The parish church of Sainte-Agathe/Sint-Agatha, part of the Catholic community of Berchem-Sainte-Agathe/Sint-Agatha-Berchem, replaced the former Berchem church, which had fallen into disuse. The parish gave its name to the village of Berchem-Sainte-Agathe/Sint-Agatha-Berchem, now one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region.
The church was built in two phases, with the main part constructed between 1936 and 1938 by an architect named Schepers, before being interrupted by the war. Owing to a lack of funds, the front façade had been temporarily built in brick. The second phase of work by architect Marc Vande Perre took place between 1980 and 1982, to complete the façade. The church retains a conservative feel in its neo-Romanesque forms. It features the large-scale use of Belgian stone: coloured sandstone rubble enhanced with blue limestone for the exterior, sandstone and red and black marble for the interior. Various sculptures and paintings from the previous church can be found inside.