St. Johannes Evangelist (Astheim)

St. Johannes in Astheim

The Roman Catholic parish church of St. Johannes Evangelist in Astheim , a district of Volkach , is, along with the Marienbrück Charterhouse, a landmark of the Lower Franconian wine-growing village on the Mainschleife.

history

The earliest tradition of church life in Astheim comes from the time of Frankish colonization, from the 7th century. At that time the parish was also looked after by the church on the Vogelsberg . In the 9th century the parish church changed. Astheim became part of the original parish Volkach on the Kirchberg . The place was the only branch on the western side of the Main. A church building in the village first becomes tangible under the rule of the Counts of Castell. The branch chapel was already consecrated to St. John.

In 1158 the chapel was incorporated into the Würzburg cathedral chapter. With the transfer of village rule to the von Seinsheim / Schwarzenberg family, the parish also expanded its independence from Volkach. In 1408 Astheim formed its own parish , a right which the Würzburg Prince-Bishop Johann von Egloffstein confirmed on February 7, 1410. The Lords of Seinsheim should exercise the right of patronage over the pastor. They appointed Friedrich Wüsting as the first clergyman, who served in Astheim until 1443.

In 1440, the prior of the newly founded Charterhouse took over the patronage right. In 1449 a new, larger church was built. The year 1496 saw the establishment of a Sebastian Brotherhood for Astheim. A short time later, at the beginning of 1509, work began on building the new parish church. It was consecrated on July 1, 1509 by the Würzburg auxiliary bishop Kaspar Grünwald . The patron is St. John the Evangelist. This was also reflected in the furnishings of the church. In 1531 the church received a new bell.

Astheim remained largely Catholic during the Reformation . Nevertheless, the Thirty Years War raged here too . While Protestant services were celebrated in the Charterhouse, the parish church remained a Catholic place of worship. After the war, a comprehensive renovation of the church building was planned in the 18th century. In 1775 the nave of the church was changed, and the interior was also partially changed.

The following century saw mostly renovations for the church. It was renewed in 1824, 1844/1845 and 1884. In 1986/1987 the sacristy was added . The church's last renovation to date was in 1990, when the ambo and the popular altar were erected. The church was consecrated on May 27, 1990 by Auxiliary Bishop Helmut Bauer . Today the church is a parish and part of the parish community St. Urban an der Mainschleife. The Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments lists the church building as a monument with the number D-6-75-174-163. The underground remains of the previous development are registered as a ground monument.

architecture

The south side of the church

The complex was built in 1509 and its appearance can be attributed to the late Gothic. The church is east and was built as a hall .

tower

The tower north of the nave is attached to the choir. The sacristy is north of the tower. The five floors of the church tower can be seen on the outside of the windows, the top floor is highlighted by a cornice . The lowest storey has square windows with drilled frames, there is an entrance to the west. The two floors above have slotted windows, the fourth floor has ox eyes . On the top floor of the tower is the bell house, recognizable from the outside through the sound hatches with four arched windows, one on each side. The east window is decorated with rich tracery . A clock is set in the western one. A flat dome with a blind lantern, a tower ball and an artfully decorated cross as a wind direction indicator closes the tower at the top.

Nave and choir

The nave is divided in the north by two window axes. Both windows are arched and have simple tracery. A canopy sits on the central portal of the church facade in the west. An elongated arched window rises above it. The gable of the gable roof on the nave bears a stone cross. In the south, the church building is only divided by a window axis. There is also a rectangular window with a painted sundial over it. The interior has a flat barrel vault .

The choir with a pent roof is attached to the nave in the east. It turns into a hipped roof on which a patriarchal cross stands. The choir has only one window in the middle of the pentagonal building. It is arched with Gothic tracery. Two buttresses divide the choir outwards. A reticulated vault spans the inside.

Furnishing

The high altar of the church

The interior of the Astheim church is shaped by the transformation in the 18th century. In addition, the epitaphs of the Schwarzenberg family point to the role of the family's burial place.

High altar

The high altar fills the east wall of the choir. It was created around the middle of the 18th century and completed with the addition of the two assistant figures of the crucifixion group. Johann Peter Wagner created it in 1789. In 1788, he had already created the tabernacle of the altar. The altar structure has four columns. Like its predecessor in 1509, it is consecrated to the Holy Cross.

The pillars of the structure are twisted (twisted). The inner ones are moved further forward so that a spatial effect is created. The inner ones carry two angels, the outer two vases. The center of the altar is the crucifixion group instead of an altarpiece. The assistant figures Maria and Johannes mourn the crucified Christ. A round arch on which three putti sit leads over to the excerpt . There you can see the dove of the Holy Spirit, above it God the Father. A blasted gable frames both figures.

The 1789 tabernacle is white and gold. There are six twisted candlesticks as liturgical implements. Spreading volutes with angel figures limit it. The Holy of Holies is locked, the doors are decorated with golden foliage . Two putti limit the top of the tabernacle.

Side altars

The two side altars to the left and right of the choir arch , like the high altar, were created in the middle of the 18th century. Both are similar in their structure, have two columns and instead of an altar leaf have relief figures against a blue background, which stand on a high base and are in white and gold. There are two vases on each of the projecting cornices above the columns. A round arch leads over to the altar extension, which is crowned by a cross.

The left altar is dedicated to the holy mother Mary, whose figure appears in a halo. She holds the child in her lap. Outside the column, they surround Anna herself, the third , on the left and St. Joseph with the child on the right. Mary's initials appear on the excerpt. The right altar is dominated by a figure of St. Sebastian. To his left is John Nepomuk , on the right side of Saint Bruno. The initials of Jesus are attached to the extract .

Epitaphs

Two epitaphs of representatives of the Schwarzenberg family who were buried there are on the left side of the choir. The monument to Jörg Friedrich zu Schwarzenberg, who died in 1543, was created by Peter Dell the Elder. The deceased is dressed in full plate armor and kneels in prayer on the back of a lion opposite the crucifix. The corners of the stone are provided with four coats of arms , the Schwarzenberg can be seen at the top left. The semicircular end of the stone bears the inscription "HODIE · MIHI · CRAS · TIBI" (today me, tomorrow you).

The other stone, further back in the choir, is similar to it. It shows the couple Friedrich Moritz zu Schwarzenberg († July 20, 1565) and Dorothea von Schwarzenberg née Heßberg . According to the inscription, the work was created by Thomas Kistner from Würzburg. Both married couples pray to the crucifix in the middle of the stone. The coats of arms of the two form the center of the artful structure, crowned by a gable.

Bells

The ringing consists of three bells . Two of them date from the 16th century. The third was cast in the 18th century and donated in 1751 by the Würzburg Prince-Bishop Karl Philipp von Greiffenclau zu Vollrads .

Keynote	Casting year	Diameter in centimeters	Weight in kilograms	inscription
as	1531	104	690	"Tibi soli deo gloria et honor anno domini m ccccc xxxi"
b	1518	88	410	"S. dionisivs; ave maria gracia plena dominvs tecvm anno domini "
d	1751	73	240	“ANNO 1751; AVE MARIA GRATIA PLENA DOMINVS TECVM; CAR PHIL DG EPISC HERB SRI PRINC FO DVX "

Further equipment

In 1780 the church received a pulpit by Simon Wagner with the depiction of the continents on the body as busts. Putti with the attributes of papacy crown the elaborate sound cover, a relief of the risen Christ connects both parts. The rich decorations indicate the baroque concept of staging.

The font with a wooden group of figures of the baptism of Jesus on the lid is in front of the choir. A confessional is in the choir. The church organ interrupts the simple, double-storey gallery. There are two figures of saints in the house of God. It is a Pietà and the representation of Saint Urban. The ambo and the popular altar in the choir came to the church in 1990. The church stalls round off the furnishings of the Astheim church.

Outside

In the north of the nave, an altar from the St. John's Chapel of the Charterhouse, a classicist work from the 19th century, was installed. On the consoles to the left of the altar sheet is St. Mary and to the right John the Baptist, above the crucified one. The altar panel consists of a metal plate with engravings. Pinnacles close off the altar at the top.

A simple crucifix made of sandstone dates from the 18th century and corresponds to the three-nail type. An inscription in the base reads: "Praise be to Jesus Christ". Above, below the cross, stands the mourning Mary. Jesus on the cross turns left. To the south of the church is the memorial to those who fell in the world wars.

Pastor (selection)

The grave of pastor Anton Büchs in the Astheim cemetery

Many of the pastors of Astheim have been known by name since the elevation to parish in 1440. Since the middle of the 15th century, individual Carthusian monks took over pastoral care. This activity ended at the beginning of the 17th century. In the 19th and 20th centuries, several pastors were active in the community who were awarded honorary citizenship because of their work in the village or elsewhere. Up to 2001 there were a total of 47 pastors in Astheim:

Surname	Term of office	Remarks
Friedrich Wüsting	1440-1443	first pastor of Astheim; † August 12, 1443
unknown	1449-1605	Pastoral care by the fathers of the Carthusian monastery in Astheim
Martin Conrad	gen. 1784
Johann Georg Kantz	1788-1796	* in Eltingshausen , previously chaplain in Eßleben , resignation 1796
Kaspar Meisner	1796-1799
Anton Büchs	1882-1926	* June 24, 1847 in Niederlauer , dean , clergyman , honorary citizen 1910, retired 1926; † February 4, 1929 in Astheim
Isidor Scholler	1926-1929	Chaplain, parish administrator
Karl Dotter Weich	1929-1951	* June 5, 1875 in Hof , honorary citizen 1918; † June 7, 1951 in Astheim
Simon heaven	1951	* October 1, 1898 in Sulzdorf, clergyman, parish administrator, at the same time pastor of Volkach, honorary citizen 1958 in Volkach; † May 7, 1979 in Würzburg
Isidor Scholler	1951-1958
Burkhard Weissenberger	1958–1962	Spiritual advice
Hermann Dümig	1962-1974
Georg Wehner	1974-1976	* March 24, 1912, parish administrator, also pastor of Fahr , honorary citizen 1976 in Fahr; † January 21, 1993 in Fahr
Werner Drenkrad	1976-1988	Parish administrator, also pastor of Escherndorf
Viktor Hofmann	1978-1990	Spiritual advice, monsignor
Alfons Junker	1990-2001	* 1934 in Wiesentheid , 1969–1976 in Niederwerrn , 1976–1990 Marktsteft , also pastor of Escherndorf

literature

Hans Bauer: District of Kitzingen. An art and culture guide . Market wide 1993.
Christa Benedum, Karl-Peter Büttner, Gerhard Egert, Franz Pfrang, Werner Stahr: Astheim and his Charterhouse . Wuerzburg 1991.
Georg Dehio : Handbook of the German art monuments. Bavaria I: Franconia . Munich and Berlin 1999.
Gerhard Egert: The records of the Astheim pastor JG Kantz, 1788–1796 . In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Our Main Loop. 1978-1992 . Volkach 2008.
Gerhard Egert: Johann Peter Wagner's letters and chords for the parish churches of Volkach and Astheim . In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Volkach. 906-2006 . Volkach 2006.
Karl Treutwein : From Abtswind to Zeilitzheim. History, sights, traditions . Volkach 1987.
Thomas Wehner: Real Schematism of the Diocese of Würzburg. Kitzingen Dean's Office . Wuerzburg 1997.