The Church of St. Joseph was supposed to be built in 1918 on Terezija Street, but construction came to a halt at the end of the First World War. It was decided in 1933 that the church should be built in Marijin Dvor.

In 1935, Archbishop Dr. Ivan Šarić received a project from the Vatican for a church that was supposed to be built on the outskirts of Rome. He then entrusted Karl Paržik to work on the design to make it suitable for Sarajevo.

The foundation stone for this basilica, with three aisles, two oratories and two sacristies, was laid in 1936, as overseen by Karl Paržik’s son, Marijan, who was a construction engineer.

The church was consecrated on March 31, 1940 and, to this day, it works as a parish church whose patron saint is St. Joseph.

The underground level of the church contains a crypt that was designed to hold the tombs of 15 bishops. The remains of Archbishop Ivan Šarić were brought from Madrid in 1997 and placed in the church.

The church was damaged during the Siege of Sarajevo in the 1990s, it was renovated in 2002, and has been on the list of National Monuments of BiH since 2008.