15 Sovetskaya Street, Minsk, Belarus
Daily: 9.00am - 9.00pm
Church of Saints Simon and Helena, which is also affectionately known as Red Church, is a Roman Catholic church located at Independence Square. It was constructed between 1905 and 1910 by the order of a prominent businessman and civic activitist named Edward Woynillowicz.
As can be seen in the photo above, it was unfortunate that my BFF and I were there when the exterior of the church was being renovated.
Standing outside the church is the so-called Nagasaki Bell, a replica of the one at Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki, Japan before it was destroyed by the atomic bomb on 9 August 1945.
Another object of interest is a bronze statue of Archangel Michael slaying the Devil, which is represented as a dragon.
The church was named and consecrated in memory of Woynillowicz's two children who died prematurely.
 |
| Anybody knows what monument is that? It's dated 26 May 1942. |
 |
| The tallest tower represents the parents, while the two smaller ones represents the two children. |
 |
| Nothing I could understand... |
Thankfully, the church wasn't closed. Let's take a look inside.
 |
| That's the bust of the man who funded the building of the church. |
 |
| The purple cloth looks simple, yet elegant, right? |
When Belarus fell under the sovereignty of the Soviet Union, the church was closed and used as a cinema.
Comments
Post a Comment