Memories of the past run deep in Poland. Every September in Bydgoszcz, they remember the day when the Nazis arrived in 1939 and slaughtered thousands of the town’s inhabitants.

Then came the Soviets with Stalin’s five year plans that bled the economy dry.

With the arrival of democracy in the 1990s, buildings and land confiscated by the Communists was handed back whenever the rightful owner could be found.

The Mayor of Janikowo, a small town of 8,000 in north-west Poland, wanted to give back an abandoned Lutheran Church next to the town’s main railway station -- but whom to? The German Lutherans had left this part of Pomerania half a century before, and the Catholics had enough buildings of their own.

When Pastor Wojtek Muranty and his team from the Bydgoszcz Evangelical Free Church heard about the dilapidated church, they realised the building’s potential and the Mayor was more than happy get it off his hands.

But as Chris Jones discovered on a fact-finding trip from England, there is much work still to do.

A group of believers from Janikowo and Bydgoszcz held a spontaneous service of thanks when the documentation was signed over from Janikowo’s Major. About 20 people from the town are hoping to worship there regularly as soon as the building work is completed.

The roof is now watertight but a new floor, ceiling, windows, lighting and heating are needed before services can resume after nearly a one hundred year break. Wojtek Muranty estimates the total cost of the renovation at €40,000 ($40,000).

Wojtek Muranty is looking for teams or individuals willing to come over to Poland to help with the work. Please visit the OutreachEurope.org website for more information. Maybe you can help restore the faith in Janikowo.

Copies of the video on DVD can be requested free of charge by using our online response form. How can you help restore the faith in Janikowo? See also our related article.