Gdynia

Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Built between 1957 and 1966, this at first glance rather ugly-looking church on closer inspection reveals a story and a beauty that encapsulates so much of the modern Polish religious psyche. A drab concrete exterior betrays a marvel of treats inside, among them Gdańsk artist Bogusław Marszal's extraordinary and colourful mosaics from 1974 (currently under renovation), including astonishingly large renditions of The Last Supper, The Holy Spirit and The Ten Commandments. Also of interest is the organ, as big as the one in Oliwa Cathedral and the Shipyard Workers' Chapel, allegedly the only one in Poland, and dedicated to the events of December 1970 when the Militia opened fire and killed 18 of Gdynia's shipyard workers as they made their way to work. Of particular interest inside is a blood-stained flag, used to carry the body of the 18-year-old shipworker Janek Wiśniewski (real name Zbigniew Godlewski) through the city's streets. The name Janek Wiśniewski is the Polish equivalent of John Smith, and is the title of a famous ballad of the same name, whose author didn't know the young man's real name. Please do not visit during mass.

Open

Open 09:00 - 16:00.

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