The Heralds of the Gospel in El Salvador are building, on the outskirts of San Salvador, one of the largest religious complexes in the country: a Spirituality Center in honor of Our Lady of Fatima, located at kilometer 8 of Boulevard Constitución, in the jurisdiction of Apopa, north of the metropolitan area.
The project, driven under the campaign “Let’s Build with FAITH”, seeks to offer a Marian sanctuary, a space for Eucharistic adoration, and a set of educational works for youth and families. The work is progressing steadily, although it is still far from completion, the Heralds maintain a public fundraising campaign to finish it.
A Marian project of national and regional scope
The Spirituality Center is being built on a plot of about 11 blocks donated by the Borja family, in an area near the Integración roundabout. As explained by Gerardo Borja to the Salvadoran press, the idea of dedicating those lands to Our Lady of Fatima was originally his father’s, Guillermo Borja Nathan, who passed away some years ago and desired a major Marian work for the country.
In 2017, during the laying and blessing of the first stone, in a Mass presided over by Fr. Edgardo Reyes—representing the Archbishop of San Salvador, José Luis Escobar Alas—the project was presented as a future pilgrimage center, “like Esquipulas, a center of faith, a gateway of faith for Central America.” The work has been declared of “social interest” by the municipal council of Apopa, as reported by the local press.
The Heralds of the Gospel, present in El Salvador since the late 1990s, frame this construction within their mission of evangelization and youth formation, highlighting that the project arises in the context of the centenary of the Fatima apparitions, with the desire to offer a “refuge of peace” to Salvadoran families.
A polychrome Gothic temple and a 2,700 m² complex
The heart of the project is a large church in honor of Our Lady of Fatima, in polychrome Gothic style. The gray work of the temple reached about 70% completion in 2022, according to the Salvadoran press, and work is now underway on the finishing phase, which includes hand-painted artwork, stained glass, and interior decoration.
The complex will occupy around 2,700 m² of construction between the temple and the surrounding buildings. Inside, the church will have capacity for about 850 people and will feature a chapel of the Most Blessed Sacrament, side chapels, baptistery, sacristy, four confessionals, and an elevated area for the choir. The exterior plaza and auxiliary spaces are designed to accommodate up to 13,000 people in large celebrations.
The main tower will reach 70 meters in height once completed, and the interior design follows a very colorful Gothic style, different from the sober European style, with an abundance of polychromy on ceilings, walls, and stained glass windows.
Training center, vocational school, and museum of sacred art
The project is not limited to the temple. According to official information from the Heralds and several Salvadoran media outlets, the complex will include a training center for youth and families, a vocational school, a museum of sacred art, and auditoriums for meetings and religious events.
The congregation presents the complex as an instrument to strengthen formation in values, support the reconstruction of the social fabric, and offer a Catholic response to the country’s moral and violence crisis. The center is intended to serve not only Apopa, but also the faithful of San Salvador, Mexicanos, Nejapa, and the entire El Ángel Valley region, with the idea of becoming, in the medium term, a reference Marian pilgrimage site in Central America.