Parish Church of St. Vitus (Weichering)
St. Vitus is the Catholic parish church in Weichering in Upper Bavaria in the district of Neuburg-Schrobenhausen .
Church history
The church is dedicated to St. Vitus . A church in Weichering was first mentioned in a document in 1316. The place itself belonged to the parish in Weichering, but also Hagau, Lichtenau, the Haghof near Rohrenfeld, as well as the places Rohrenfeld and Bruck.
In 1494, Duke Georg der Rich von Landshut founded the Collegium Georgianum in Ingolstadt for the next generation of priests. In 1496 the duke granted the Georgianum the right of patronage for Weichering. This meant, among other things, that it had the right of presentation (right of proposal) for the clergy in this parish. In May 1800 the Georgianum was relocated to Landshut together with the University of Ingolstadt and in 1826 both institutions came to Munich. The Georgianum still exists as a seminary . The Munich seminary has the right to propose clergymen to this day.
Old church
During the Thirty Years War the Swedes are said to have badly damaged the church in Weichering. It is recorded in 1649 that the sacristy in particular was in danger of collapsing. In 1675 the church roof was damaged, it rained in and the "church ornamenta" suffered as a result.
It was not until 1725, under Pastor Georg Miller, that something moved about renovation. The church tower and church got a new roof structure, and hand work was also done inside. For this purpose, oaks were felled from the healing wood, but most of the construction wood was bought from the Niederarnbach forest. The pastor financed the work partly from his own resources and partly from collections.
On March 10, 1847, the condition of the church was again very poor, with large masses of snow and storms badly affecting the building. If the repair is delayed, the lives of the churchgoers would also be endangered, according to a status report. The southern longitudinal wall was strongly pressed inwards and the northern one outwards, there was a risk of collapse. Nevertheless, a church was not built.
New church building
In 1887 Pastor Bernhard Buyel took over the parish of Weichering. The church was dilapidated at that time, the high altar was no longer usable, the organ could not be played and the prayer chairs were partly burned.
In 1894 kaufel founded a church building association, thereby laying the financial foundation for church building. The question of space was the next problem, a new piece of land had to be found. On May 2, 1898, the pastor wrote in a letter: "My church is driving me around as if stung by a tarantula, finding no rest and no peace and - no way out due to lack of building site."
But these difficulties could be overcome. On Saturday, June 15, 1901, the parish celebrated at the patronage “St. Vitus ” laid the foundation stone for the new church in the center of the village. The construction work had already started at this point, the foundations had already been excavated.
During the construction work, Pastor Buyel was appointed to Augsburg as cathedral chapter in 1901 . His successor Pastor Joseph Thuma was supposed to complete the work.
On Saturday, July 18, 1903, the new church was consecrated by the Augsburg bishop Maximilian von Lingg . On Friday the relics were brought from the old to the new church in a solemn procession . Bishop Lingg took on the act of consecration with the assistance of 16 clergymen. Cathedral Capitular Bernhard Buyel was present as the preacher.
The church building cost a total of over 90,000 marks instead of the initially estimated 76,000 marks , not counting the free manual and clamping services. Much of this was funded by a community loan that was fully repaid in the early 1940s.
Church description
The St. Vitus church is the symbol of Weichering. From the outside it appears as an unplastered red brick building in the neo-Romanesque style, which seems unusual for this region. The church tower is crowned by a rhombus dome.
The church forecourt was redesigned in 2005 and 2006. The war memorial from the 1950s in the immediate vicinity of the church was also replaced by a new one.
The vestibule is equipped with massive oak doors. To the left and right above the two entrance doors, the vestibule is decorated with the two princes of the apostles Peter and Paul. There is a picture of the Sea of Galilee above the large entrance. The interior of the church has three altars. On the high altar there is a representation of the patron saint St. Vitus , this figure comes from the previous church. To the left there is an altar of Our Lady and to the right one of Saint Joseph. The imperial baron Theodor von Cramer-Klett jun. donated the high altar, he was considered a friend of Pastor Buyel. The Munich artist and Art Nouveau painter Franz Hofstötter (1871–1951) was commissioned to paint the mural . The sculptor and art professor Sebastian Osterrieder (1864–1932) created the altars. Osterrieder was also called "Krippen-Wastl" because of his nativity scene. Probably for this reason, a nativity scene and the flight to Egypt have been inserted as wooden reliefs in the Altar of Mary.
In 1956, much of the church's furnishings fell victim to a major renovation. The altar structures were removed, the church walls painted over and pictures designed in tile mosaic, including the church patron St. Vitus. The art and church painter Michael P. Weingartner from Pfaffenhofen was commissioned this time. Christ was placed as king above the high altar, adorned with a colorful royal cloak. The entire renovation was said to have been well done and there was talk of a sight in the local church.
However, since the changed equipment was not well received, renovations were initiated again in 1987. In two years of work, the original paintings were exposed again and the interior of the church was restored to its 1903 condition.
At the end of the renovation, the sacred building received a folk altar made of Jura marble, which was created by the academic sculptor Franz Hämmerle from Windach / Ammersee. In the popular altar the relics of St. Christina and other martyrs were sealed in the stone.
Anthony's Chapel
The small chapel, dedicated to St. Anton, stands on the site of the old church. Pastor Josef Thuma was the idea generator, initiator and builder.
In order to save costs, the tower foundation served as the foundation wall. The demolition material of the tower was again building material, everything that was still usable was used, such as wood or Solnhofen slabs and door frames. Several citizens declared their willingness to do manual and clamping services. On November 22, 1905, the Ordinariate in Augsburg approved the construction project. The chapel builder was able to meet the requirement to deposit the required amount of 810 marks in cash before the building contract was awarded. The construction of the chapel began in spring 1906. The shell was already in place on April 7, 1906, and the chapel was completed on January 2, 1907.
The ceiling of the chapel is adorned with a former altarpiece with the Weicheringen Castle. A statue of Our Lady as a replica of the Austrian pilgrimage church Mariazell was also located here. The authenticity of the replica is documented in the parish archive. The names of the Weicheringen priests are carved in stone in the chapel. The back of the chapel reminds us that the church stood in this place until 1903 and that the church was surrounded by a cemetery until 1881.
Another addition was made in 1912, a Stations of the Cross was built around the chapel. The designs for it came from Professor Klein from Munich. When the Kapellenplatz was later redesigned, the damaged Way of the Cross was removed again. The site was redesigned again around 2000.
Bells
Church bells are first mentioned in 1599. At that time the big bell was broken, the small one was also damaged. This means that at least two bells must have hung in the tower at the end of the 16th century. The two damaged bells were cast in a single eight hundredweight (400 kg) bell in 1600 . There was also one of the four bells from Bergheim, of which only three were ever rung.
In 1874, three new bells were purchased, which were manufactured by the Eduard Becker bell foundry in Ingolstadt. The big bell weighed 776 kg and was dedicated to St. Vitus , the second with a mass of 450 kg to St. Joseph and the third with 260 kg to the Mother of God . These bells were transferred to the new church in 1903. Pastor Kaeufel donated a fourth of 150 kg, which was consecrated to the Holy Kreszentia of Kaufbeuren and poured by the bell caster Georg Bachmaier from Ingolstadt. The ringing had the tone sequence F - A - C - D.
The bells were spared during the First World War. In the Second World War, however, the three big bells had to be removed from the tower and delivered on July 10, 1942, regardless of requests and objections. The sound holes were too small to transport the two large bells into the open air through this opening, so these two were smashed in the tower. Shortly afterwards the remaining fourth bell also cracked in two, which completely silenced the ringing.
Shortly after the end of the war, copper and tin were procured for new bells. In January 1946, the Salesian Father Xaver Steinherr, who came from Weichering, had the cathedral music director Dr. Schrems in Regensburg collect the required material with twice the weight of that previously delivered. The Karl Hamm bell foundry in Regensburg received the order to cast five bells for Weichering and four bells for Lichtenau and to deliver another bell to Karlshuld. However, the first casting failed in November 1946 for an unexplained cause, and so a new casting took place in January 1947. On January 25th, the new bells were brought to Weichering and Lichtenau and on the next day, a Sunday, the bells were consecrated by the local priest Paul Heggenstaller with the assistance of Father Steinherr.
However, since the tone sequence did not match as agreed, two bells had to be replaced with new ones. The new casting took place on May 15, 1948. On June 3, the new bells arrived, and the next evening the new bell rang. This time the sound test was satisfactory. The verdict of the bell expert, Domkapellmeister Reiser from Augsburg was: "The plenum results in a wave of main and secondary tones, which is just as saturated with perfect tonal purity as it is elegant sound." The tone sequence is D - F - G - A - C.
The largest bell weighs 1520 kg and bears the inscription: Christ, King, all honor and glory be to you. The second bell weighs 870 kg, its text reads: St. Vitus, patron saint of our community, protect and preserve it in the Christian faith. - The builder of the church B. Kaufel, Rev. and Spiritual Council 1887-1901, J. Thuma, Pastor 1901-1914 . The third is the Marienglocke with 620 kg and the inscription: Queen of the Holy Rosary, our community and our Bavarian homeland are consecrated to you. - To the benefactors of the church, Freiherr von Cramer - Klett, HH Prof. Dr. Schrems, HH Father Stein Mr. X . The fourth bell weighing 360 kg is the Joseph bell with the inscription: O Lord, remember all of our dear deceased, especially the sons of our community Weichering who died in the war of 1914-1918 and 1939-1945 . Finally, the smallest with 220 kg and the text: Holy Guardian Angel my, let me be recommended to you! .
Afternoon bells
According to a legend, a noble daughter is said to have got lost in the forest here. When the bells rang, she followed this sound, found her bearings again and came out from Weichering. Weichering was given a piece of forest for this.
Research revealed that there was a note about it in the church records. There it is recorded: “The so-called Branst, a forest, belonged to the castle in Weichering. One of the noblemen donated this forest to the community on the condition that from Georgi to Michaeli at 4 p.m. and from Michaeli to Georgi at 3 p.m., two bells should be rung one after the other and the villagers were obliged to have our Father, Ave Maria and Lord give the deceased eternal rest to pray for the nobleman’s deceased family. "
However, nobody can say when the gift was made. The bells are still kept today, even if the prayers are no longer.
graveyard
Until 1881 the cemetery in Weichering was around the church at Kapellenplatz. Because of a lack of space, a new cemetery had to be built on the outskirts. Around the year 2000 the structure around the chapel was changed again. A plaque on the chapel still reminds of the church and cemetery of yore. After the Second World War, the community built a morgue in the new cemetery.
Personalities
Cathedral Capitular Bernhard Buyel
One of the most prominent personalities who worked in Weichering is probably the clergyman Bernhard Kaufel. For his services in Weichering, he was given a monument with the street name “Pfarrer-kaufel-Straße”.
Kaufel was born on March 30, 1840, the son of a shoemaker. He graduated from the St. Stephan high school in Augsburg , the Lyceum there and attended the University of Munich. The Augsburg bishop Pankraz von Dinkel ordained him as a priest . As a chaplain, he had to complete various positions, such as Altusried near Kempten, St. Moritz in Augsburg. In 1877 he came to Griesbäckerzell as vicar and took over the parish of Obergriesbach for ten years, where he gained a great reputation and his spiritual confreres elected him treasurer of the Friedberg rural chapter.
On May 12, 1887, the Augsburg Ordinariate put the Weichering parish in his hands. In the 14 years that he was able to spend here, he worked tirelessly. In order to alleviate the misery of the people, he organized a meeting on May 6, 1889 and advocated the founding of a “savings and loan association” based on the Raiffeisen system. This was the basis for a later Raiffeisen bank. Kaufel became the founding board member and held the position until he moved in 1901.
The pastor became the engine of the Raiffeisen movement, not only in the district, but also in Swabia and throughout Bavaria. On November 28, 1893, he emerged as deputy chairman of the supervisory board of the Bavarian Raiffeisenzentralkassen. On January 10, 1894, he was elected district attorney for Swabia, at the same time as chairman of the Neuburg district. The clergyman was also given the office of district school inspector and thus had the school supervision in the district of Neuburg.
Prince Regent Luitpold awarded him the title of "Royal Spiritual Council ". A more difficult task awaited him, namely building the "Eternal Work" of the church. In 1894 he founded a church building association and thus set the financial basis for the large project.
On June 15, 1901, exactly at the patronage, kaufel was allowed to lay the foundation stone for the church. But now the clergyman was the epitome of the district, he came in 1896 through the Center Party as a member of the Bavarian state parliament. Until 1905 he was the elected representative of the district of Neuburg Stadt und Land and the district of Monheim.
But even in the middle of his work “Church building” the Augsburg bishop, Peter III. in 1901 and brought him to the diocese as cathedral chapter . Even in Neuburg there was a big farewell party in the presence of the celebrities. Kaufel was allowed to return to Weichering once more, he was the preacher at the inauguration of the new church on July 18, 1903.
As cathedral chapter he continued to care about the worries and needs of the people. Now he became the great advocate of the Dominican Sisters in Schlehdorf. He had a hand in it when it came to the purchase of the Augustinian Canon Monastery in Schlehdorf. With this he created a home for the Dominican women. The bishop also appreciated his commitment and appointed him to his spiritual advisory board.
The work of the pastor has been honored with many awards. The Bavarian State Government awarded him the Order of Merit St. Michael IV. Class, as well as the small and large merit medal in silver and gold. He also got the agricultural anniversary medal in silver.
The last years of his life severely restricted his work, an insidious ailment drained his labor. At the age of 71, Cathedral Chapter Buyer died in Augsburg. A large funeral procession on November 14, 1911, as well as many obituaries by personalities underlined the appreciation of the deceased.
Spiritual advice Pastor Paul Heggenstaller
Paul Heggenstaller (born September 19, 1910 in Schrobenhausen, † November 27, 2000) was pastor in Weichering from June 1941 to 1965 and was also vicar of the Lichtenau Curate Benefit from 1950 to 1965 .
He received on 22 July 1934 at the Georgianum in Munich by Bishop Joseph Kumpfmüller the sacrament of Holy Orders . On August 16, 1934 he became city chaplain of Krumbach, on September 1, 1935 city chaplain in Augsburg and on May 1, 1938 parish vicar in Ach bei Oberstaufen. On May 30, 1941, he took over the pastorate in Weichering.
In 1942 the bells were removed for war purposes, the Muna (munitions plant) in Weichering was blown up, causing great damage to the church roof and the church windows. In contrast, the consecration of bells was in 1949, one of the first after the war. In 1953 he celebrated the 50th anniversary of the church with Bishop Joseph Freundorfer . In 1954, an electric bell replaced the bells, and in 1956 a major interior and exterior renovation was carried out.
The parish valued the work of the pastor and in 1956 granted him honorary citizenship. His portrait can be found in the parish office today. In 1959 Pastor Heggenstaller and the congregation celebrated the 25th anniversary of the priesthood. After 24 years in the Weichering parish, he moved to Seeshaupt on Lake Starnberg at the end of 1965 and became a pastor there. In 1986 the clergyman retired and moved to St. Pölten in Weilheim.
Two pastors from the parish
The fact that several clergymen emerge from one parish is a rarity. As far as is known, two pastors have emerged from the parish of Weichering over the centuries.
Anton early drink
- Born on January 11, 1711 in Weichering in what would later become the Kroll estate. Today the Raiffeisenbank stands on the house where he was born. It is only known that the clergyman was a beneficiary in Heideck and later a pastor in Schwennenbach . Frühtrunk died in Höchstädt-Donau in 1773.
Father Xaver Steinherr
Xaver Steinherr SDB was born on June 6, 1886 in Weichering. He originally learned the trade of a farmer and attended the agricultural school in Neuburg. He completed his internship at Gut Gruner in Thierhaupten and at Schlossgut Tagmersheim. He then found his job with the Dominican Missionaries in Schlehdorf am Kochelsee as an agricultural administrator. The monastery sent the young economist to Cape Town in Africa. It was there that Steinherr met the Salesians of Don Bosco , entered the order and made his first profession in 1909 .
Now the young Salesian sat down on the school desk again and prepared himself for the priesthood. In 1914 he was ordained a subdeacon and in 1915 a deacon. The First World War prevented him from studying. Steinherr fell into English captivity and spent most of the time on the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea. As a late caller, he was ordained a priest in 1923 in Vienna's St. Stephen's Cathedral by the Prince-Bishop there in January 1923. On Whit Monday 1923, the new priest celebrated his home prime in Weichering at the field cross opposite the old forester's house. Over ten thousand believers, wrote the local newspaper at the time, are said to have taken part.
Until 1929, Father Steinherr worked with great zeal as prefect in the house of the Salesians in Unterwaltersdorf in Lower Austria. Now he came to Helenenberg in Austria as an economist and confessor. Other places of activity were Benediktbeuern, Ensdorf, Buxheim and Regensburg. At the Mariahilf Sisters in Eschelbach, he was employed as a religion teacher for the household students. Due to a heart condition, he had to retire to Ensdorf Abbey in 1955 and died there in 1956 at the age of 70. At his own request he was buried in Weichering. He is immortalized on the priest's grave.
Despite his many places of activity, Father Steinherr never let his home parish out of sight, but supported them in various matters. He was the great mediator of the bells after the last world war. For this, his name was also poured into the Marienglocke as a benefactor. After the last world war, the pastor of souls also tried to get the new church windows that had been destroyed by the effects of the war. The parish thanked the pastor with the street name "Pater-Steinherr-Straße".
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Diocese of Augsburg
- ^ Church history Weichering. Weichering community, February 4, 2008, accessed on February 20, 2016 : “ According to the certificate, this year the canon Chunrat bequeathed his court in Hagau to the canons of Freising and determined that part of the Gilten should be given an eternal light at the St. Witels altar and for a priest "who should speak Mass" to be used. "
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Church history Weichering. Weichering community, February 4, 2008, accessed on February 20, 2016 .
- ↑ a b c d Josef Krammer, Johann Raab, Heidi Lautner, Gudrun Kistler (eds.): Historisches Gemeindeblatt. Weichering, October 2004, p. 2
Coordinates: 48 ° 43 '0.7 " N , 11 ° 19' 17.3" E