Toluca Cathedral, formally Cathedral of Saint Joseph of Nazareth () is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

in the city of

Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the States of Mexico, state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. Toluca has a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the Grea ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, named after

Saint Joseph According to the canonical Gospels, Joseph (; ) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. Joseph is venerated as Saint Joseph in the Catholic Church, Eastern O ...

. The cathedral's construction began in 1867, but was completed only in the second half of the twentieth century. The Neoclassical facade features the images of Saint John, Saint Thomas,

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

and Saint James. There is also a relief depicting the

Ascension of Jesus The Ascension of Jesus (anglicized from the Vulgate ) is the Christianity, Christian and Islamic belief that Jesus entering heaven alive, ascended to Heaven. Christian doctrine, as reflected in the major Christian creeds and confessional stateme ...

. Above the clock there are three female figures representing faith, charity and hope.

History

For the construction of the cathedral the Rosario Chapel and the Chapel of San Joseph were demolished. These buildings were located on the large plot belonging to the old

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

convent of Our Lady of the Assumption.

References

{{Coord, 19.2916, -99.6572, type:landmark_region:MX, display=title Buildings and structures in the State of Mexico Religion in the State of Mexico Roman Catholic cathedrals in Mexico Toluca 1867 establishments in Mexico Roman Catholic churches completed in 1978 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Mexico Neoclassical architecture in the State of Mexico Cultural heritage of the State of Mexico