St. John of Dukla hermitage

On the Zaśpit hill there is the third temple dedicated to Saint. John of Dukla, also known as the Church in the Forest. The history of this place began with a brick temple built in 1769 on the initiative of Maria Amelia Mniszchowa née Brühl after the beatification of the saint. After the ceremonial consecration, accompanied by salvos from 24 mortars, a procession took place from the Dukla parish church to the Zaśpit hill. Unfortunately, both the chapel and the hermitage burned down in a fire in 1883.

In 1887, thanks to the foundation of Cezary Męciński, a new wooden chapel was built. The third neo-Gothic brick chapel, still present today, was built in the years 1906-1908 thanks to the efforts of the guardian of the Bernardines of Dukla, Ambroży Ligas. The project was created by a Saint Bernard named Kamil Żarnowski, and the polychrome depicting the life of Blessed John was painted by Władysław Lisowski. The neo-Gothic oak altar was made by Kazimierz Konieczkowski from Strzyżów.

HERMIT OF ST. JOHN OF DUKLA IN THE WILDERNESS
Apart from the Bernardine complex of religious buildings located in Dukla, are there any other places of worship of Blessed? John in this area? Well, in the Forest, located in the forests adjacent to Dukla, in the place where, according to tradition, John of Dukla was supposed to lead a hermit's life, another temple dedicated to the Blessed One was built in 1769. The founder of the small church was Jerzy Mniszek's wife, Maria Amalia Brühlówna. On the Sunday after the Ascension of the Lord in 1769, a procession was formed in front of the Dukla parish with the participation of the founders' family - the Mniszko family, the local nobility, townspeople and people, diocesan priests and Bernardines. After a salvo from 24 mortars, the procession moved into the Forest to the Zaśpit hill. There, the parish priest of Dukla, Fr. Wołowicz consecrated the temple, and then a holy mass was celebrated in a solemn liturgical setting. A house for a hermit was built next to the church.

FIRE AND RECONSTRUCTION
Church fire in the Forest; reconstruction. – In 1883, the church in the Forest along with the hermitage caught fire. The destroyed temple was rebuilt by the owner of the Dukla estate, Cezary Męciński. In 1887, it was consecrated by the parish priest of Dukla, Fr. Jan Chrysostom Zwoliński. Thanks to the foundation of Cezary's son, Adam Męciński, in the years 1906-1908 the Bernardines built a larger, brick church. The designer and manager of its construction was the Bernardine monk Kamil Żarnowski (d. 1946). The neo-Gothic oak altar was made by Kazimierz Konieczkowski from Strzyżów. The new temple was consecrated by the guardian of Dukla, Ambroży Ligas, in 1908, with the permission of the bishop of Przemyśl, blessed. Sebastian Józef Pelczar.

“MIRACLE” SOURCE
The church, renovated in recent years, is the destination of numerous pious pilgrimages. In the rock cave located at the foot of the temple there is a spring of St. John. According to the tradition of numerous pilgrims from Poland and abroad, the water flowing from it brings relief from many ailments and diseases.

Prepared by: Father Dr. Aleksander Sitnik OFM

A beautiful place to reflect and think.