Appeal to the Presidents of Ukraine, Poland, and the Leadership of the European Union.
Subject: The Reconstruction of the Parish Church of the Mother of God of Perpetual Help in Ternopil as a Symbol of Shared European Heritage and Historical Justice.
Esteemed Presidents, Distinguished Leaders of the European Union!
We, the Polish Roman Catholic community of Ternopil, and all conscious citizens of Ukraine and Poland, address you with deep faith in the triumph of historical justice and shared European values.
I.Historical Justice: Rectifying the Crime of Totalitarianism
The Parish Church of the Mother of God of Perpetual Help in Ternopil (1908–1954) was not merely a place of worship, but an architectural jewel of Neo-Gothic style, designed by the eminent Teodor-Marian Talowski, and the spiritual heart of a large Roman Catholic community in Eastern Galicia.
It was destroyed in 1954 by a criminal decision of the Soviet totalitarian regime, which sought to erase all traces of European and religious identity from the map. The Central Department Store (TsUM) was built in its place — a symbol of ideological domination.
The reconstruction of this church is not only a religious act but a powerful political and civilizational gesture that symbolizes the definitive break with the Soviet past and the restoration of Ternopil’s historical, European identity.
II.A Symbol of Ukrainian-Polish Unity and European Identity
At a time when Ukraine is heroically fighting for its right to belong to the European family, and when Polish-Ukrainian relations constitute the foundation of security and stability in Eastern Europe, the church’s reconstruction takes on special significance:
Shared Heritage: The church was part of the common cultural heritage that has been formed in these lands for millennia. Its rebuilding will become the material embodiment of friendship between our nations and mutual respect for history.
A Democratic Response: While Russia deliberately destroys Ukrainian churches and monuments, the revival of the Church of the Mother of God of Perpetual Help will be a joint project between our country’s.
Roman Catholic community of Ternopil