Churches & monasteries

Sanctuary of the Dying Christ in Pacanów

In Pacanów, a town in the Ponidzie region known for Koziołek Matołek, stands the church of St Martin — the Sanctuary of the Dying Christ, raised in 2008 by Benedict XVI to the dignity of a minor basilica. The parish history reaches back to the Middle Ages: the first church was erected in 1109–1118 through the efforts of Maurus, bishop of Kraków.

Seven centuries of history

The founding act was renewed in the 13th century by bishop Iwo Odrowąż. In 1610 the chapel of St Anne was built, whose cult remains alive today. Five years later a figure of the crucified Christ, transferred from a burned-down hospital church, was brought into the church, and Friday devotions to the Cross began then. The chapel of the Lord Jesus was also added, a place of worship that continues to this day.

The chapel that survived the flames

In 1657, during the Swedish Deluge, the town and the church burned down. The temple was quickly rebuilt, and subsequent fires each time spared the chapel of the Lord Jesus, which strengthened the cult of the Cross. It is there that the faithful still gather before the figure of the Dying Christ.

Practical information

The sanctuary is open daily from 6.30 to 19.00. Pacanów lies at the junction of national roads 73 and 79, in the Busko county of the Holy Cross Voivodeship. A visit combines well with tracing the footsteps of Koziołek Matołek, the hero of the stories by Kornel Makuszyński and Marian Walentynowicz, whose fame fixed the saying that goats are shod in Pacanów.