Near Porozovo there is a village Hrynievych (former Bolshaya Lapenitsa) where you can see the ruins of an ancient Franciscan church. Money for the construction of the monastery was allocated by Jan Oginsky back in 1679, but he did not have time to see this complex built, the work was continued by his son Grigory. True, even under him, the church could not be completed in any way - constant quarrels and conflicts with the Sapieha neighbors interfered. As a result, the stone church of St. John the Baptist was completed only in 1792.
After the active participation of the monks in the revolution of 1831, the Franciscan monastery was closed, and the church was eventually transferred to the bosom of Orthodoxy. The Baroque architecture of the church in Bolshaya Lapenitsa did not fit in with the traditions of Orthodox architecture, so the building was thoroughly rebuilt, for which considerable funds were allocated.
The towers of the church and typical Catholic attributes were replaced with onion domes. Old photographs have been preserved, giving an idea of how the temple looked at the beginning of the 20th century.
There is also a curious fact: Tsar Alexander III presented the Orthodox parish with a huge bell, the ringing of which was so powerfully carried through the nearby lands that it was rumored to be heard even in Volkovysk.
After in 1919 Grinevichi was part of Interwar Poland, the church was closed, and Catholic services began again within the walls of the ancient church. The building was then partially rebuilt - the dome was removed.
The church-church was closed in the 60s of the 20th century. However, until 1982, the temple remained untouched until it was decided to equip a garage for agricultural equipment here. Because of this, the roof and the entire second light were demolished, the decorative pediment was destroyed, and wide gates for tractors were cut in place of the portal.
In the 90s, there were modest talks and proposals to restore the temple, but the necessary funds and permissions could not be obtained.
From 1920 to 1924 he was a priest in Grinevichi Joseph Germanovich (poet and writer known under the pseudonym Vintsuk Advazhny). For preaching and teaching in Belarusian, he fell into disgrace of the Polish authorities and was forced to leave for Druya. True, he was out of favor there too, sent to China, where he was arrested and sentenced to 25 years of exile in Siberia. About his wanderings and struggle, he wrote the book "China - Sibir - Maskva", where there are memories about Grinevichi.
In front of the temple, the ruins of a gate have been preserved, probably built in the same years as the church itself.
There used to be a unique place in Lapenitsy Manor of the Bulgarin family, located 600 meters from the monastery. How it looked can be seen in the figure below:
The ruins are located at the entrance to Grinevichi. From the village Gornostaevichi and the P78 highway, exit onto the H6017 road, below is the point marked on the map:
If you are in these parts, I advise you to see a unique example of Gothic architecture in Belarus - Church of St. Michael in Gniezno.
