The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (Biserica Înălțarea Sfintei Cruci) is an 18th-century Roman Catholic church in central Miercurea Ciuc. Built between 1751 and 1758 in the Baroque style, it is the oldest surviving church in the city and stands beside the modern Millennium Church.
Construction began in 1751, when Miercurea Ciuc became a separate Catholic parish, and the church was completed seven years later. In 1771, a chapel dedicated to Saint John of Nepomuk was added on the northern side, financed and furnished through donations from local residents. Bishop Ignác Batthyány consecrated the church and chapel in 1784. The church originally stood within a walled enclosure in the historic town center, where it survived the fires and destruction that affected surrounding buildings during the First World War. It was looted again in 1944 and suffered a serious fire in 1979, when the sacristy was destroyed and the interior damaged. A major restoration followed between 2006 and 2008.
The church has a relatively simple exterior with a bell tower above the entrance, while its interior preserves an elaborate Baroque high altar created by sculptor Antal Schuchbauer. The altarpiece combines a crucifix, a relief of Golgotha, and painted architectural elements, with figures of the Virgin Mary and Saint John beside Christ. Above them is a representation of the Last Supper surrounded by angels. The wooden pulpit is decorated with paintings of Christ and the four Evangelists, and a carved pelican feeding its young crowns the structure. Other furnishings include statues of the Virgin Mary and the Sacred Heart of Jesus, while the organ was built in 1902 by Sándor Klink.
As Miercurea Ciuc expanded during the 19th and 20th centuries, the church became too small for its congregation. Plans for a larger building eventually led to the construction of the neighboring Millennium Church between 2001 and 2003, allowing the historic Baroque church to be preserved alongside a new place of worship.
