The Catholic cathedral of Saint Francis Xavier in Grodno is one of the most famous, outstanding and richly decorated churches in Belarus. This Catholic church was built from 1678 to 1703 and was solemnly consecrated in 1705. The main facade of the temple is decorated with two majestic graceful towers, which were erected from 1750 to 1752. Unofficially, this temple is also called Farny church, which means simply the Main church. It really is the main Catholic church, it means cathedral for the whole city of Grodno and the Grodno region.
At the time of its construction, the Catholic church of Saint Francis Xavier was part of the complex of the Jesuit monastery, once the richest in the Commonwealth and occupying an entire block in the central part of the city of Grodno. In the building of the monastery itself from the 19th century to the present time, there is a prison. There was a collegium at the Jesuit monastery. In one of the monastery buildings, erected in 1709, a pharmacy functioned. Today, the only pharmacy museum in Belarus is operating in this building.
The church of Saint Francis Xavier in Grodno is one of the most beautiful churches in Belarus, its size is very impressive, and the interior of the church is striking in its wealth. Numerous architectural and artistic features and advantages of the Catholic church of Saint Francis Xavier in Grodno make it comparable to the most famous world masterpieces of the Baroque style and also determine the enormous value of this architectural, cultural and historical monument for Belarus.
The central entrance to the Grodno church of Saint Francis Xavier is decorated with a semicircular staircase, which was built in 1898. On the parapet of this staircase, there is a very expressive and well-remembered sculpture of Jesus Christ with a cross. In 1725, a mechanical tower clock was installed in the north tower of the church, which was previously located in the tower of the city hall, destroyed during the Russian-Polish war of the mid-17th century. This clock is one of the oldest operating tower clocks in Eastern Europe.
The interior of the church is decorated with 13 altars, including 12 side ones. The most outstanding decorative element of the interior of the temple is a unique central carved altar, which was created from 1736 to 1738. The main altar of the Grodno church of Saint Francis Xavier is one of the highest baroque altars in Europe, its height reaches 21 meters. The three-tiered composition of the altar is decorated with more than forty sculptures. In the left chapel of the transept is the altar of Saint Michael the Archangel with sculptural images of prominent figures of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. All these decorative elements have a very high artistic value.
In the opposite right transept chapel is the miraculous image of the Mother of God of the Congregation. Another name for the icon is the Mother of God of the Students. This image was created in Rome at the very beginning of the 17th century. In 1664, the icon was transferred to a congregation of students at the Jesuit collegium in Grodno, who solemnly placed it in a wooden Jesuit church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. This temple was lost during the Russian-Polish war of the mid-17th century, after which the Catholic church of Saint Francis Xavier was erected in its place, which has survived to this day. The icon survived during that war and was later placed in a new church, where it is still stored today. The icon of the Mother of God of the Congregation in Grodno is made on a copper sheet measuring 22 by 17 centimeters. Iconographically, this image is a repetition of the famous icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary "Salus Populi Romani" or literally "Protectress and Health of the Roman People" from the Roman Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica of Saint Mary Major), which in turn is one of the most revered icons in Rome.
In 1990, Pope John Paul II granted the status of the Minor Basilica to the Catholic church of Saint Francis Xavier in Grodno. In Belarus, only a few churches bear this honorary title. By the way, there are only six Major Basilicas around the world, four of them are located in Rome and one of them is the already mentioned Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. In 1991, when the Catholic Diocese of Grodno was formed, the Church of Saint Francis Xavier became a cathedral. This temple is a very important cultural and historical monument, spiritual and pilgrimage center, one of the most important sights and one of the most magnificent decorations and symbols of the city of Grodno.
