St. Felix and Regula (Zurich-Hard)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Church of St. Felix and Regula, view from Hardstrasse
View from the east
View from the south
Pillars that identify the church interior as God's tent
Church of St. Felix and Regula, steeple
Interior view as it was between 1982 and 2011
Interior view from 2012
Crucifix by Albert Schilling
Main altar by Albert Schilling
Tabernacle by Alfred Huber
Baptismal font by Alfred Huber

The Church of St. Felix and Regula is the Roman Catholic parish church in the Hard district of Zurich . It is consecrated to the city patrons of Zurich, St. Felix and Regula , and its special feature is the largest cycle of glass paintings created by the artist Ferdinand Gehr .

history

Background and history

Quartier Hard is a traditional workers' quarter in the city of Zurich. After the lowering of the Seebahn in 1927, the previously barely built-up area was structured by urban planner Konrad Hippenmeier. Building cooperatives and the city of Zurich set up residential colonies , creating space for the numerous workers who wanted to move to the Hard quarter because of the nearby industry.

The parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon , to which the Quartier Hard belonged, responded to the growing population. On April 1, 1927, land was purchased for the construction of today's St. Felix and Regula Church. There was an old barn on the site that was converted into an emergency church . The first service was held there on July 7, 1936.

At the beginning of the school year 1932/1933, religious instruction began in the Hard district. In 1939 the parish Herz Jesu rented an apartment at Zypressenstrasse 11 in which a counseling center for religious and social issues was set up and which was later elevated to a vicariate . In this way, pastoral care in the Hard quarter was able to be further developed.

Building history

In 1944 the diocesan cultural association prepared a competition for the construction of a church in Hardquartier. The city of Zurich granted subsidies for the construction due to the work situation on the condition that the architectural competition should take place without religious restrictions. Well-known Catholic and Reformed architects submitted projects, including a. Fritz Metzger, Ferdinand Pfammatter , Karl Strobel, Robert Landolt and Roland Rohn . The first prize was awarded to Roland Rohn, three more were placed second and two other projects were purchased, including that of Fritz Metzger. The award of the prize sparked violent reactions. The question of a representative in the neighborhood was particularly discussed. Pastor Benjamin Simmen, who was dissatisfied with the winning project, spoke to Hermann Baur , who commented on the award of the jury and recommended Fritz Metzger's project for implementation. He was then awarded the contract and implemented his slightly modified project.

In the years 1949–1950 the church of St. Felix and Regula was built according to the plans of the architect Fritz Metzger , who also designed the churches of Maria Lourdes (Seebach) and St. Theresia (Friesenberg) . The groundbreaking ceremony took place on May 21, 1949, the topping-out ceremony on October 3, 1949 and the consecration of the church by the Bishop of Chur , Christian Caminada, on December 10, 1950 .

In 1951 Felix and Regula were raised to a parish by Bishop Christian Caminada and separated from the mother parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon.

On March 3, 1968 the parish hall was inaugurated.

The redesigned forecourt of the church was opened on the feast day of the city saints of Zurich, September 11, 2011. In the years 2012–2013 the church was rebuilt and returned to the state of construction of the 1960s in cooperation with the monument protection.

The parish of St. Felix and Regula, with 4,871 members (as of 2017), is one of the medium-sized Roman Catholic parishes in the city of Zurich.

Naming

Pastor Christian Herrmann from the Herz-Jesu-Kirche Wiedikon decided in 1926 to dedicate the future parish for the then most child-rich neighborhood of Friesenberg to St. Theresa of the Child Jesus , while the parish for what, in his opinion, was the poorest neighborhood in Hard according to the and to name martyrs St. Felix and Regula.

Building description

background

Fritz Metzger had studied with Karl Moser at the ETH Zurich and was therefore familiar with the beginnings of modern church architecture in Switzerland. With the two churches of St. Franziskus, Riehen and St. Felix and Regula, Zurich-Hard, he realized two pioneering church buildings after the Second World War , which were no longer longitudinal structures, but the floor plans in the form of a trapezoid (Riehen) or an oval ( Zurich-Hard). With these innovative floor plans Fritz Metzger moved away from the longitudinal principle and justified this with the fact that the "community of believers should be gathered close to the altar and cross in the spiritual and spatial center". This idea takes up the demand of the liturgical movement for a Participatio actuosa and anticipates the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of the Second Vatican Council .

When designing the Church of St. Felix and Regula, the architect Fritz Metzger relied on the book of Revelation 21: 2-4, where John describes the new Jerusalem as God's tent among the people. Felix and Regula's rotunda, with its concrete supports, was intended to be reminiscent of God's tent. A second element that the church building takes up with its tent design is the legend of the church patrons St. Felix and Regula. They were also traveling with tents with the Theban Legion . The visible building blocks of the church walls also remind of the idea that the city saints Felix and Regula began in Zurich as living building blocks to build up the Christian community of Zurich.

  • Inscription on the outer facade

  • Felix and Regula relief

  • Second relief on the outer facade

  • Glass blocks at the church portal

Exterior

Architect Fritz Metzger writes: "The difficulty of inserting a church into a rented quarter has been increased in the present case by the trapezoidal building site and its location to the sun. The sacred building had to be contrasted with the mundane environment and, accordingly, the location, shape and location Choose height. This was possible for the given building site by setting it apart from the building lines, by taking a distance from the houses and by creating a center that is in balance with the rigid building dimensions of the surrounding area the wide oval of the parish room should offer relaxation and be a refuge. The size of a church is of a different order and cannot be read from the height development of its surroundings. In order to maintain the measure within which the monumental remains human, it is kept low lower than the interior space allows.

The church of St. Felix and Regula is located at the confluence of Hirzelstrasse and Hardstrasse. The tower stands on the outer corner of the trapezoidal floor plan, and the church with its broadly rounded facade is set back a little. This is followed by the parish center created in 1968.

Church tower and bells

The tower was built together with the church in 1949/1950. On October 8, 1953, the company H. Rüetschi , Aarau, cast the bells for the Church of St. Felix and Regula and one month later, on November 8, the diocesan bishop Christian Caminada consecrated the bells. The tower clock was installed in 1957 .

number Weight volume dedication
1 3485 kg B. Trinity
2 1863 kg d Our Lady Mary
3 1093 kg f Felix and Regula
4th 735 kg G St. Joseph
5 554 kg a Guardian Angel

Interior and artistic equipment

Fritz Metzger designed the entrance area as well as the parish and chancel as a differentiated unit. The individual should be led step by step into the community of believers and towards the events at the altar. The entrance is simply designed. The two extensions on the side of the main room address a basilica structure. The main room consists of an oval rotunda, which is closed with a flat cupola. With the new building materials and construction options, engineer Emil Schubiger created the dome that looked like it was cast from one piece. This is supported by supports inclined concentrically inwards, which press their feet against the base of the circular wall. The walls are clad with artificial stone made of lime and, together with the exposed concrete elements, determine the interior of the church. The sanctuary is about twice as wide as it is deep and vaulted with a flat basket arch.

The artist Albert Schilling , Arlesheim, created the free-standing main altar in 1950 with its relief, which thematizes the Easter lamb with 7 eyes and 7 horns (symbol of wisdom, power, rule and dignity of God) and the sealed book after the 5th chapter of Revelation. The lamb is surrounded by seven candlesticks (symbol for the assembled church service). Relics of the patrons St. Felix and Regula, which come from the parish church of Andermatt, are embedded in the main altar.

Albert Schilling also designed the cross hanging on the choir wall , which he made in 1954 from mahogany (the wood is reminiscent of the wood of the cross of Christ), silver and enamel (symbol of the resurrection and the festively decorated bridegroom of the church). This design of the cross is based on Revelation 19, 1-10.

The side altars and the baptismal font with the reliefs of an angel and a fish were designed by Alfred Huber, Rümlang in 1950. The baptismal font was supplemented in 1983 with running water and the stand for the Easter candle, which has remained in the baptismal font all year round. These elements of water and light refer to the connection between baptism and Easter.

Alfred Huber also created the Stations of the Cross and, after the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council, reworked the side altars in 1964. One of the side altars was converted into the base for the tabernacle . The tabernacle, made in 1950, comes from Martha Flüeler, Zurich, who decorated it with precious stones, which refer to the real treasure, namely Jesus Christ. There is a relief of Brother Klaus next to the sacrament altar . Alfred Huber designed it in 1965.

The other side altar is the Felix and Regula reliquary altar, where the relics of the town and church patrons are kept. These relics consist of parts of two ribs of the saints, which were given to the monks of Einsiedeln by the later Bishop Hartpert of Chur at the instigation of Duke Hermann (926-949) . Abbot Benno Gut donated parts of these ribs to the newly established parish of St. Felix and Regula on November 17, 1949.

In 1972 Alfred Huber designed the church furnishings with the ambo , on the front of which a dove is depicted as a relief. Under the relief is an open Bible, which invites you to read and meditate on the word of God.

In the right side niche of the church Maya Armbruster created a spiral as a symbol for the path of life and faith, which runs towards an ammonite in the center of the spiral, which in turn symbolizes the goal of the path of life and faith: God himself.

Later changes

Because the interior of the church with its artistic furnishings was felt to be spartan, the artist Maya Armbruster was commissioned from 1981 to 1983 to complete the design of the church. Maya Armbruster designed a tree of life around the cross on the choir wall in 1982 . The artist created this work based on Genesis 2: 9 f., Where the tree of life and the tree of knowledge are thematized. Two branches branched out of one trunk, symbolizing the old and the new covenant and, with their origin from the same trunk, referring to the unity of the old and the new covenant.

In 1983 the artist Maya Armbruster created a relief in the left side niche of the church depicting a fish haul. Seven fish swam towards the sacrament altar and with the number seven referred to the seven sacraments , with the shape of the fish to the pun ICHTHYS (Greek for fish, also abbreviation for Jesus). The two fish in front were somewhat separated from the remaining five and referred to the Easter story in John 20: 1-10, in which John and Peter rush to the tomb of the risen One and thus precede the other disciples (represented by the other five fish).

Return of the artistic equipment

In cooperation with the preservation of historical monuments, the parish of St. Felix and Regula decided to restore the building to its original expressiveness during the overall renovation of the church in 2012–2013. Therefore Maya Armbruster's works of art were knocked off, which led to violent reactions. The aim of this return was to "bring out the richness and beauty of the church in the modesty of the original materials."

Stained glass window

Ferdinand Gehr created his largest cycle of stained glass paintings in 1954 in the Church of St. Felix and Regula. There are 178 church windows, which run as a ribbon just below the flat dome of the church interior. In the glass windows of the nave, the artist depicted the Beatitudes by assigning each Beatitude to a saint who had exemplified this Beatitude in his life: Blessed the poor ( St. Francis ), Blessed the mourning (St. Peter), Blessed the Meek (St. Theresia), Blessed are the hungry and thirsty for justice ( St. Bernhard ), Blessed are the merciful ( St. Elisabeth ), Blessed are those who have a pure heart ( St. Joseph ), Blessed are those who make peace (St. Brother Klaus), Blessed are the persecuted (St. Felix and Regula).

The windows by the organ show the five wise and the five foolish virgins as well as the praise of the three youths in the fiery furnace.

Ferdinand Gehr writes about the glass windows in the choir of the church: "The ideas of the pictures in the chancel want to point to the spiritual elevation in the divine realm."

organ

The Kuhn organ from 1964

The organ with three manuals and pedal as well as 32  registers was built by Orgelbau Theodor Kuhn , Männedorf , in 1964/1965. It has a mechanical backlash and an electro-pneumatic stop action . The organ's disposition is:

I Rückpositiv C – g 3
Tube bare 8th'
Praestant 4 ′
Coupling flute 4 ′
Sesquialtera 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ + 1 3 ⁄ 5  ′
Principal 2 ′
Larigot 1 1 ⁄ 3  ′
Cymbel III-IV 2 ⁄ 3 ′
Krummhorn 8th'
II Hauptwerk C – g 3
Quintatön 16 ′
Principal 8th'
Gemshorn 8th'
Octave 4 ′
Night horn 4 ′
Octave 2 '
Mixture IV-VI 1 1 ⁄ 3  ′
Trumpet 8th'
III Oberwerk
swellable C-g 3
Dumped 8th'
Salicet 8th'
Principal 4 ′
Reed flute 4 ′
Nasat 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
Forest flute 2 ′
Sharp IV 1'
shelf 8th'
shawm 4 '
Tremulant
Pedal C – f 1
Principal 16 ′
Sub bass 16 ′
Octave 8th'
Pointed flute 8th'
Octave 4 ′
Mixture IV 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
trombone 16 ′
  • Coupling : I / II, III / II, I / P, II / P, III / P
  • Playing aids : 3 free combinations, 2 fixed (Choralforte, Tutti), crescendo sill (foot control), balance step for sill upper work, individual storage (tongues, mixtures, man. 16 ′)

chapel

A chapel was set up during the construction of the church, which was intended for smaller church services. In 1981 Maya Armbruster was commissioned to design this chapel artistically. The artist created a painting on the front wall of the chapel, which above the altar depicted the Eucharist with a chalice and fish (symbol for Jesus Christ). Above it was a cross with upturned arms in front of a red circle. This painting was intended to illustrate how earth and heaven, the impermanent and the imperishable, the imperfect and the perfect come together in the celebration of the Eucharist.

During the complete renovation of the church in 2012, Maya Armbruster's work was removed from the chapel and the room returned to its original simplicity. Since then, the chapel has been used as a reflection room.

See also

literature

  • Kirchgemeinde Herz Jesu Wiedikon (Ed.): Herz Jesu Pfarrei Zürich Wiedikon. Festschrift for the 50th anniversary of the parish. Zurich 1971.
  • Guido Kolb: 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. Zurich, 1974
  • Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. Zurich 1975.
  • Episcopal Ordinariate Chur (ed.): Schematism of the Diocese of Chur. Chur 1980.
  • Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich. Zurich 1989.
  • Fabrizio Brentini: Rudolf Schwarz and his influence on church architecture in Switzerland , in: Rudolf Schwarz (1897–1961). Work, theory, reception. Linz 1997, 58-78.
  • Josef Z'graggen: 50 years of the Church and Parish of St. Felix and Regula. Festschrift. Zurich 2000.
  • Robert Schönbächler: Churches and places of worship in the city of Zurich. New Year's Gazette Industriequartier / Aussersihl. Zurich 2012.
  • City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. Zurich 2014.
  • Michael D. Schmid: transversely built. Querkirchen in the canton of Zurich , Stutz Medien, Wädenswil 2018, ISBN 978-3-85928-200-1 .

Web links

Commons : Catholic Church Felix and Regula  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Article in Wikipedia on Quartier Hard (City of Zurich)
  2. ^ Website of the parish. Section: History, The Founding Years. ( Memento from December 31, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ Parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon (ed.): Herz Jesu Pfarrei Zürich Wiedikon. P. 115
  4. ^ A b Henri Truffer: Association of the Roman Catholic Parishes of the City of Zurich. P. 178
  5. ↑ Parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon (ed.): Herz Jesu Pfarrei Zürich Wiedikon. P. 94
  6. ↑ Parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon (ed.): Herz Jesu Pfarrei Zürich Wiedikon. Pp. 110 and 115
  7. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. P. 118.
  8. ^ A b Robert Schönbächler: Churches and places of worship in the city of Zurich. P. 20
  9. ^ Rainald Fischer, in: Guido Kolb: 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. P. 190
  10. ↑ Catholic Church in the Canton of Zurich: Annual Report 2017. p. 84.
  11. ↑ Parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon (ed.): Herz Jesu Pfarrei Zürich Wiedikon. P. 92
  12. ↑ Fabrizio Brentini: Rudolf Schwarz and his influence on church architecture in Switzerland. pdf pp. 1-2
  13. ↑ Fabrizio Brentini: Rudolf Schwarz and his influence on church architecture in Switzerland. pdf pp. 2 and 5
  14. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 48
  15. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 49
  16. ^ Fritz Metzger: On the competition for a Catholic church on Hardstrasse in Zurich , in: Schweizerische Bauzeitung (SBZ), 127.7, 1946, p. 85.
  17. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. P. 118.
  18. ↑ Parish Herz Jesu Wiedikon (ed.): Herz Jesu Pfarrei Zürich Wiedikon. P. 115 and Josef Z'graggen: 50 years of the Church and Parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 44
  19. ^ Parish website, Section: History, The Last Millennium. ( Memento from December 31, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  20. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. Pp. 118-120.
  21. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 72
  22. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 60
  23. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 13 and Josef Z'graggen: 50 years of the Church and Parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 51
  24. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 69
  25. ^ Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Parishes of the City of Zurich. P. 179
  26. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 16
  27. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. , P. 21
  28. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 18
  29. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 19
  30. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 14 and Josef Z'graggen: 50 years of the Church and Parish of St. Felix and Regula. P. 67
  31. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. Pp. 56-57
  32. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. Pp. 72-73
  33. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. Pp. 54 and 55
  34. ↑ The pastor speaks of iconoclasm. Tages-Anzeiger from November 3, 2014.
  35. ↑ Urs Baur: St. Felix and Regula , in: City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. P. 118.
  36. ^ Website of the Gehr Foundation, section Ferdinand Gehr's largest glass picture cycle. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  37. ^ Website of the parish, section church windows. ( Memento from April 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  38. ^ Parish office of St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 22
  39. ↑ Ferdinand Gehr, in: Pfarramt St. Felix and Regula (ed.): Festschrift for the 25th anniversary of the parish fair of the Church of St. Felix and Regula. P. 23
  40. ^ Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Parishes of the City of Zurich. P. 179.
  41. ^ Website of the parish. Section: The Organ. ( Memento from April 20, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  42. ↑ Joseph Z'graggen: 50 years church and parish of St. Felix and Regula. Pp. 52-53

Coordinates: 47 ° 22 '51.7 "  N , 8 ° 30' 48.9"  E ; CH1903:  six hundred and eighty-one thousand one hundred seventy-five  /  two hundred forty-eight thousand three hundred fifty-four