CHURCH CONSECRATED TO GOD THE FATHER
The Church is now a Co-Cathedral
and the project was blessed by St. John Paul II
Co-Cathedral of the Merciful Father (Zaporizhzhia) Ukraine
"The Holy Father blesses the decision of building a church in Zaporizhzhia in honour of God the Eternal Father, and he imparts His blessing on all those who undertake this work."
Secretary to John Paul II
Msgr. Mieczslaw Morzycki
Pre-Construction
Catholicism in the Ukraine faced severe suppression during the Soviet era. [1] The only Catholic church in Zaporizhzhia was closed as far back as the 1930s. In the 50's the church was destroyed, and replaced by a factory. [2]
Following Ukraine's independence in 1991, Catholic activities revived in Zaporizhzhia in the early 1990s amid the broader restoration of religious freedoms. [3]
Consecration
On 7th of December, 1998, Pope John Paul II consecrated the cornerstone taken from the foundations of the Basilica of St. Peter's in Rome and on the same day handed it over to then parish priest, Fr Jan Sobilo. [4]
Consecrated 7th August 2004, presided over by Bishops Stanisław Padewski, Leon Dubrawski, with participation from Bishops Bronisław Bernacki, Stanisław Szirko-Radiuk. [5]
Challenges
The ongoing Russian-Ukrainian War, has positioned Zaporizhzhia near the front lines. Diocesan initiatives, supported by Aid to the Church in Need since 2023, have included food and shelter provisions. [6]
In April 2025, on his tenth visit, papal envoy Cardinal Konrad Krajewski brought four ambulances donated by the pope and oversaw handouts of foods and goods to the people. [7]
How the dedication came to be
The population of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast region is roughly 1.6 million [1], situated in the south east of Ukraine. It had been chosen as a model city of the atheist, Stalinist industrialisation era [2]: there was not even a single chapel for worship.
In 1995, the statue of the Virgin of Fatima came to Zaporizhzhia, accompanied by Fr. Andrea D’Ascanio. He was welcomed by the community, including Polish priest Jan Sobilo; the first Catholic priest operating in the city who was able to secure permission for a Catholic Church to be built.
During a private meeting between Fr Sobilo and His Holiness (John Paul II), the Holy Father gave his assent for the project and its dedication to "God the Merciful Father". His Holiness also offered and subsequently blessed the first stone for the building.
After meeting the Pope, Fr Sobilo requested assistance from Armata Bianca, who previously assisted with the visit of the Virgin of Fatima. At the request of Bishop of Kamieniec-Podilski (Jan Olszanski), Armata Bianca contributed to the church's construction, consecrated on the 7th August 2004, and is now a concattedrale of the diocese.
A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or cathedra, with another cathedral, often in another city.
