St. Michael (Reifferscheid)
The Catholic parish church of St. Michael in Reifferscheid , a local community in the district of Ahrweiler in Rhineland-Palatinate , is dedicated to the Archangel Michael . It was built at the end of the 19th century by the architect Lambert von Fisenne and expanded in the 1970s.
history
The parish Reifferscheid with its branches Rodder , Fuchshofen and Lückenbach was mentioned for the first time in 975. At first Reifferscheid belonged to the Archdiocese of Cologne . In 1802 the parish was assigned to the diocese of Aachen . Since 1824 Reifferscheid has been subordinate to the deanery Adenau and belongs to the diocese of Trier .
The first church was a Romanesque building, of which only the font from around 1200 remains . A late Gothic building was erected around 1450 , which was damaged by a lightning strike in 1711. In 1801 the nave collapsed and was rebuilt in 1802. It was roofed flat and was 9.30 meters long and 8 meters wide. The late Gothic choir was preserved.
In the 19th century the church had become too small and a new building was planned. The cornerstone of today's church was laid on October 2, 1893 . It was built according to the plans of the Gelsenkirchen architect Lambert von Fisenne and consecrated on June 17, 1896 by Bishop Michael Felix Korum . From 1971 to 1973 the church was extended by two aisles. To create more space, the old central pillars of the nave were removed and the ceiling was hung on iron girders above the vault. The celebration altar and baptismal font were placed on the bases of the removed central pillars . The 19th century painting has been reconstructed.
architecture
The three building eras of the church can be distinguished on the outer facade: the lower part of the tower of the Gothic church from the 15th century, the neo-Gothic building from the 1890s and the additions to the side aisles from the 1970s.
Furnishing
Of the three altars with which the church was equipped in 1745, only the sculptures of St. Michael, the patron saint of the Church, and St. Nicholas received. The figure of St. Michael killing a dragon was integrated into the neo-Gothic main altar. This is a winged altar , on the left side of which Abraham is shown sacrificing his son Isaac , and on the right side Melchizedech , offering bread and wine. The two middle panels represent St. Margaret of Antioch with a dragon tied to a chain, St. Nicholas, St. Sebastian and St. Catherine of Alexandria with her attributes , the broken wheel, a sword and a palm branch.
On the left apse wall is the late Gothic tabernacle with the depiction of the Man of Sorrows , which has been preserved from the previous church . Here relics of the Holy Cross and St. Apollonia kept. The neo-Gothic pulpit with the depictions of the four evangelists Matthew , Mark , Luke and John and their symbols comes from the church of the 19th century . The neo-Gothic Stations of the Cross and the shrine with a Pietà at the entrance date from the same period .
The galvanized copper ambo was made in 1991 by Georg Gehring. On him is St. Michael is depicted, who weighs souls. The bronze Easter candlestick from 1995 comes from a Munich workshop and depicts the risen Christ.
organ
Since the church's old Klais organ could no longer be repaired, the parish bought a used organ from the Nelson & Co. organ workshop founded in 1883 by the trained cabinet maker Henry John Nelson (1855–1935) in Durham in north-east England . This organ was in 1905 built for St. Patrick's Church in the English port city of Hartlepool . In the summer of 2009 it was offered for sale at the used organ dealer Andreas Ladach in Wuppertal . On July 11, 2010, the organ consecration took place in the parish church of St. Michael in Reifferscheid with Auxiliary Bishop Alfred Kleinermeilert .
Bells
The church has four bells. Three bells date from the 18th century and are provided with inscriptions. The oldest bell from the 13th century is now used as a death knell.
literature
- Gerold Rosenthal: Parish Church of St. Michael Reifferscheid . In: The church in the middle of town. Churches and chapels in the Verbandsgemeinde Adenau , ed. from the Verbandsgemeinde Adenau, Adenau 2001, ISBN 3-9804818-5-9 , pp. 97-99.
- Gerold Rosenthal: The parish church of St. Michael . In: The consecration of the organ. Parish Church and Parish , ed. by the Catholic parish of St. Michael, Reifferscheid 2010.
Web links
Coordinates: 50 ° 24 ′ 21.3 " N , 6 ° 52 ′ 57.7" E