Parish Church of Saint Martin - Sint-Lievens-Esse

The present church was built in 1774 , replacing an older church that was demolished. The building is constructed of brick and sandstone and has a three-aisled nave of seven bays, a choir with a straight bay and a flat choir closure. On the east side is a square tower with a constricted octagonal spire and a semicircular stair tower on the north side. A small remnant of the old churchyard wall has been preserved on the north side of the church.

Although the church is dedicated to Saint Martin , a contemporary of Saint Livinus , devotion to Livinus plays an important role in the village. In the southern transept is a relic of Saint Brixius , son of Livinus, which is carried in the procession during the Livinus festivals .

The interior contains a protected organ, built in 1782 by the famous organ building family Van Peteghem .

The Stations of the Cross were painted around 1936 by Jan de Cooman . The last station (Christ on the cross) was rejected by the then clergyman because neither Mary nor John are depicted. That is why this Stations of the Cross also includes a fifteenth station.

Willem Vandenameele