NIGHT OF CHURCHES will be on May 28, the program will be specified according to the current measures

Prague - The Night of Churches, when the doors of churches, temples, and prayer houses are opened in the evening and night hours, will take place on May 28. In its 13th edition, more than 280 objects will open in the Prague Archdiocese, and over 1000 sanctuaries are expected to welcome visitors across the country. This year's theme for the Night of Churches is ecology. Organizers from the Prague Archdiocese informed journalists about this today. The exact conditions for the organization and participation in the event will depend on the currently applicable government measures against the spread of the coronavirus.

Regardless of how the anti-epidemic measures affect the program of the Night of Churches, the organizers say that the churches will be open and it will be possible to enter them. Individual parishes and congregations are preparing various alternative programs, and if conditions allow, concerts, lectures, and exhibitions will be part of the program.

As the measures against coronavirus evolve, the organizers are not preparing printed brochures with the program, as in previous years, but are directing interested parties to the Night of Churches website. This year's innovation is the Night of Churches mobile application, which can help with navigating the program.

The theme of ecology has been adopted by the domestic Night of Churches organizers from the organizers in Vienna, from where the idea for the event came to the Czech Republic in 2009. The idea with the ecological theme originated last year when the Night of Churches was supposed to take place on June 5, International Environment Day. Due to the coronavirus, the event in Austria did not take place at all, so the theme remained for this year. In the Czech Republic, the Night of Churches was successfully moved to June 12 last year, when the then eased restrictions allowed it to be organized.

The event in Vienna has been held since 2005. It likely originated by chance when, a year earlier, the sacristan of one Vienna temple left the doors open during cleaning, and passersby entered the church with interest. The Night of Churches also takes place in Slovakia, Estonia, and Switzerland joined in 2016.

In recent years, more than half a million visitor entries have been recorded during the Night of Churches in the Czech Republic. According to research by the agency IBRS, commissioned by the Czech Bishops' Conference, the Night of Churches is the most reflected church event among people. In 2020, marked by the pandemic, 1157 churches, chapels, and prayer houses were opened in the Czech Republic, and the organizers counted over 205,000 visitor entries, they stated today.