Stories

From Belarus to Łódź: a priest, a gym, and a mission to preach

Father Dzmitry Prystupa in the gym Kuźnia Centrum Atletyki in Łódź. Łódź, Poland. March 26, 2026. Photo: Raul Dyuk / Belsat
Father Dzmitry Prystupa in the gym Kuźnia Centrum Atletyki in Łódź. Łódź, Poland. March 26, 2026. Photo: Raul Dyuk / Belsat

In the Polish city of Łódź, a Catholic priest from Belarus — Father Dzmitry Prystupa — has been serving for four years already. He was forced to leave his homeland in 2020. The reason was the same as for thousands of other Belarusians — the threat of repression and imprisonment. Now he develops Belarusian pastoral ministry, and recently he has been running a blog where he combines his vocation as a priest with his passion for sports. Journalists from “Belsat” visited him and went with him to a gym workout.