The 55-metre concrete monument is rising in the village of Konotopie, near the north-central city of Toruń, amid wheat fields on land owned by Karkosik, one of Poland’s wealthiest industrialists.
The statue is expected to dwarf the 36-metre Christ the King statue in Świebodzin, western Poland, and also outmatch the 38-metre Christ the Redeemer landmark in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The new statue is scheduled to be consecrated on August 15 next year, the Catholic Feast of the Assumption.
The FT described the project as “almost pharaonic,” noting that its setting in rural Poland underscores the Catholic Church’s enduring role in the country’s public life, particularly in conservative regions that back the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party.
Karkosik, founder of the industrial conglomerate Boryszew, has previously funded religious initiatives, including the reconstruction of the nearby Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sorrows, a 19th-century pilgrimage site.
The statue comes as Poland’s political climate remains polarized. PiS, ousted from power in 2023 by a pro-EU coalition led by Donald Tusk, regained momentum in June when its candidate Karol Nawrocki narrowly defeated Tusk’s nominee in the presidential election, the FT said.
Tusk’s candidate, Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, had supported LGBTQ rights and decided to remove crosses and other religious symbols from City Hall, it noted.
At his swearing-in, Nawrocki, a historian and self-confessed former football hooligan, accused Tusk’s camp of spreading "lies" about his past but added: “As a Christian, I forgive with peace of mind and from the bottom of my heart all this contempt, and what happened during the elections," the FT reported.
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Source: PAP, polsatnews.pl, ft.com