Roman Catholic Church of St. Joseph

The Roman Catholic Church of St. Joseph carries a history stretching back to the early 19th century, when the very first Catholic church in Rybnitsa was constructed by John Nepomuk-Kozhukhovsky between 1815 and 1817. According to memories preserved by parishioners, this original church was built in the form of a cross and featured three altars. The interior had no painted decoration, but the choir loft housed a small pipe organ, and the entrance was graced by a portico supported by two pairs of columns. The roof was covered in sheet metal, with a tower housing a small bell rising at the intersection of the transverse and main naves. The main gate before the church square was designed in the form of a bell tower carrying three bells.

During the 1930s, the church was forced to close under Soviet anti-religious policies. In 1990, Catholic believers petitioned Moscow to open a parish in Rybnitsa, and construction of the new St. Joseph’s Church began in 1994. Architect P.G. Yablonsky prepared the architectural project, while priest Tadeusz Magerowski — serving as the church’s abbot — contributed modifications characteristic of authentic Catholic ecclesiastical style.

The construction relied primarily on local building materials, while three church bells were specifically cast in Poland to complete the building’s liturgical furnishings. In 2003, the church was formally consecrated and began functioning as an active place of Catholic worship — restoring to Rybnitsa a Catholic community presence that had been absent for more than six decades.

Address: 22a, Pugachev str., Rybnitsa
Phone: +373 555 41920