The Church of St. Simon and Jude will be owned by FOK

Prague – The Church of St. Simon and Jude in the Old Town will be owned by the Symphony Orchestra of the Capital City of Prague FOK, which will take care of it. The city will include it in its founding charter. This was announced to journalists today by councilor Jan Chabr (TOP 09). The city purchased the church from the Czech-Moravian province of the Hospitaller Order of St. John of God - Brothers of Mercy. The municipality paid 99.99 million crowns for the heritage site. The church now serves as a concert venue for FOK.

The change to FOK's founding charter, which will include the church in its assets, must still be approved by Prague city councilors at their next meeting. According to Chabr, the orchestra will manage the church starting from the beginning of this April. Currently, there is no need to invest in the building. "We bought the church in good condition; it is not a ruin, and we do not have to spend any financial resources," said Chabr. The city reportedly wanted to prevent the church from facing a fate similar to that of St. Michael's Church, which in the past was a club or a brothel.

Prague city councilors decided to purchase the church last July. The original price was 125 million crowns. The city managed to negotiate a discount. The municipality paid an annual rent of 800,000 crowns. If Prague wants to dispose of the church in the future, the church order will have the right of first refusal.

The church dedicated to St. Simon the Zealot and the apostle Jude was built in the 17th century on the site of a Gothic church. The Baroque monument was part of the Brothers of Mercy hospital.