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Palendriai Church of Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn

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Religious Heritage
Kelmė Tourism and Business Information Center

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Palendriai Church of Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn, or the public oratory of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Gate of Dawn in Palendriai, is a non-functioning Catholic church, referred to as a public oratory, located in Palendriai. It is considered one of the most interesting and beautiful examples of pre-war Lithuanian reinforced concrete architecture. It was active for about a decade until World War II. Currently, it stands alone with boarded-up windows. Next to the church is a new Benedictine monastery, consecrated a decade ago. On the opposite side, there is a small cemetery. In 1935, Lithuanian priest and benefactor Kazimieras Ambrozaitis, following a design by Šiauliai architect Vladas Bitė, began the construction of the church. He bought a 10-hectare plot of land from his sister and first built a rectory at the center of the farm, where he set up a temporary chapel. In 1938, the Palendriai Church was consecrated and became

subordinate to the Kelmė parish. The modern baroque style, popular in interwar Lithuania, was chosen for the building, and according to the founder's wishes, it was named the public oratory of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Gate of Dawn in Palendriai (a chapel and prayer place for a small Catholic community). It is said that Fr. K. Ambrozaitis built it not primarily for pastoral purposes (though those were not neglected), but as a monument to himself for the hardships he endured in life. In June 2000, the cornerstone of the new monastery church was consecrated, and on June 7, 2002, it was solemnly consecrated. With the Benedictines establishing the new monastery and church a bit further from the old Palendriai Church, the old church became redundant. Next to the side doors, on a decayed tombstone (with a statue of Christ with broken arms), the name and life years (1859-1947) of its builder, Fr. K. Ambrozaitis, are inscribed.

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