Minsk Church of St. Roch raising funds for renovation

26 марта 2018

By Inna Pilevich: The Minsk Church of St. Roch, also known as the Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Trinity, has announced it is raising funds for renovation. The church has a lot of cracks in its walls.

The priest of the church Yuri Sanko noticed a small crack in the walls of the shrine back in 2013. With each passing day, the cracks only grew and turned into big breaks. To determine the cause of the problem, specialists were called in and a thorough examination was conducted. It turned out that the walls were being destroyed by the roof that is too heavy for the walls to carry.

The badly designed roofing is a legacy of the Soviet times. Then, the Neo-Gothic architectural monument of the 19th century was repaired and used as a philharmonic hall. 3 years ago, the church’s clerics tried to start the renovation works. The money for the replacement of the roof was donated by believers and sponsors. But there wasn’t enough money to restore the walls. Therefore, the parish decided to seek material assistance through crowdfunding. Everyone can donate via the Internet.

All the restoration work will be carried out only after coordination with the Ministry of Culture, because the church is inscribed in the list of Belarus’ historical and cultural heritage, and therefore is under state protection.

The restoration is expected to be complete right ahead of the church’s anniversary. Next year, the shrine is 155 years, although Belarus’ Catholic community itself is much older. It was founded by Władysław II Jagiełło in the 14th century.

At the moment, 18% of the required amount has been raised. Every week, a service and prayers are held in the church for those who donated funds for the salvation of the shrine.

The church bears the name not only of the Holy Trinity, but also of St. Roch. It is he who is considered the patron saint of Minsk - he saved the city from the cholera epidemic.