MINSK, 16 February (BelTA) - Restoration of the church in Budslau may take a long time, Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Ante Jozic said as he met with Minsk Oblast Governor Aleksandr Turchin in Minsk on 15 February, BelTA has learned.
"Today was my first visit to the Minsk Oblast government. We discussed a number of issues, including the restoration of churches in Stolbtsy and Budslau. The temple in Budslau is important not only for us but also for the whole of Belarus. Its restoration was one of the topics on the agenda of our meeting. Another purpose of my visit to Belarus is to discuss the canonization of Dominican monk Fabian Malishevsky," the Apostolic Nuncio said.
He also spoke about the project to restore the church which may take a long time. "As for Budslau, a project to restore the church that was badly damaged in the fire is currently being prepared. The temple is in a depressing state. Both the frescoes and the roof were very badly damaged, so it is impossible to start repairs without a ready-made restoration project. Many institutions have shown their interest in the project. We are now selecting the construction companies that would be up to such a difficult job. The restoration itself may take a lot of time, because we need to restore not only the facade, but also the frescoes," Archbishop Ante Jozic emphasized.
He expressed hope that the meeting will be the beginning of a long and fruitful cooperation. "Our meeting is only the beginning of cooperation. It will benefit not only the church or the Minsk regional administration but also the entire Belarusian people. This year we will celebrate 30 years of relations between the Vatican and Belarus. We are interested in promoting dialogue, harmony and peace. Many countries need it now. And our task is to move forward along this path," the Apostolic Nuncio concluded.
