St. Michael the Archangel Church in Rukainiai needs funds for renovation

Next year, St. Michael the Archangel Church in Rukainiai will celebrate its 200^th anniversary. This month renovation of the interior of the church begins. However, the church needs financial support for the renovation to run smoothly and on schedule.

The residents of Rukainiai posted a message on Facebook: “Don’t forget to quickly support the parish priest’s initiative to finish the renovation of the interior of the church that started last year, for us to be able to prepare for the anniversary. The renovation is beginning on August 17, and we still need funds. Go to the sacristy or call the priest: 869921132. Don’t wait!”

The Rukainiai parish priest Jan Matusewicz told zw.lt that it was hard to estimate how much money the church needed. “I haven’t made exact estimates yet. People are brining money. The deadline is not up yet, so it’s hard to tell how much money we need. There’s always something more to do,” he explained.

The renovation is to be completed next year. A special event is also to be held. “I’m planning to combine the anniversary with the parish festival. We’re thinking of September 29,” said the parish priest.

The initiative received financial aid from the Vilnius District Municipality. Some of the money was provided by EU funds.

The previous, wooden church was burned in 1812, during the Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. In 1815, the residents began building the new, brick church.

Antoni Radczenko