When visiting Topólcza, it is worth stopping by the local church, which has an interesting, multicultural history. Originally an Orthodox church, later a Uniate church, it eventually became a Catholic church. The church's architecture features elements of the Byzantine style. Inside, the 17th-century painting of the Virgin Mary and Child and the polychromes made in 2002 are worthy of note. The area around Topólcza offers peaceful bike paths, perfect for a contemplative ride.
In Topólcza, there was originally an Orthodox parish belonging to the Chełm diocese. The first mentions date back to the mid-16th century. After the Brest Synod in 1596, the Orthodox church in Topólcza became a Uniate (Greek Catholic) church of the Nativity of the Mother of God. After the fall of the January Uprising in 1864, when the wave of Russification in the Kingdom of Poland intensified, Tsar Alexander II Romanov abolished the union, forcing the Greek Catholics to convert to Orthodoxy in 1875. At that time, the parish priest in Topólcza was Fr. Jan Grzegorzewski, who submitted to the Tsar's order. In 1906, Vladimir Galikowski, another Orthodox parish priest in Topólcza, began efforts to build a brick church, the plans of which were made by the architect Aleksander Puring. The construction of the church in 1911, funded by the Paschałow family, was led by the brothers Gerwazy and Stanisław Kaczorowski from Warsaw. As a result of World War I, the Orthodox population in Topólcza and the surrounding area decreased significantly. At the end of June 1915, the last Orthodox priest, together with most of his faithful, fled from the approaching Austrian troops into the depths of Russia, and in 1917 the Austrians handed the church over to the Catholic Church.
On April 5, 1919, the Bishop of Lublin, Marian Leon Fulman, established a Roman Catholic parish in Topólcza, appointing Fr. Jan Makulec as its parish priest. In May 1919, the so-called reconciliation of the temple took place, which was carried out by the dean from Szczebrzeszyn.
The parish church in Topólcza, single-nave, in the Byzantine style, is built of red brick. There are two sacristies by the presbytery, and a tower with a porch on the pediment. Inside, there are wooden altarpieces for the main altar and two side altarpieces, adapted in 1919-1920 from its former furnishings. During the reconstruction of the church in the interwar period, among other things, the domes were removed and the roof was rebuilt. In the altarpiece of the main altar, there is a painting (icon) of the Mother of God with Child, painted on wood by Lviv painters, with a gilded dress from the first half of the 17th century. In the side altar, on the right side, there is a painting of St. Isidore the Orach, painted in 1927 in Warsaw, and on the left - a painting of the Sacred Heart of the Lord Jesus. The altars were rebuilt in 1969.
In 2002, the painter Janusz Szpyt from Lubaczów created a polychrome in the church. At that time, the following icons were found: the Nativity of the Mother of God, an angel with a tablet with 12 feasts, the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, and Orthodox saints (patrons of the founders of the church). A scene of the offering of the Mother of God was painted on the ceiling of the presbytery, and the figures of the four evangelists with attributes (St. John - eagle, St. Luke - ox, St. Mark - lion, and St. Matthew - angel). Above the altars of the side altars were paintings of the Servants of God: John Paul II and Stefan Cardinal Wyszyński. In 2003, two stained glass windows were installed in the presbytery: Jesus the Merciful and Our Lady of the Sowing. Sculptures created during the annual Roztocze sculpture open-airs were placed around the temple. In 2005, the relics of St. Isidore were brought from the Vatican to the church in Topólcza.
To commemorate the pilgrimage of the copy of the Image of Our Lady of Częstochowa and the 85th anniversary of the parish, a new belfry was built in 2004, which currently houses bells named Józef and Mary, consecrated on October 20, 1957 by the dean of Szczebrzeszyn, Fr. Stanisław Szepietowski.
Translated by Google •
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