One of the architectural trends of modernism was functionalism, which was also present in sacred architecture. An example is the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Rivne.

Modern architecture in Poland
Functionalist architecture, which was influenced by avant-garde Western architects such as Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, arrived in Poland in 1926 through an international exhibition of modern architecture in Warsaw's Zachęta Gallery. The domain of functionalism was residential architecture, for which the direction originated and with which it was integrally linked. In time it also appeared in public buildings and even in religious architecture, despite initial resistance from the clergy, who feared that a modern church design would be no different from a factory hall. The first Functionalist realisation of this type is considered to be the St. Casimir's Church in Katowice, built in 1930-1933 to a design by Leon Dietz d'Army.

Functionalism in sacred architecture
One of the most prominent examples of the application of functionalist form in sacred architecture is the Garrison Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Rivne, the largest city in the Volhynia Voivodeship. In the interwar years, there was a large military garrison here, with several units stationed there, including the large 13th Border Infantry Division, the 44th and 45th Border Rifle Infantry Regiments, the Rowne Cavalry Brigade and the 21st Nadwiślańskie Lancer Regiment, as well as a regiment of the Border Protection Corps. After the increase in the military contingent, the need to build a garrison church arose, as there was only one religious building in Rowne - the late 19th century neo-Gothic St Anthony's parish church. Funds for the construction were raised thanks to the commitment of the Ministry of Military Affairs, officers and soldiers of the Vistula Ulan Regiment, Prince Janusz Radziwiłł, owner of the nearby Olytsya Estate, and Senator Michał Skokowski.

Polish church in Rowne in Volyn - construction
. The architectural design was carried out by Witold Czeczott-Danilewicz (1895-1943 or 1944), a graduate of the Warsaw University of Technology. From 1929 he was employed in the Building Department of the Ministry of Military Affairs, and also ran an independent practice, designing for the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Public Works, among others. In the 1930s, he worked in Upper Silesia.

Construction matters were managed by the Rev. Major Antoni Butrymowicz, garrison chaplain. The construction was completed between 1931 and 1938. The church stood in the western part of the city, at the intersection of two of the city's main arteries, near the barracks and the Soldier's House, built in the mid-1920s. Thus, a kind of local centre was created in the military quarter of the city.

Church in Rivne - architecture
The floor plan of the church was solved in a traditional manner, dividing the interior into three naves and closing the chancel with a semicircular apse. A sacristy, a room for storing liturgical equipment, a library, a room for nuns and a technical room are adjacent to the presbytery. The composition of the building is a balanced and at the same time dynamic arrangement of geometrical volumes with an asymmetrical façade and a massive bell tower as the dominant feature.

In spite of the seemingly modest repertoire of forms, the whole is varied, which is emphasised by the window openings, ranging from wide and square in the semicircular apse wall to high and narrow in the nave and slit windows in the upper part of the bell tower, with a dominant oculus on the façade axis - a derivative of the Gothic rosette - giving the church's architecture a 'naval' character.

The central, projecting part of the façade is supported by columns, implementing Le Corbusier's postulate of the free ground floor principle. The smooth white plaster used to cover the façade completed the functionalist whole. In 1936, the monumental study Military Construction 1918-1935 wrote about the temple: "As one of the first churches built by the army, the church in Rivne by arch. W. Czeczott, which was extremely modernist in character. Although it preserved the traditions of a strong accent in the large round window, the richer form of the entrance, etc., all in the puritanical form of a pure modernist line".

Church in Rivne - history
The ceremonial opening of the church coincided with the annual celebration of the 13th Infantry Division. The ceremony was attended by, among others, the Voivode of Volyn, Henryk Józewski.

Until the end of the interwar period, the building served as a military temple. In November 1939, it was handed over to the Red Army for cultural activities. In the post-war years, the edifice served as a stable, later as a cinema hall, and eventually the interior was divided into two floors: a gymnasium, several service businesses and a furniture store were placed on the ground floor, and an office space on the first floor.

The sacred function was only restored after the collapse of the USSR. However, on 26 October 1991, the temple was consecrated by Bishop Rafał Kiernicki, Lviv auxiliary bishop. At present, it serves as the Catholic parish church of Rivne.