- Place
- Viešvilė, Jurbarkas District Municipality
- Region
- Lithuania Minor
- Type
- active Roman Catholic parish church
- Address
- Klaipėdos g. 108, Viešvilė, LT-74233, Jurbarkas District
- Coordinates
- 55.08123, 22.38721
- Visit duration
- 15-30 minutes; longer during Mass
- Best time
- daylight or before a service confirmed from the current timetable
A Catholic place of worship from the eighteenth century
The Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia says a private Catholic chapel operated in Viešvilė from the mid-eighteenth century and that a church was built in 1863. The Diocese of Telšiai describes the 1863 stage more precisely as a public Catholic church arranged in a private house.
Both formulations establish a nineteenth-century milestone for the Catholic community, but do not prove that every part of the present building survives unchanged from 1863. The building's age must therefore be described more cautiously than the parish history.
Rectangular plan and two porches
The official diocesan description identifies a rectangular church plan, a small tower, and two projecting porches. These are the strongest published architectural reference points, so the origin of other details should not be guessed from appearance alone.
Approach this modest building as a living place of worship rather than a museum display. Its exterior is visible from the public setting, but churchyard rules and any parish event take priority over a visitor's itinerary.
Do not merge the Catholic and Lutheran records
In its history of Viešvilė, the Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia records a first Evangelical Lutheran church before 1556 and a Catholic chapel only from the mid-eighteenth century. These entries belong to different confessional communities and must not be combined into one building chronology.
Jurbarkas District Municipality places Viešvilė Church of the Transfiguration among the district's Catholic churches assigned to the Diocese of Telšiai. The same municipal page lists the district's Lutheran churches separately, making the present parish's identity clear.
Mass, contact, and visiting
On 24 July 2026, the Diocese of Telšiai listed Sunday Mass at 12:00, weekday Mass except Thursday at 17:00 in summer and 10:00 in winter, and Saturday services by arrangement. Timetables change, so check the same official page or call the listed parish contact before travelling.
Separate tourist opening hours are not published, so an unlocked door outside Mass is not guaranteed. Do not disturb worship, and photograph people or the interior only when permission allows it.
