Dnepropetrovsk Catholics are going to reconstruct the Roman Catholic temple located on Karl Marks Avenue. They are afraid there can be more attempts to usurp the temple.

Frescos hidden under paint
The walls of the temple’s lobby are covered with plastic foil. It is hanging down from what has once been a roof. A year ago it was destroyed by workers of “Dugsberry Inc” company. The firm is still trying to sue out the temple. Floor is covered with foil too. One ca see puddles left after rain.
“It was raining hard last autumn. So you can imagine how harmful it was for the roofless temple”, Denis Davidov press-secretary of Raman-Catholics diocese says. “Plaster mostly fell down”.
One of the walls has been covered with cloth. If one looks under it he will see some bright pictures of sportsmen which were painted here during soviet period. But in some places there are pale fragments of catholic frescos, which have once been covered plaster and layer of paint almost one centimeter thick. One fresco shows children and a shell used for pouring holly water on infants. There is a script in polish which can be translated as “those pure of heart are the blessed ones”.
“We think there used to be a font for christening babies”, Denis Davidov says. “There is also a fragment showing an angel’s head”.
These frescos are about hundred years old.
“Their condition is deplorable”, Vladimir Spilny, the parishioner, mentions. He takes part in reconstruction of the temple. “Within two years the temple was out of use, paint and plaster were removed with rain and snow. So, the picture appeared on the wall. But we might discover them while repair works. It seems that all walls are covered with frescos”.
There are boards and logs on the floor which once were parts of the roof. The parishioners still are not able to take them away.
A high niche was made in one of the walls so that one can stand there at full height. It was backfilled with bricks during the Soviet times.
“A priest would stand there and preach. He got here by stairs placed behind the wall”, David shows.
Guardrails on the ground floor were destroyed. During the Soviet times there used to be a balcony facing Karl Marks Avenue. There is also a stained glass window with some catholic pictures, mostly backfilled with bricks. A church bell, weighting about 300 kilograms, was recently installed in the balcony. Catholics ring this bell before each sermon to invite parishioners to pray.
“As a rule, there should be minimum two bells in Catholic church. But some temples use a digital file with bell sound going through loudspeaker of the temple”, Denis Davidov explains.
The sermon takes place three times a week in a chapel. This is the only room which escaped heavy rains. Windows were broken all over the temple. Catholics put in new glasses and stuck holes with plastic foil in other premises.

Catholics are afraid of usurpation
Parishioners have been praying in the temple since August, 20. It was the first day they entered the temple after three years of constant trails. Court’s decision says that the temple belongs to Dnepropetrovsk Roman Catholic Community. “Dugsberry, Inc”, an American company which used to be the owner of the temple, appealed to court to protest its decision. The courts session will take place on November, 19.
“”There is possibility that court will not be favorable, but I doubt”, Mr. Davidov says. “our lawyers claim that de jure everything is already clear”.
In August during the sermon in the temple Alexander Khmelevsky, the city council deputy, together with “Dugsberry, Inc” representatives and “Typhoon” security service came to the place. They wanted people leave the building. They even called the police. But the policemen said that premises belonged to Catholics”.
“Khmelevsky told he would send 20 people to establish their order there”, tells the press-secretary of Roman Catholics. “Since that very time the temple is opened only during the sermon, as there is a real threat of usurpation the building by force. Besides, there are volunteers, who keep their vigil in the temple 24 hours a day 7 days a week. At night they sleep on camp-beds in tents near heater”.
At present the experts examine the base and temple building conditions to adjust reconstruction project.
“We are going to restore the original form of the architectural site”, Mr. Davidov says. “it is very important for the city”.
No drawings of the temple were found I Ukraine. But fortunately Catholics managed to find them in St. Petersburg’s Archive in summer.
When they appealed to the Building Technical Inspection to get registration, they found out that the building was seized by four various courts of Ukraine. During some trails all the property of “Dugsberry, Inc.” was seized, and so was the temple as it was the company’s property.
“We are not able to get a certificate granting our property while the building is captured there. And it is impossible to do any construction or reconstruction works unless it is our property”, Mr. Spilny says.
Catholics claim they are not going to start reconstruction till spring. They are going to use parishioners’ donations for reconstruction. There are 300 of them in the diocese.

Svetlana Rybka. “Sobitie”, October, 29, 2009.                                                                                            (o 1)