May procession (Scheer)
The May procession is a relic procession that takes place annually on the 1st Sunday in May in Scheer , a town on the Danube in the district of Sigmaringen ( Baden-Württemberg ) .
history
For stays of Stewards Christoph von Waldenburg - the eberhardinischen line of the house Waldenburg - in Ansbach in 1606 that asked for by the Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach , the head of the holy Wunibald . It was in their possession and was kept in a bust. The wife of the Truchessen, Maria Anna, b. Countess von Fürstenberg , picked up the reliquary . On April 27, 1606 was solemnly by Scheer transferred . From this time on the pilgrimage to Scheer began. The steward continued to try to get relic busts from the two siblings of Saint Wunibald. He received the reliquary of St. from the Eichstätt cathedral from the local bishop , Johann Konrad von Gemmingen . Willibald . The reliquary of St. Walburga comes from the Walburg Monastery .
Order of the Waldburg Truchessen on February 25, 1604
In a document of February 25, 1604 the following was ordered: Christof, Erbtruchsess, Freiherr von Waldburg, Herr zu Scheer and Trauchburg, see Kaiserl. Your Majesty Councilor and Chamberlain elects St. Walburga, St. Willibald and Wunibald and St. Richard of England to special patrons of the Waldburg house, mentioning the award of the house coat of arms by Duke Konradin in 1205 and the history of the house, the reminder to the house to read the legend of this patron diligently and order that in memory of St. Walburga and thanks for the maintenance of the house:
- the feast of St. Walburga zu Scheer is committed four times a year, on February 25th, the day she died, on May 1st, the day of her canonization, on August 4th, "when she moved from England", and on October 12th, on which her body was Heidenheim had been transferred to Eichstätt , with Vespers the day before and office in the castle chapel
- also on July 7th, the day of St. Willibald, the brother of St. Walburga and
- December 18, the day of St. Wunibald
On these days, the court chaplain, schoolmaster and choir students are to be served a meal with wine at the table in the Türnitz.
Change of the specified holidays
In 1771, under the reign of the heirs (the Eberhardin line of Truchsessen was extinct), some of the holidays fell away.
In 1782, Count Eberhard von Wurzach decided that the feast of St. Walburga should be celebrated on May 1st and not only in Scheer, but in the entire county .
Description of the relics
Reliquary of St. Wunibald
The bust reliquary comes from the 11th – 13th centuries. Century. It is 37.5 cm high and copper-gold plated. In the base area there is a niche frieze with relief busts of the Saints Margaretha, Katharina, Bonifatius , Willibaldus, Walpurgis , Wunibaldis. In the middle a crucifixion group. The donation report is engraved on the underside.
Reliquary of St. Willibald
St. Willibald is 40 cm high. On the rationale are the names of the five virtues: IV (STITIA) FIDES SPES CARITAS FO (RTITUDO) "Faith, hope, love, justice, bravery". Including a niche frieze with 12 saints. In the center a relief medallion with the coronation of Mary. An engraved Waldburger coat of arms on the reverse. The letter of foundation is engraved on the underside of the copper-gilt chest reliquary.
Reliquary of St. Walburga
The copper-gilded St. Walburga measures 43 cm and contains a niche frieze with 12 saints in the base area. In the middle there is an arched niche as a well for the Walburgis oil. Since then, Walburgis oil has also been venerated in the Waldburg area , which was found in the Eichstätter monastery church from the tomb of St. Walburga flows. Since a drying up of the oil flow always heralded severe times of emergency, this is often viewed with concern. The pastor of Scheer is therefore in constant contact with the abbess of Eichstätt . The abbess has a special obligation to report any drying up of the oil flow to Scheer immediately.
Pilgrimage and miraculous healing
An extract from the miraculous healings of St. Wunibald is in the Scheer parish archive . Numerous miraculous healings are reported in it. In the period that followed, more and more people came to Scheer trusting miraculous healing and went on pilgrimages , even from Switzerland . All miraculous healings were recorded in a “Great Wonder Book”.
The procession
At 6 o'clock the Scheerer citizens are woken up with the playing of the day watch and with gunfire. High mass begins at 10 a.m. in the parish church of St. Nikolaus . After the service, the reliquary procession begins from Kirchberg down into the city. The traffic on the main road is stopped when the procession turns from Hirschstraße into Mengener Straße and then turns past the town hall in front of the Danube bridge into Donaustraße. At the end of Donaustraße, it goes back up to Mengener Straße and again over Hirschstraße to the church.
May procession with Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Maria Renz
May procession when turning into the Mengener Strasse in Scheer
May procession - prayer in the city center
