Methodist Church of Christ (Berlin-Friedrichshain)
The Christ Church is a small, listed wooden church belonging to the Methodist community in the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district of Berlin , also known colloquially as the wooden church . It is a post-war building that replaced the Elim Church that previously existed here . It was initially intended as a temporary solution and as an emergency church , but was able to assert and establish itself as a permanent structure. Alongside the Revelation Church, it is one of two very different types of emergency churches built in Friedrichshain after the Second World War .
history
In 1888 the Methodist Elim congregation was founded in Weidenweg in the former Friedrichshain district . In 1895 they had a neo-Gothic style church built on the property at Tilsiter Strasse 14/15 (today: Richard-Sorge-Strasse ) , which was said to be the most beautiful and largest Methodist church in all of Berlin . An organ - initially driven mechanically by means of a bellows, but soon equipped with an electric drive - was part of the interior. This building was not only used by the Methodists, but also by other Christians in the area for services, weddings and funerals.
At the end of the Second World War - first in 1941 and finally on February 3, 1945 - the church, together with the pastor's house next to it, was so badly damaged that the remains had to be cleared in 1947 . The number of Methodists had dropped to 120 by the end of the war.
Donations from American and Swedish Methodists made it possible for a small wooden church built in Sweden to be transported by rail via Saßnitz to Berlin in November 1948 . The transport weight of the church was given as 30,000 kilograms. The church, initially intended as an emergency church, was erected at the old location. When the church was consecrated on December 25, 1948, the house was named Christ Church and was again used as a house of prayer for around 400 Methodists. In 1973 a major renovation of the church was carried out inside and outside. After 1990 plans were developed to demolish residential buildings as well as considerations for the construction of a new place of worship, but these were shelved after the wooden church was included in the Berlin list of monuments. In 1997/1998 the church was extensively renovated, in particular the floors had to be renewed and heating installed. It was inaugurated again with a festival service on October 11, 1998. Since then, around 150 people have belonged to the parish.
The church building
The main body is 27 meters long, 10 meters wide and covered with a flat gable roof. A simple and wooden church tower rises directly on the roof. In 1971 an organ was built into the wooden church, which had been manufactured in 1943 by G. F. Steinmeyer & Co .; it has two manuals , 13 sounding registers and a total of 850 pipes and is located behind the wooden altar wall. For more information on the organ see here:
In addition to church purposes and the community's social tasks, the Christ Church is also used for lectures and concerts.
See also
literature
- Ralf Schmiedecke: Berlin-Friedrichshain . Sutton Verlag, Erfurt 2006, ISBN 3-86680-038-X , p. 35 (The archive images series) .
- Jan Feustel : Guided tour and lecture on the history of the wooden church and the organ in October 1998.
- A church tells about their life . Flyer of the Evangelical Methodist Christ Church. Published by the parish, 1988.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Copy of the "Import Goods Accompanying Note", Nov. 1948; available from the author of the article
- ↑ Heide Schlebeck A temporary solution is ennobled . In: Berliner Zeitung from winter 1997
- ↑ Information on the organ
Coordinates: 52 ° 31 '9 " N , 13 ° 26' 56" E