana Saint Paul Church 3040.jpg, Church Apse and more interior File:Adana Saint Paul Church 3042.jpg, Church Altar File:Adana Saint Paul Church 3051.jpg, Adana Nativity scene

References

See also