Parish church Thal near Graz
The Roman Catholic parish church Thal bei Graz is located in the market town of Thal bei Graz in the Graz-Umgebung district in Styria . The parish church of St. James the Greater - the Rein incorporated - is part of the Dean's Office Graz-West of the city of Graz Church in the Diocese Graz-Seckau . The church and the former cemetery are under monument protection . Today's artistic design was carried out by the artist Ernst Fuchs .
history
The parish of Thal is first mentioned in a document in 1322. It was founded by the mother parish of Gratwein and has been attached to Rein Abbey since 1607 . The church in Unterthal Castle, consecrated to St. James, the patron saint of pilgrims and travelers, originally served as the parish church . In 1715 a fire destroyed large parts of the castle. Today only parts of the ruins near the Thalersee are preserved. The castle church was described as ruinous as early as 1755. In 1772, after the castle and the castle church gradually fell into disrepair, the parish rights were transferred to a nearby chapel on Thaler Kirchberg. Here, presumably on a plague cemetery , stood a wooden cemetery chapel , consecrated to St. Sebastian since 1618 . In 1739, a brick building with an onion dome was built as a church tower . In order to do justice to the increased number of inhabitants, the chapel was extended several times. The St. Jacob's patronage was transferred to the original St. Sebastian's Chapel in 1772, which became the parish church of St. Jacob.
New building project
Initiatives for a new building were launched in the early 1970s. Plans were commissioned and models presented. The project developed in the process was, however, ranked far back in the building plan of the diocese , as the funds that could be raised by the parish itself were insufficient. In 1987, on the occasion of a parish visit , Bishop Johann Weber agreed to rebuild the Thaler Church.
The realization of the project goes back to the first drafts of the architect of the episcopal building authority Manfred Fuchsbichler from the year 1987. As in his previous plans, he wanted to largely preserve the old church and connect it to the new building. The concept envisaged a new building including the old church, which is to serve as a sacrament and baptistery . The concept also provided for a high proportion of the population to work. Volunteers worked around 4,000 hours. The artistic design was carried out by the artist Ernst Fuchs in the style of the Vienna School of Fantastic Realism .
Ernst Fuchs, as a connoisseur of the biblical writings and the Jewish and Christian symbolism , did not leave it with the artistic design, but expanded the entire architectural concept in the sense of a total work of art with a fantastic variety of colors and shapes and impressive light effects.
“You have to recognize from afar: This is a holy place. Wherever the eyes look, there has to be something to see. "
With the laying of the foundation stone on May 23, 1992, the new or extension building began, and on May 15, 1994 the church consecration was celebrated by Bishop Johann Weber.
Exterior design
The exterior of the church was completely redesigned in the course of the church expansion. The building is provided with three gable roof constructions of different sizes , which span fan-shaped over a trapezoidal floor plan , give the entire complex the character of a pointed crystal and have been adapted to the roof shapes of the old building. The old tower is three-story and has a pointed helmet . The processional path and the generously enlarged church forecourt, flanked by striking candelabra , underline the effect of the structure. The old cemetery cross is attached to the church tower. The entrance area is dominated by a canopy with a red beam structure.
- Pilgrim path: In addition to the main entrance, another path leads along the back around the church and then on to the altar. This pilgrimage route is designed as a pebble path and is reminiscent of St. James, the patron saint of pilgrims. The bumps in the path are meant to remind you that things don't always go smoothly in life.
- Facade:
- New building: The facade of the new church building is made of hard-fire bricks and patinated copper sheets .
- Old Church: The outer walls of the old building are plastered, painted turquoise and partially decorated with gravel applications. On the facade of the apse of the old church there are monograms made from pebbles of Mary (the heart), Jesus Christ (the tree of life), and Joseph (the house).
- Entrance gates: Despite their size, the entrance gates are almost hidden in the facade . The thick glass doors are opened with handles made of ram's horn, the preferred sacrificial animal of the biblical people of Israel . The symbols Alpha and Omega as well as crossed keys and the Christ monogram are attached to the glass doors .
inner space
- Open roof structure: The roof structure , which is painted in all colors of the rainbow and is open on the inside, is reminiscent of the desert tent that the Israelites erected during their exodus from ancient Egypt. The color of the bars is reminiscent of the rainbow , the symbol of the covenant that Noah made with God . Daylight penetrates through seventeen triangular dormers of different sizes and through vertical pilaster strips mirrored with crystal glass elements.
- Mary's Window: A glass window in the apse shows a picture of Maria-Hilf , a copy of the famous painting by Lukas Cranach in Innsbruck Cathedral . The glass window is processed using a double glass technique. The motif is burned once in black solder onto transparent glass, the motif is etched into purple glass a second time.
- Picture Transfiguration of the Lord: The picture on the left in the apse depicts the Transfiguration of the Lord on Mount Tabor . The event is observed by three disciples . James, the church patron, is one of them. Ernst Fuchs makes Jesus and Moses appear congruent in this picture .
- Vocation at the lake: The right picture in the apse is by Ernst Fuchs and also shows a scene in which St. James is involved. The calling of the disciples through Jesus at the Sea of Galilee is shown. At the top of the picture you can see migrating birds, they are a symbol for believers who listen to God's word. Jesus is shown larger in this picture than in the picture Transfiguration of the Lord . This is to express that Jesus is closer to the people in this scene.
- Scallop: The symbol of the Apostle James, the scallop , can be found many times in the church. In part, on the walls scallops to find that holy water is shaped as a scallop, the backrest of the seats of plastic show the same motif. A special form is the 16 to 20 million year old fossilization of a scallop, which was found in a quarry in Retznei , in a glass stele behind the priest's seat .
- Altar: The altar is made of crystal glass . A relic of St. Sebastian , the original patron of the Thaler Church, is buried in the front under the altar .
- Old church interior: The original church interior has remained despite the extensive renovation of the building and has its function in the overall appearance of the parish church. The neo - high altar dates from 1897. The side altar shows an Mariahilf image from the 18th century. The baptismal font is decorated with relief representations . Ernst Fuchs chose the motif Adam, Eve and the tree of paradise .
Way of St. James West Styria
The church has been the starting point for the Way of St. James in West Styria since October 25, 2010 . In total, the distance between Thal bei Graz and Lavamünd is 154 km and approx. 4954 meters in ascent and approx. 5022 meters in descent, divided into 8 stages.
literature
- Gerhard Platzer: The parish church of St. Jakob in Thal near Graz . A description of the redesign and redesign of the building 1992 - 1994. 1st edition. Parish Thal, 1997.
Web links
- Parish of Thal near Graz. Retrieved January 23, 2016 .
- Virtual tour of the Church of St. Jakob in Thal (exterior and interior view) ( Memento from January 10, 2011 on WebCite )
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Unterthal Castle. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on June 22, 2006 ; Retrieved January 13, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Course of the eight stages of the Way of St. James West Styria. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on January 9, 2011 ; Retrieved January 13, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
Coordinates: 47 ° 4 ′ 34.4 " N , 15 ° 21 ′ 42.7" E