Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a perfect example of twentieth-century neo-Gothic architecture in Ukraine.

It's located in the small town of Kamianka-Buzka in the Lviv Oblast. Locals call it a church that reaches to the sky.The church on the place of a modern church has stood since the XV century. It was a wooden church named the Holy Trinity and the Holy Spirit, founded by Yuri Strumylo. In 1627, the wooden church was destroyed by Tatars. When the foundation of Vladislav Vaz took place in 1633, the construction of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin in the city center, near the market square, was completed. In his protocol of 1718, Jan Center wrote that new stone walls would be erected around the walls of the old church and a stone church would be built.The new protocol of 1722 states that construction continues. In 1741, Mykola Vyzhytskyi visited the city, and the church had not yet been completed and consecrated. Especially some of the most important elements were missing: the organ, the altar and the Babinets - a place where elderly women sit during the service. It was also written in the protocol that the Catholic community demanded three thousand gold coins from the crown scribe Zhevusky, which was promised by the founder Samuel Sulimovsky. In 1757 a description of the church appeared, written by Father K. Sepravsky. There, the church is depicted as a Latin cross with the chapel of Jesus Crucified and the chapel of St. John of Nepomuk on two sides. Inside were seven altars from the old church. As early as 1766, the church was consecrated by Archbishop Vaclav Serakovsky, then inside there were five altars, the main of which housed the relics of three Catholic canonized men.Unfortunately, the condition of the roof and basements of the church were already bad. For almost half a century, Father Ignatius Tretter was the main administrator in the church. Exactly he made an invaluable contribution to the restoration of the temple. Under his leadership, the benches were replaced, a new Babinets was installed, the roof was renewed, the floor was relocated, a new organ was bought, and the door was replaced. However, the condition of the church remained poor, and in 1784 the side chapel of Jesus Crucified was dismantled. At the beginning of the 19th century, there was talk of building a brick church on the site of an old stone one, as it was too small and shaky, and people were raising funds and materials. But the owner of the city died and preparations for the construction of the church were suspended.The construction of the church on the photo began in 1911, Theodore-Marian Talowski became the architect. During the First World War, the construction of the church was constantly suspended, and in the summer of 1915, Russian troops struck the tower of the temple, which led to its complete destruction, the destruction of valuable stained glass, damage of walls and roof. The community immediately began rebuilding the church. But in 1919 a Ukrainian-Polish battle took place in the city, as a result of which fire again affected the building. In the 1920s, after the war, the church at last was restored. The neo-Gothic building was finally built in 1929. The consecration took place on May 16. After this, stained glass was added to the church. The interior and windows were not decorated until the beginning of the Second World War in 1939.During the fighting, the church survived, but the Catholic community suffered. In 1946 the folks were taken to the Polish People's Republic, along with all valuables for the clergy. The Soviet authorities used the building as a store for various purposes, a siphon filling station, a granary, and a dust warehouse, a chemical whose odor still lingers inside the air.The church resumed its spiritual life in 1989, when it was transferred to the Roman Catholic community of Kamianka-Buzka. Then Volodyslav Derunov together with parishioners began to repair the building. In 1996, the icon of Jesus Christ of Mylia was introduced into the church, and in 1997, Archbishop Marian Jaworski crowned the image with crowns consecrated by Pope John Paul II. Now the temple is almost completely restored, everything inside and out is done strictly in neo-Gothic style, so the building is a valuable architectural monument. All the altars inside are made in the same style, and the main altar of the Mother of God has no analogues in all of Ukraine. The church is a gathering place for the regional Catholic community. Every year for Christmas migrants from Ukraine to Poland come to it. Relatives of the article's author also have such traditions. I believe that the church is a bridge between Poland and Ukraine. It is their child in a common century-old history.I am proud to live in the Kamianka region and the brand of my region - this is a priceless work of art in neo-Gothic style, the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin. I invite the readers of my article to my small homeland, as there is so much beauty. Everyone can visit the Kamianka's church, and I will leave a link to the guide below. Our church is an invaluable symbol of the region, which has brought with us the history of centuries, so I was once again convinced that I live on a majestic land worth traveling. Travel to Ukraine!