Church of the Redeemer (Hamburg-Borgfelde)
The Erlöserkirche ( ) in the Hamburg district of Borgfelde belongs to the Evangelical Lutheran parish of St. Georg-Borgfelde. It is the first church to be built in Hamburg after the destruction of World War II . Today, especially Christians from Ghana celebrate their services in the Church of the Redeemer.
history
The foundation stone for the predecessor building of today's Erlöserkirche was laid in 1902; two years earlier, the parish of Borgfelde was established as a separate entity from the parish of St. Georg ; The building was inaugurated in November 1903. The plans for the neo-Romanesque building with a central dome came from Georg Thielen († 1901). Fernando Lorenzen had designed a square interior with a vestibule, in which the altar, pulpit and organ were arranged centrally, as well as benches and galleries for the community around this center. The old church building offered space for 600 believers. In the Hamburg firestorm the old Church of the Redeemer was destroyed in July 1943, the ruins were blown up in March 1950.
Today's Church of the Redeemer was consecrated on November 9, 1952 as the first new church in Hamburg after the Second World War, one day before the 49th anniversary of the consecration of its predecessor. Since June 1955 a memorial on the east wall of the church commemorates the dead of both world wars, it was designed by Hans Kock . The tower of the Erlöserkirche was not completed until 1957; in May the tower and bells could be consecrated. The parish hall has been standing since 1961. A day-care center was opened in 1974. The pastorate of the old Erlöserkirche, located on Bürgerweide, which had survived the Second World War, was sold in 1990. Since the parishes of St. Georg and Borgfelde were reunited in 2004, the Erlöserkirche and the Holy Trinity Church of St. Georg belong to the parish of St. Georg-Borgfelde.
Church services and the African Center Borgfelde
Today, especially Christians from Ghana - members of the Methodist Church Ghana of UMC, Germany and the African Christian Church Hamburg - celebrate their services every Sunday in the Erlöserkirche.
Once a month (on the 2nd Sunday at 5:30 p.m.) the international gospel service is celebrated together in Hamburg. It is at the center of the activities of the African Center Borgfelde, a place of hospitality from Africans and Germans for everyone.
These intercultural activities began in 2005 with the establishment of the Pastoral Care Office for Africans in Hamburg in the tower of the Erlöserkirche.
Building
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The building with a gable roof planned by Henry Schlote and Friedrich Richard Ostermeyer is kept very simple. The only ornaments on the facade are small balconies on the tower and the memorial on the east wall. Only the passageways with segmental arches represent a concession to premodern traditions.
The interior is as simple as the exterior of the church. It is flat-roofed, has three aisles and is reminiscent of a Romanesque basilica ; the sanctuary is delimited by a round arch . The tall windows are made of plain glass; The only decorations are the simple wooden cross behind the altar, the walls of the pulpit carved by Ursula Querner and the reliefs on the baptismal font by Fritz Fleer - they show the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan and Noah's ark .
literature
- Ralf Lange : Architecture Guide Hamburg. Edition Axel Menges , Stuttgart 1995, ISBN 3-930698-58-7 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Our services: International Gospel Service in Hamburg. Congregation website, accessed September 29, 2015.
- ↑ Friedrich Degenhardt: How can African spirituality enliven North German Lutheran services? Lecture at the 48th International Ecumenical Seminar, Strasbourg 2014.
Coordinates: 53 ° 33 ′ 18.5 ″ N , 10 ° 1 ′ 37 ″ E