The Church of the Sending of the Holy Apostles is a late Baroque temple located at 55 Lubelska Street, in the old center of Chełm, near the foot of the hill with the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was built between 1753 and 1763 at the college of the Piarist monks according to a design by Paolo Fontana, and it is often called the most beautiful monument of the city. The interior with its illusionistic paintings on the vaults is especially impressive.
From a Wooden Church to the Piarist Church
The parish church has stood here since the early 15th century. According to legend, the first wooden church was founded in 1417 by King Władysław Jagiełło in gratitude to the Chełm banner with a white bear, which distinguished itself in the Battle of Grunwald. That church burned down in 1578, and the masonry one built in 1585 was dismantled in the mid-18th century due to poor condition. In 1667, the parish was taken over by the Piarists—a Catholic order engaged in educating youth—and their college grew nearby.
The new church was founded by Andrzej and Marianna Wolski and Wacław Piotr Żewuski. The project was executed by Paolo Antonio Fontana, and the construction was overseen by Tomasz Rezler—the same pair who worked on the cathedral on the hill. The church was consecrated in 1795 by Bishop Jan Kanty Lenchowski. It did not suffer war damage, so it has preserved almost all its decorations; the last major renovation of the roof and facades was carried out in 1994.
Paintings and Altars
The three-nave church has an octagonal central nave surrounded by a ambulatory gallery with chapels. The western facade with two towers, set diagonally and offset from the body, is recognizable from afar; a clock has been on the right tower since 1970. In front of the facade stand Baroque figures of Our Lady of Grace and Saint Joseph Calasanz, founder of the Piarists, created according to Fontana’s design.
The vaults, painted in 1758 by Józef Mayer, depict architecture and figurative scenes that create the impression that the ceiling opens upwards, and the walls are decorated as if with marble. The paintings have been restored several times, most thoroughly in 1970–1974. The Rococo altars, pulpit, and baptismal font were made by the Lviv workshop of Mykhailo Filevych. The side altars feature works by Szymon Czechowicz, one of the most famous Polish painters of the 18th century. Rococo pews and four late Baroque confessionals have also been preserved.
How to Get There
The church is located at 55 Lubelska Street, in the center of Chełm. Chełm lies on route No. 12 Lublin – Dorohusk: about 70 km from Lublin, about 25 km from the Dorohusk–Yahodyn border crossing with Volyn. Nearby is the former Piarist college, now the Museum of the Land of Chełm, and a few steps away is the entrance to the Chełm Chalk Underground. Higher up on the hill are the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Palace of the Uniate Bishops, and Vysoka Hirka; a few hundred meters to the west is the Church of Saint Anthony of Padua, and to the north is the Church of Our Lady Victorious in the former cinema. The church is open during services. Ukrainian citizens need a foreign passport.
