The Catholic Church of St. Simon and Helena

The Catholic Church of St. Simon and Helenais a sample of monumental architecture of the early 20th century. Otherwise known among Minsk inhabitants as the Red Church, it was built on the initiative of Edward Wojnilowicz and his wife who had been grieved by a premature death of their children – first, their 12-year-old son Simon and then, a few years later, their 19-year-old daughter Helena. In order to immortalize their children’s memory they donated their wealth for the construction of a church in Minsk under prior agreement with the city authorities that the church would bear the names of St. Simon and St. Helena. The taller spire of the church epitomizes parental grief while the other two – the memory of prematurely passed-away children. Inside the church, right of the entrance is a snow-white bust of Edward Wojnilowicz, who was destined to become the last descendent in the lineage of this ancient Belarusian noble family.