St. Peter and Paul Church

This beautiful, harmonious Baroque church was originally dedicated by the Jesuits to Saint Ignatius and Saint Francis Xavier. After the abolition of the Jesuit order, the parish of Saint Peter and Paul asks if it can make it its parish church, because its own church is very dilapidated. The transfer takes place and the official name of the church has since been 'Saint Peter and Saint Paul on Visitation to Saints Saint Ignatius and Saint Francis Xavier'. In short, you speak of Sint-Petrus-en-Pauluskerk or – in Dutch – Sint-Pieter-en-Paulkerk.The interior is richly decorated. The pulpit symbolizes the mission of Saint Francis Xavier in the four continents. At that time (end of the sixteenth century), Oceania was not yet named the fifth continent. See how Europe is pictured, with the cornucopia and the wisdom in the book. The fourteen built-in confessionals are a fine example of Mechelen woodcarving. According to legend, the church had so many confessionals because it was close to the Veemarkt and there was a lot of lying and cheating when selling cattle. The real reason? The Sint-Pieter-en-Paulkerk was originally a pilgrimage church and there were many relics to be found. If you wanted to touch it, you had to be free from sin. Hence the large number of confessionals.Source: visit.mechelen.be/nl/sint-pieter-en-paulkerk

It's worth it.