To me, church just felt like a building, a place for an individual conversation with God.
Although Andrius, a maths teacher, had always considered himself a believer, his relationship with the church was cautious and distant.
“To me, church just felt like a building – a place for an individual conversation with God,” he shares. “The rituals didn’t seem necessary. But deep down I kept wondering, was my perspective right? What’s really behind these traditions?”
One day, while strolling through Vilnius’ Old Town, he stepped into Ramintoja Church to look around. A simple conversation with a staff member about books soon turned into a deeper one about life and faith, and Andrius found himself accepting an invitation to attend Mass.
“There I heard Father Algirdas Toliatas preach and invite people to join Alpha. I thought, why not?” he recalls. Although he arrived feeling curious and ready to explore a more communal form of faith, he stopped going after a few sessions.
Reserved and introverted
“I’m a reserved and introverted person,” he explains. “Here I experienced an overwhelming amount of warmth and community – real conversations, hospitality, shared meals. It surprised me and made me uncomfortable, perhaps because until then, church had been a quiet, personal space for me.”
Yet deep down, his brief experience on Alpha had shifted something for Andrius. “Something like a small ember started to glow inside,” he remembers.
Months later, when his Alpha group leader invited him to try Alpha again, he felt ready. He settled in easily, completed the course and became part of the church community. Today, he serves on the Alpha team, and his relationship with faith has changed profoundly.
Exploring faith more deeply
“I’m exploring faith more deeply now,” he shares. “I read the Bible, and it is opening up to me in a completely new way. What once felt like disconnected stories now forms a unified, living narrative connected to today.”
Andrius has also found his perspective on church transformed through Alpha. “The true purpose of Alpha is to reveal the real Church – not as an organisation or building, but as a community,” he reflects. “It is through a human and emotional experience that people encounter the essence of faith.”
Andrius’s story is part of a transformation that God has been bringing about in Ramintoja Church, through Alpha. Since reopening its doors in 2018, the church has consistently run Alpha – first once a year, then twice and now more as people of different ages are drawn to explore faith.
The true purpose of Alpha is to reveal the real Church – not as an organisation or building, but as a community.
“What amazes me is that Alpha lasts only 12 sessions, yet people form such close relationships it feels like they’ve known each other all their lives,” shares Father Algirdas. “Alpha is first and foremost about relationships. In a time marked by loneliness and fragmented connections, this is especially important.
“After Alpha, Sunday Mass is no longer just a personal act of devotion – it begins to feel like a family gathering. People start to know each other and genuinely care.”
At Ramintoja Church, a new tradition has taken root, with people gathering after Mass to share meals, talk and share life.
