Capilla del Santo Cristo de la Salud — Attraction in San Juan

Capilla del Santo Cristo de la Salud. Chapel of Holy Christ of Health.

This information below was used from a Google search I did for this Chapel.

As the story goes, during the San Juan Bautista celebrations of 1753 a rider, Baltazar Montanez, lost control of his horse and plunged to the cliffs below. The Spanish Secretary of Government Don Mateo Pratts was watching the drama unfold from a nearby balcony, and allegedly cried out, “Christ of Good Health, save him!” Though the horse didn’t survive the fall, the young rider did.

Tucked away in the corner of the old walled city of San Juan is a tiny chapel, one of the most beautiful and secluded monuments in the old capital. It was built on top of the ancient stone walls that protected Puerto Rico's capital in 1753 to celebrate a miracle. Since then, tens of thousands of faithful visitors have come to this humble chapel to pray for cures.

That same year, Montanez built the small chapel on the exact spot where he fell over the cliff. The altar was built in shining silver and gold leaf, surrounded by beautiful oil paintings by the famous Puerto Rican artist Jose Campeche. Much of the modestly sized but immaculately appointed chapel hasn’t changed since then. But  over the decades it has been slowly added to by believers who come to the chapel seeking their own miracles. Tiny silver ornaments decorate the chapel, each one representing some ailing part of the body. These small milagros, or miracles, represent a cause of pain for the pilgrims, and take the form of miniature silver legs, arms, hearts, and lungs. Today the church is reverentially cared for by a group of local women, volunteers called “La Hermandad del Santo Cristo de la Salud” (The Sisterhood of the Holy Christ of Health). It is only open on Tuesdays and religious days.

This location is right next to the park of El Parque Las Palomas. They are side by side, can't miss this spot. You also have La Casa Estrecha which is located right on the opposite side...

I went there this afternoon. The pigeons (las Palomas) have been exterminated by the current Mayor of San Juan in order to rent out the park to a young woman who now runs a cheap coffee shop. The woman was there locking the entrance to the park as if it were hers and did not belong to the people of Puerto Rico and argued with me that the Park belonged to the Municipality and not to the people of Puerto Rico. It is a disgrace that greed and corruption of historical values rule today in the city of my ancestors. In addition the woman and the municipality have posted signs in English- not in Spanish, declaring that the gorgeous freedom loving birds were pests and a threat to health. All this to justify the viability of another cheap business that only benefits the young woman and other cronies of the current party tuning the municipality of San Juan. It is outrageous and has to be published for the world to know why the park is no longer the Parque de Las Palomas but the park of rateros. No more fluttering of wings. Just...

This chapel was built between 1753 and 1780, Tucked away in the corner of the old walled city of San Juan is a tiny chapel. It was built on top of the ancient stone walls that protected Puerto Rico’s capital in 1753 to celebrate a miracle. Since then, tens of thousands of faithful visitors have come to this humble chapel to pray for cures. it is near to famous La Fortaleza street.

As stated by guide - It is said, that in the year 1750 Cristo Street was host to a horse race where one of the participants could not stop his horse and fell off the cliff. The Secretary of Government at the time, Don Tomás Mateo Prats is said to have invoked the Santo Cristo de la Salud and that the young man who fell off the cliff was saved. And so, the Secretary of Government ordered the construction of the chapel on sight to honor the miracle. It was later revealed that the young man died, but still, this chapel has a distinctly spiritual feel to it. How to better start your journey than in this...