Roman Catholic Church of the Good Shepherd

Istebna was settled quite late. The first woodcutters and shepherds did not appear here in earnest until the 17th century. From the beginning they were associated with nearby Jablunkov (now in the Czech Republic), and attended the parish church there. At the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, missionaries from the Jesuit order began a recatholization campaign in an area overrun by Protestants. Father Leopold Tempes was active in Istebna and surrounding settlements. At first he held services in the open air, but soon a small wooden church was built through the efforts of highlanders and soldiers from the Jablunkov battlements. It served the faithful until the end of the 18th century. A new church dedicated to the Good Shepherd was erected between 1792 and 1794. The most clear reference to the Baroque style is the tower topped with an onion-shaped cupola. The temple was expanded in the 1920s. The church has three naves with galleries. Inside, several mementos from the old temple have been preserved. At the entrance, a beam with the date 1720 is placed above the threshold, while in the side altar we can find a crucifix made of linden wood (according to legend, it was made by the disciples of Wit Stwosz). The decor of the temple also refers to the Baroque. However, it is the work of artists who lived in the 19th and 20th centuries. Ludwik Konarzewski senior - a visual artist born in Wilanów, but living in Istebna - carved the main altar, the boat-shaped pulpit, the baptismal font, the balusters and the thrones - the bishop's and the president's - together with his students. He also helped make the polychrome, designed by an Istevanian - Jan Walach. The latter painted, among other things, the image of Christ the Good Shepherd with the mountain panorama in the background (in the main altar), as well as images of the saints Maximilian Kolbe, Teresa of the Child Jesus and John Sarkander. By Ludwik Konarzewski junior are the sculptures of St. Joseph (side altar) and the polychrome in the chapel on the right side of the presbytery. Maria Konarzewska also made her contribution to the decoration of the temple, creating original ceramics, which can be found in the aforementioned chapel. It is worth mentioning that Father Emanuel Grim, a writer, social activist and folklorist, was the parish priest at the Church of the Good Shepherd from 1917 to 1950.

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