HERITAGE OF BELARUS: Holy Trinity Church in Gervyaty
The village of Gervyaty, located in Ostrovets District, Grodno Oblast, is known far beyond Belarus. It attracts thousands of tourists thanks to its architectural gem - a magnificent neo-Gothic Holy Trinity Church. Rebuilt in 1903, it is among the country’s top three tallest churches (61m) along with the famous Catholic churches in Budslau (62m) and Vidzy (59m). For its beauty and grandeur, it is called the Belarusian Notre Dame.
The village of Gervyaty was first mentioned in written sources in 1434. The church owes its history to Bishop Jan of Vilna, who founded a Catholic parish and established a wooden church here in 1526. In this form, the building survived until the end of the 19th century.
In 1896, young abbot Wladislaw Olszewski decided to replace the wooden church with a stone one. Money for the construction was raised by parishioners. Among the biggest donors was the Domeyko family, the owners of Gervyaty. Chief architect of Vilna Province Aleksei Polozov designed the building by 1898 and the construction was launched in May 1899 under the supervision of Vilna architect Vaclav Mikhnevich.
Yet, in 1900, the design was altered at the request of the flock as they wanted to make the church more elegant and majestic, with walls of bright red brick produced locally. The design was improved by the abbot himself and his brother, engineer Ignatius Olszewski, and artist Antony Kalinovsky.
The construction lasted from 1899 to 1903. Every day about 70 people worked on the construction site. Peasants from all over the area donated chicken eggs that were added to the lime mortar to strengthen the setting. The rest of the materials and tiles were brought from Germany. Interesting enough, the architects even had to change the riverbed of the local Losha River to prevent its groundwaters from eroding the foundation.
Despite a number of obstacles, the construction workers did not deviate from the original plan and accomplished the project in accordance with the traditions of the medieval Gothic style. Arc-boutants, graceful arches, airy fabrics, forged metal details, lancet windows in niches, stained glass windows, wooden statues and carved crosses - everything was amazingly harmonious.
Despite the seeming simplicity of the interior decoration, the temple had one remarkable feature - three wooden altars made of oak: the main one depicts Jesus Christ, Saints Paul and Peter, the side one - Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn. There are also wooden sculptures of two criminal bandits (2.3 meters high) that were crucified alongside Jesus Christ. Their figures were carved by famous sculptor Valentin Bogdevich. The sculpture of Dismas is in the right aisle, that of Gestas- on the other side of the crucifix. The most treasured item is the unique Baroque Icon of St. Joseph and the Child from 1514. It was kept in the old wooden church.
Despite all the revolutions and wars of the 20th century, the Holy Trinity Church remained one of the few Catholic churches that never suspended services, even during the Soviet era. Today the church in Gervyaty is the pride of the locals and the architectural gem of Grodno Oblast. The church has been added to the list of historical and cultural values of Belarus and, of course, is a must see for tourists. The church owes much of its restoration to abbot Leonid Nestyuk (1996-2017) who not only helped to restore the church to its former glory but also laid out a beautiful landscape park Garden of the Apostles. The park features rare species of plants and shrubs, flowers, carved wooden crosses, snow-white statues of Archangel Michael and the 12 Apostles.
Every year Gervyaty hosts the international Trinity Festival. Many believers also come here to celebrate Holy Trinity Day (57th day after Easter).
