RADOSC

The Baptists have been active in Poland for over 140 years. Their dreams and aspirations of having an educational center have been the primary subject of their unceasing prayers. Radosc is the living reality of answered prayer. This wonderful Educational Center is promoting the Lord's work throughout the country of Poland and beyond its borders, especially to the East. Presently Radosc is being used by a number of evangelical churches and groups demonstrating a common bond within the Body of Christ at large. This Educational Center is located in the green belt area of the capital city. Radosc has a Seminary with a large library and church archives.

This affords a congenial atmosphere for study and is now open to the Polish youth in order to better prepare themselves as pastors, church planters, church leaders and workers. The Radosc Center has several buildings. These include: the Seminary (picture on left), the Youth and Childrens Building (which is also used as a Convention Center), the Residence Building for faculty, staff and guests and a Dining/Maintenance building.

Youth and Children's Centre		Residence/Welcome Centre	Dining Hall

The history of Radosc goes back to the year 1923 when it was made available by one of its Polish members who happened to be a Messianic Jew. It was first used as a Bible School by the Baptist believers, then used as a summer camp for youth and children, then a Chapel and even a safe haven for refugees during the nazi occupation of Poland. After the war the Swedish Red Cross ran Radosc as a rehabilitation center for malnutritioned children . Radosc served as a regular church in Warsaw during the war because the pre-war existing churches were destroyed during the Ghetto- and Warsaw Uprisings respectively. The Warsaw congregation moved in 1964 to a newly built church on 25 Walicow Street in Warsaw Proper.

By this time the only building called "Villa Bethel" was in need of repair and summonned the Union of Baptists in Poland to apply for purchase of the property to the existing communist regime. This request was at first refused by the regime but this only quickened the Brethren to keep knocking on doors, repeat petitions, and re-appeal to the government for the ownership of the Radosc property. Eventually, by God's Grace permisssion to purchase was granted but the price was unaffordable. When a new price was re-negotiated and the property purchased the first document autorizing the permission to apply for building was issued on Sept.24,1984. The next document of March 12,1985 is a building permit for a small building site not large enough to facilitate the execution of the building permit. Thus further expansion of the site was needed requiring a re-zoning application, feasibility studies etc. Finally 3 years later, on April 12,1988 a building permit for a Seminary and Youth and Children Center was granted.

1989 was the year of the quiet revolution when Solidarity in Poland finally triumphed and a new democratic government was installed. With the numerous formalities out of the way the work on the Radosc Center could finally begin. Now the only problems were of a financial nature.