Smorgon. The Church of St. Michael the Archangel.

The most important architectural asset of the city of Smorgon in Belarus is the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, which was built in the first half of the XVII century. This church is a Calvinist cathedral, which arose on the site of an ancient Protestant wooden church of the XV century.

The Calvinist sanctuary was built with the funds of Krystof Zenovich. He was a statesman, governor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Zenovich wished that after his own death he would be buried in a shrine erected by him according to the customs of Calvinism, modestly and without ceremony.

Nevertheless, shortly after Zenovich's death (in 1621), this church was given to the Catholic community. Nikolai Boguslav, the son of Christoph Zenovich, converted to the Catholic faith. After his death in 1621, his sister Sophia handed over the Smorgon church to the Catholics. Under the name of the Trinity Church, it existed until 1866, when it was transferred to the Orthodox and became the St. Michael's Church. For half a century, this shrine was an Orthodox church, but in 1921 the church was again consecrated into a church, which was closed in 1947. After the reconstruction in 1970, an exhibition hall was placed in the building of the former temple.

Eventually, in 1990, the church became a functioning church of St. Michael the Archangel again. Therefore, for four hundred years, the temple building has successfully served Calvinists and Catholics, Orthodox and atheists. But still, in numerous historical descriptions, this church is listed as a former Calvinist gathering.

The church is now beautifully restored, it looks very decent for its age. The interior is richly decorated and interestingly decorated. The tomb of the Princes Zenovich is located in the dungeon of the church.

In 1995, the Catholic community of Smorgon received a three-storey building located next to the church, which was previously used as a regional House of Culture. This building was built in 1937-1939 at the expense of parishioners from bricks left over from the second Smorgon church destroyed during the First World War, and originally served as a Catholic People's House. In the late 1990s, the building was completely rebuilt according to the design of architect Bazevich and became the St. John Bosco Christian Educational Center at the Church of St. Michael the Archangel.