St. Boniface (Hemer)
| St. Boniface | |
|---|---|
 Parish Church of St. Boniface |
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| Data | |
| place |
Hemer , North Rhine-Westphalia |
| builder | Hermann Wielers |
| Construction year | 1904/05 |
| height | 70 m |
| Coordinates | 51 ° 22 '36.4 " N , 7 ° 46' 29.5" E |
| particularities | |
| Tallest building in Hemer | |
The church of St. Bonifatius is the tallest building in Hemer at around 70 meters and has been a listed building since 2001 . St. Bonifatius is the second oldest of the five Catholic parish churches in Hemer and is located in the Sundwig district . The community is in the deanery Märkisches Sauerland .
History of church building
The predecessor
For the Catholics in the Hemeraner area there was only one possibility of worship in the St. Peter and Paul Church in Niederhemer until 1872. It was a very long and arduous way from Sundwig and Deilinghofen to get there. That is why two parishioners campaigned to be allowed to set up a church service room in Deilinghofen. At the suggestion of the Hemeraner pastor, however, a church building was inaugurated in the more central Sundwig. After the laying of the foundation stone on June 26, 1871, the building was subject to the consequences of the Kulturkampf and had to be interrupted for a few weeks. The mission church was consecrated in 1872. The building, which also contained school classes and a vicar's apartment , was only demolished decades after the inauguration of St. Boniface in 1969. Saint Boniface was already appointed patron of the church in the mission church.
The plan to demarcate the Sundwig parish from St. Peter and Paul was rejected by the Archdiocese of Paderborn in 1890 . On September 30, 1896, Archbishop Hubert Theophil Simar finally elevated the community to an independent parish.
Planning and construction
When Franz Bals was introduced as the first pastor of the Sundwiger congregation in December 1898, planning began for the new church. The mission church had become too small as the number of Catholics grew rapidly during this period. The archbishopric had already approved the expansion of the existing church to include a transept in 1897, but Pastor Bals rejected this plan. Instead, he acquired some land above the mission church in 1899. Further land acquisitions followed over the next few years. In 1901 the pastor moved from the apartment in the Catholic school building to a new pastorate building.
For Easter in 1904, construction work according to plans by the architect Hermann Wielers from Bochum could finally begin. On June 5, 1904, the feast day of St. Boniface, who also became the patron saint of the new church, laid the foundation stone. The church was consecrated just a year later. The total cost of building the church was around 80,000 marks. The building provided space for around 400 believers.
The consecration
At the request of the community, the church was consecrated by the then bishop of the Metz diocese , Willibrord Benzler . Born in Hemeran, he met this request on August 5, 1905 together with Paderborn Bishop Wilhelm Schneider . On the day of the consecration, Bishop Benzler was driven by Peter Grah von Niederhemer to the church in Sundwig in a decorated horse-drawn carriage .
Architecture and equipment
The plans of the architect Hermann Wielers envisaged a 25 meter high central nave, at the western end of which the organ gallery was built. The tower of the neo-Gothic , three-aisled church is visible from afar thanks to the prominent building site . The building was made of quarry stone .
A donation from a choir made it possible to design the window behind the high altar with stained glass . In addition to the crucifixion of Jesus, it also showed a picture from the Boniface legend. After the end of the First World War, the two neighboring windows were also decorated with scenes from the Passion of Christ . The high altar was bought from the St. Boniface Church in Herne .
organ
The first organ was delivered to the Mission Church in 1894 by the Franz Eggert company in Paderborn. The organ work had a manual, a pedal , 10 stops and a cone chest with a pneumatic action. After the completion of the new Bonifatiuskirche in 1905, this organ, expanded by three registers, was taken over into the new church. In 1948 it was decided to buy a new organ. Organ builder Werner Bosch from Kassel built an organ with 22 registers. A wind chest and seven registers were taken from the old organ. The consecration took place on July 24, 1949. In the course of the restoration of the church, the organ was replaced again in 1967. The organ building company Franz Breil from Dorsten initially lent the community an organ free of charge before a new instrument was ordered from this company in 1978. Some registers from the old organ that were stored at the company were reused. The organ was inaugurated on March 19, 1978 in a festive concert.
Disposition of the Bosch organ:
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- Side trains: Coupling II / I, I / Pedal, II / Pedal, Sub II / I
Disposition of the Breil organ:
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- Coupling : I / P, II / P, II / I
Bells
In addition, the church had four new bells at its disposal, which groups from the community took over the financing. The bells were cast by the Petit & Gebr. Edelbrock foundry . The bells weighed 1184, 760, 450 and 311 kilograms and cost around 5400 DM together. After three bells had been given in during the First World War, the municipality bought replacements from the same foundry in 1927. During the Second World War, three more Sundwig bells were confiscated and melted down, the smallest remained in the tower and still exists today. On July 23, 1953, a new bell was cast in the Junker bell foundry in Brilon . The following table provides an overview of today's bells:
| Surname | Chime | diameter | Weight | inscription |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sacred Heart Bell | e ′ | 122 cm | 1315 kg | "Heart of Jesus Our Peace, Our Reconciliation, Have Mercy On Our" |
| Boniface Bell | G' | 102 cm | 780 kg | "Boniface I was called by Pastor Bals 1914/18 I was banished from the tower Neu let me buy pastor Habbel 1927 However, under Pastor Berkenkopf I had to go back since 1953. I may now be heard again and sing God's praise from the tower" |
| Joseph Bell | a ′ | 91 cm | 550 kg | “Help Joseph; Guiltless go through our life and let us always be under your protection " |
| Regina Pacis | H' | 81 cm | 311 kg | "Maria Pacis I am consecrated to the Queen of Peace . Please pray for us peace and unity ME DDW Werth 1905 - in piam memoriam in bello mortuorum _ congregatio juvenura 1927" |
Renovations and conversions
1935 to 1950
In the years 1935 to 1945 numerous alterations and renovations took place on and in the church. A new high altar was added in 1935 and the interior of the church was repainted in the summer of 1938.
On Friday, April 13, 1945, the day the war ended in Hemer, shell fire could be heard for the first time in Sundwig. The Sundwiger church tower seemed to be a point of reference for both American and German artillery. One shell pierced the roof of the church above the choir, a second above the nave and tore a hole in the vault and a third completely destroyed one of the three painted choir windows and seriously damaged the other two. The windows above the side altars are also partially damaged. Inside the church, the floor was completely covered with rubble. Thanks to quick clean-up work, the service could be held again on the following Sunday. The damage caused was also quickly repaired.
After 1950 a new heater had to be purchased. The gutters were renewed, the roof repaired and the entire church was re-grouted from the outside. In addition, a new organ with 1400 pipes was installed during this time. The three bells lost in the war were replaced by new ones in 1953.
1965 to 1967
In 1965 the largest reconstruction of the interior took place. The reason for this was, on the one hand, the liturgical reorganization by the Second Vatican Council : The altar was moved to the center because the pastor no longer celebrated the service with his back to the congregation. The old high altar was torn down and replaced by a tabernacle stele. Numerous plaster figures, the communion bench and the pulpit were removed. On the other hand, the building was also in poor condition, so the masonry had to be drained and the windows repaired or replaced. After a new interior painting, the installation of new lighting and numerous other changes, the church proved to be completely renovated.
The old baptistery to the right of the tower was demolished and converted into another side entrance. The side entrance in the right aisle has been locked. Today a memorial plaque hangs here from the outside commemorating the fallen of the two world wars. With the consecration of the new altar by Bishop Paul Nordhues on December 17, 1967 , the church, which was completely renovated to the value of around DM 430,000 , was returned to its intended use.
1987 to 1990
In 1980 the parish church was undergoing the next major renovation by the pastor at the time. On June 1, 1980, the last service was celebrated in the church. During the measures, the service took place in the parish of the community. In the course of this, the interior of the church was painted again, the lighting replaced and the heating system modernized. This work was completed after three months. On September 7, 1980, the first service could be celebrated again in the church. Two years earlier, a new organ for the parish church worth 130,000 DM had been bought and installed.
In 1985 the tower was re-grouted as well as the repair and restoration of the bell system and the tower clock. Further work on the church was necessary from 1989 to 1990. The joints in the outer walls were leaking and allowed moisture to get inside, so they had to be completely replaced.
Church life
List of pastors
With the Abpfarrung 1896 St. Boniface was elevated into an independent parish. Since then the following pastors have been active in Sundwig.
- 1898 to 1908: Franz Bals. As the first pastor of the community, he initiated the construction of today's parish church.
- 1908 to 1913: August Dinkloh. During his term of office, the furnishing of the church building, for example with benches, was continued.
- 1913 to 1935: Josef Habbel. The three bells confiscated in World War I were bought back during his tenure. He also set up a vicarie in Westig , from which a parish of its own developed in 1948.
- 1935 to 1964: Friedrich Berkenkopf. As a pastor during and after the Second World War, he repaired the war damage to the parish church. He was supported by Father Beda OFM between 1960 and 1964 because of an illness .
- 1964 to 1969: Reinhard Wilhelmi. The pastor, who was still very young at the time of his inauguration, led the major renovation work in the late 1960s to save the church from deterioration. From 1966 he was supported by a vicar who took over the parish work for Deilinghofen. In 1969 he was restored to the lay status to get married.
- 1969: Richard Kober. The vicar, who was actually only responsible for Deilinghofen, took over the management of the parish provisionally for a few weeks.
- 1969 to 1993: Günter Page. The pastor organized the construction work for the Deilinghofen community center and the establishment of a Catholic kindergarten.
- 1993–2014: Marian Wieczorek. Ecumenism is one of the focal points at the beginning of the 21st century, under Wieczorek the implementation of joint community festivals with the Protestant community of Hemer-Süd began .
Current church work
To preserve the church, a church building association St. Bonifatius has been founded in Sundwig . The community also has a kindergarten that looks after around 70 boys and girls. An expert committee Eine Welt supports the church work in developing countries, in particular the construction and maintenance of a hospital in Tanzania . In addition, there is a church choir, a group of Catholic youth and the Catholic women's community , a women's group, a senior citizens' club, a women's dance group and children's groups.
In order to strengthen the ecumenical movement , St. Bonifatius celebrates the parish festivals together with the Protestant parish of Hemer-Süd . After a religiously separate service, a congregation moves to the respective host every year. In the Bonifatius Church, as in the Protestant Christ Church, there is half a cross that is brought together in this framework. In the Deilinghofer area of the parish, the connection to the local evangelical community is maintained through a joint celebration of the day of penance and prayer .
See also
literature
- Hugo Banniza: On the history of the Catholic parish Sundwig. in: Bürger- und Heimatverein Hemer eV (Hrsg.): The key. Hemer 1980.
Individual evidence
- ↑ List of monuments of the city of Hemer ( Memento of the original dated August 31, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) 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.
- ↑ a b c d e Werner Hoffmann: The fibula. Volume 6: Churches, bells, organs in the Hemer urban area. Zimmermann Verlag, Hemer 2001
- ↑ Festschrift for the 50th anniversary. Anniversary of the existence of the St. Bonifazius parish of Herne, Herne 1912 p. 15
- ^ Translation: "I was given in 1905 by W. Werth, 1927 in pious memory of those who died in the war - the youth modality"
- ↑ Groups and institutions on the website of the parish of St. Bonifatius ( Memento from July 10, 2012 in the web archive archive.today )
- ↑ Ecumenism in St. Boniface on the website of the Hemer Pastoral Association ( Memento from July 10, 2012 in the web archive archive.today )
