Church of Santiago Apóstol

The colonial church in the main plaza of Santiago Atitlán dates from the early Spanish colonial period and has been modified many times since, but remains an impressive structure with a wide whitewashed facade overlooking the main square. The interior is notable for the mix of Catholic and Maya iconography — wooden saints are dressed in traditional Tz'utujil textiles, and the carved wooden pulpit features pre-Columbian motifs alongside Christian imagery.

The church is best visited during Sunday Mass when the pews fill with Tz'utujil women in their distinctive red-and-white striped clothing. The square outside is one of the better spots in town to sit and watch daily life. A memorial in the sacristy commemorates Father Stanley Rother, the American priest assassinated here in 1990 and subsequently beatified.

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A story
In 1990, during the height of Guatemala's civil war, the parish priest Father Stanley Rother — an American from Oklahoma — was assassinated in the sacristy by a military death squad. He had refused to abandon his congregation despite repeated death threats. In 2017, Pope Francis beatified him, making him the first American-born martyr to be beatified. A plaque and small shrine in the church mark the spot where he died.