About the Church
The Church of St Casimir stands in the village of Kučiūnai, Lazdijai district, about twelve kilometres south of Lazdijai, near the border with Poland.
The parish here was established in 1907, when local Lithuanian Catholics wished to pray separately from the Polish parish of Berznykas; a temporary house of prayer was built within two months, and the community was gathered by the energetic Father Juozapas Galeckas, who established a library and schools in the surrounding villages.
The cornerstone of the present masonry church was blessed on 24 June 1939, but the Second World War halted construction at the window stage. Work resumed only in 1991, and on 22 September 1996 the church was finally consecrated. The masonry church, of modern form and designed by the architect Algimantas Mikėnas, is adorned above the entrance with a sculpture of St Casimir by Juozas Šlivinskas, and with contemporary stained-glass windows.
The parish here was established in 1907, when local Lithuanian Catholics wished to pray separately from the Polish parish of Berznykas; a temporary house of prayer was built within two months, and the community was gathered by the energetic Father Juozapas Galeckas, who established a library and schools in the surrounding villages.
The cornerstone of the present masonry church was blessed on 24 June 1939, but the Second World War halted construction at the window stage. Work resumed only in 1991, and on 22 September 1996 the church was finally consecrated. The masonry church, of modern form and designed by the architect Algimantas Mikėnas, is adorned above the entrance with a sculpture of St Casimir by Juozas Šlivinskas, and with contemporary stained-glass windows.