The culture and spiritual traditions of each nation are formed over centuries and millennia, passed down from generation to generation. Christianity has had a significant impact on this process. Churches represent the living history of a nation and state, being witnesses to the complex and contradictory history of our people. They may seem silent, but in reality, one must learn to listen to them.

One of the outstanding monuments of national architecture that has survived to this day is the Cathedral of St. Archangel Michael in Mozyr. In 1645, retired Colonel Stefan Lozko transferred part of the hill opposite the Mozyr Castle to the Bernardine monks, for whom he built a small wooden monastery. However, in 1648, during the Cossack-peasant war, the monastery was destroyed. The wars of the mid-17th century nearly erased Mozyr from the face of the earth. Only under Grand Duke Jan III Sobieski in 1678 did the restoration of the city begin.

At that time, the most influential family in the Mozyr Polesie was the Askeroks, whose members held high state positions and owned large estates. In 1745, seeking to immortalize their merits, the Askeroks began the construction of a new stone Bernardine monastery, the center of which was to be a majestic cathedral. The exact dates of construction are unknown, but the church was likely consecrated in the 60s or 70s of the 18th century. The monastery complex was executed in the style of late Baroque and included a primary school and library.

For their services to the Church, the Askeroks received the highest honor: a family burial vault was arranged in the cathedral's crypt. After the events of the late 18th century and the annexation of Belarus to the Russian Empire, as well as the uprisings of the 19th century, the monastery was closed, and its buildings were used as administrative offices and a hospital. The cathedral was repeatedly burned and destroyed.

In 1864, the church, which was in a deplorable state, was handed over to the Orthodox Church and consecrated in honor of St. Archangel Michael. On September 5, 1865, it was consecrated according to the Orthodox rite, beginning a new chapter in its history. It seemed that the cathedral would become the center of the revival of Orthodoxy in southeastern Polesie.

The beginning of the 20th century did not affect the church with the destruction of World War I and the Bolshevik coup, but this was only a lull before the Stalinist terror. It was unimaginable how far human cruelty and madness could go in an attempt to oppose God. Stalinism, destroying Christian foundations, unleashed unprecedented terror on the country. The mass destruction of churches in the 1920s was just the beginning of mass killings.

The Cathedral of St. Archangel Michael in Mozyr, under the protection of the heavenly host, avoided destruction, but it faced another trial. It became a place of martyrdom for many innocent people, turning into an NKVD prison in the Polesie region. According to incomplete data, over 2000 death sentences were handed down here.

Decades have passed, but the truth remains. As a sign of repentance and for the edification of descendants, a temple in honor of the New Martyrs and Confessors of Polesie was created in the crypt of the St. Michael's Cathedral.