The Reformation was quick to reach Harka, from 1571, the Evangelical preachers were known by name, and the village’s inhabitants held their church services in the spirit of Luther. The church was removed in 1673, due to the Counter-Reformation. As a result of the Edict of Tolerance, an Evangelical congregation was formed in 1783 and a new church was built in 1786-87. The tower was equipped with three bells in 1886, while the church was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style. The König organ dates from 1819 and the pulpit altar from 1843. Harka’s Evangelical congregation declined due to the deportation of its German-speaking inhabitants in 1946; however, the large church inherited from their forefathers has been renovated inside and out in the last few years.
Legend has it that, in 1529, the Turks affixed their crescent flag over the church built in the second half of the 13th century. Following the Reformation, the Lutherans used the church until 1673. The Árpád-era church preserves its Romanesque and Gothic details till this day: its semi-circular apse, the lancet windows on its southern facade and its stone-framed door. The church gained a new tower in 1658. It was rebuilt in Baroque style at the end of the 18th century and was reinforced with buttresses so that its walls could support its barrel-vault.When entering through the spiked door, visitors are greeted by the contrast of the brilliant white and the deep blue of the sanctuary. The sanctuary’s main painting was created in 1893. The church’s namesake apostles, Peter and Paul, are depicted in the fresco underneath the Holy Trinity. The gospel scene carved on the Baroque pulpit depicts the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman. The two framed “Christmas” paintings (the adoration of the shepherds and the worship of the three kings) are also Baroque works. Even older works are copies of the Mariazell devotional statue of the Virgin Mary.