Saint Eugenia's Church is a

Roman Catholic church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the center of

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

(Sweden). It was built in 1982 on plans of the Danish architect Jørgen Kjaergaard and is situated next to the former Royal Gardens, Kungsträdgården in Norrmalm. The Church is consecrated to Saint Eugenia ( Eugénie d’Alsace), an

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa''), also known as a mother superior, is the female superior of a community of Catholic nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic ...

(700-735) of the

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

Mont Sainte-Odile , photo = Ottrott Mont Sainte-Odile.JPG , photo_caption = Mont Sainte-Odile and the Monastery , elevation_m = 764 , elevation_ref = Official maps of IGN available on the ''Géoportail''. , prominence_m = , prominence_ref= , range = Vos ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

(France). St. Eugenia's Parish was established in 1837 and is the oldest Catholic

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

in Sweden since the

reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

; as of 2010 it has approximately 9,000 members. Services are held in Swedish, English, Polish and Arabic. The operation of the church and pastoral care of the parish is overseen by

Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

History

In 1783, when king Gustav III gave foreign Catholics religious freedom in Sweden, a provisional chapel was established in the City Hall, then located on

Södermalm Södermalm, often shortened to just Söder, is a district and island in central Stockholm. Overview The district covers the large island of the same name (formerly called ''Åsön''). Although Södermalm usually is considered an island, wat ...

where the Stockholm City Museum is now located, close to present day Slussen. From there, the small parish was able to move into a church of its own in 1837. This second building, located on Norra Smedjegatan in the Norrmalm quarter, was the first Catholic church established after the Reformation. When in 1860

religious freedom Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

was officially introduced for all citizens, the

Jesuit order , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

established a first community in Sweden and was put in charge of St. Eugenia's pastoral services. In the 1950s, the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...

decided to remodel Stockholm's inner city. The church thus was demolished and the parish had to manage with several provisional accommodations. In 1962 the municipality offered the property at Kungsträdgården 12, its present location, to the parish.

Architecture

Today's church,

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

in 1982, is integrated in an historic palace and courtyard erected in 1887. Since the religious building itself is hidden completely behind the

neo-renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...

façade of the former dwelling house, it is hardly visible as a church from outside. Just a small, gilded

cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...

above the principal entry gives the impression that there is a church inside. The building's interior is soberly designed in red brick. Several objects in the interior have been in use since the old church at Norra Smedjegatan, such as the water fonts and the neo-baroque

baptismal Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation and Adoption ...

font of porphyry from Älvdal, a gift from King Carl XIV Johan and Queen Désirée Clary in 1838. The tabernacle of Carraran marble was a gift to the old church from the Austrian Archduke Maximilian d'Este in 1842. Planted in the sanctuary floor, the monumental cross is carved of wood from the roof-beams of the predecessor church; it bears a figure of Christ from Dalecarlia dating back to the 13th century. The foundation stone, a gift from

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

., is a

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

block from the foundation of

Saint Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

in Rome. Separated by an adorned grille from the main liturgic space, a

St. Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

's Chapel is kept open during the daytime for private visits.

Bibliography

* Hornung, Peter: ''S:ta Eugenia katolska kyrka.'' Stockholm 1998. * Lind, Manne: ''Norra Smedjegatan: De sista åren.'' Stockholm 1970. * Wehner, Richard (ed.): ''S:ta Eugenia Kyrka 1837-1937. Bidrag till Stockholms Katolska församlings historia.'' Uppsala 1937. * Werner, Yvonne Maria: ''Världsvid men främmande: den katolska kyrkan i Sverige 1873-1929.'' Uppsala 1996.

External links

Saint Eugenia's Parish (Swedish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Eugenia's Church, Stockholm Jesuit churches Roman Catholic churches in Sweden Churches in Stockholm Religious organizations established in 1837 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1982 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings

History

Architecture

See also

Bibliography

External links