St. Michael (Uitikon)
The Church of St. Michael is the Roman Catholic Church of Uitikon in the Canton of Zurich .
history
prehistory
In the Middle Ages , the residents of Uitikon to Altstetten were church-related. After the Reformation in Zurich from 1523, the Catholic rite was also banned in the surrounding area and the residents converted to the new faith. The freedom of establishment and freedom of religion of the Helvetic Republic and later of the Swiss federal state made immigration possible from central and eastern Switzerland , but also from other countries with a predominance of Catholicism. The Catholics who settled in Uitikon in the 19th and 20th centuries had the opportunity to attend church services in Dietikon , as Dietikon had both Catholic and Reformed residents since the Reformation and the medieval church until it was built the church of St. Agatha was used equally . The parish Heilig Kreuz in Zurich-Altstetten was built up from 1900, to which Uitikon was initially assigned, and from 1929 the later parish St. Martin was built in Birmensdorf , to which Uitikon belongs today.
After the Catholic Church in the Canton of Zurich was recognized under public law in 1964, thanks to the taxpayers' money it was possible to quickly supplement the funds previously laboriously collected through donations and begging tours for the construction of the communities and church buildings. Since the St. Martin's Chapel in Birmensdorf was far too small for the growing Catholic community in Aesch ZH , Birmensdorf and Uitikon, a new church was planned in Birmensdorf in 1962. This project was not widely supported in the Catholic population, which is why this plan could not initially be implemented.
Building history and naming
After the rejection of the new church in Birmensdorf, those responsible in the parish pursued the plan to build a second church center in Uitikon. For this purpose, a church building commission was founded on January 28, 1964, which commissioned a preliminary study on February 26, 1964. This feasibility study showed that the acquired building site of 30 ares was sufficient for the desired spatial program of church, chapel, hall, side rooms and rectory, but also posed problems due to the shape of a long rectangle on sloping terrain. In 1965 three architects were invited to a competition that Karl Higi was able to win. However, since his project exceeded the cost limit and a revision of the project still seemed too expensive, Karl Higi resigned from his mandate in March 1968. The building commission then commissioned the consultant architect Dezsö Ercsi to work out a project that adhered to the specified cost limit. The project presented by Dezsö Ercsi in 1969 was widely accepted in the community and was built from September 1969. On December 19, 1970, the completed church was inaugurated by the Bishop of Chur , Johannes Vonderach , and Uitikon was made parish rectorate.
Since the pastor who was active at the time of the building had belonged to the congregation of La Salette for some time , he wanted to dedicate the church of Uitikon to Mary, the Mother of God . The vicar general was against it, since a Marian patronage could have angered the Reformed majority of the population. In the history of the Catholic Church there is a tradition that churches built on an elevated position are consecrated to the Archangel Michael and thus “the victory of good over evil is made clear”. This suggestion was supported by the parishioners. Today there are three Roman Catholic churches in the canton of Zurich, built in the 20th century, which are dedicated to the Archangel: St. Michael (Zollikerberg) , St. Michael (Dietlikon) and St. Michael Uitikon.
Today (as of 2017) the Parish Rectorate St. Michael has 1,068 members, which corresponds to a population share of 25.2%. Together with the Catholics of Aesch and Birmensdorf, the Uitikon Catholics belong to the Birmensdorf parish. This has 3,122 members (as of 2017), making it one of the smaller Catholic parishes in the canton of Zurich.
Building description
Church tower and exterior
The St. Michael church is located on the corner of Stalliker- and Suracherstrasse in the Waldegg district . The oblong terrain, which sloped quite steeply along Suracherstrasse, meant that the church and the parish center in the basement of the church were built in the upper part of the property, and the parsonage topographically lower down. Coming from Stallikerstrasse, the visitor first discovers the striking but not high concrete tower with tower cross, then the cone-shaped, complexly constructed folding roof of the church. A forecourt leads to the interior of the church.
The bell tower hides a three-part bell that was cast in 1970 by Emil Eschmann , Rickenbach:
| number | Weight | diameter | volume | dedication | inscription |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1365 kg | 127 cm | e | Trinity | Stay in my love |
| 2 | 859 kg | 113 cm | f sharp | archangel Michael | Who is like God? |
| 3 | 612 kg | 100 cm | g sharp | Brother Klaus | Fried is all in God |
Interior and artistic equipment
The polygonal interior is spanned by a complex wooden roof. At the highest point of the roof structure is a triangular skylight , which refers to the Trinity in its design. Architect Dezsö Ercsi originally planned a concrete roof. This would not only have been more expensive, it would also have required concrete supports in the church. The decision to use a wooden roof construction enables a column-free, light church space.
The rows of chairs for the visitors are arranged in a semicircle on the chancel, which has been raised by two steps, thus implementing the requirements of the liturgy constitution of the Second Vatican Council . The dark wood, which was chosen for the furniture of the chancel, forms a contrast to the light wood of the woven chairs and the lighter wooden ceiling of the church. The popular altar has a simple design and consists of the same dark wood as the back wall of the tabernacle and the ambo , on the front side of which the baptismal font and the Easter candlestick were added. The tabernacle is located on the back wall of the sanctuary and consists of a metal cube, which is covered with rectangular glass stones. The tabernacle is surrounded by a wooden structure in the stylized shape of a tree. To the left of the chancel is the organ and on the east wall of the church, spatially separated, is the weekday chapel, in the middle of which there is a popular altar. On the back wall of the weekday chapel is a modern statue of Our Lady with baby Jesus.
Daylight is led into the church through the triangular skylight. There is also a light shaft on the altar wall and a wider window on the west facade of the church. Another, smaller window is on the north wall of the church opposite the chancel. This window is a leaded glass window showing a flower in the lower part, a bird in the middle, which lifts up on a blue background, and a sun above, which is kept in white and yellow tones.
organ
In 1977 Gerhard Grenzing (Barcelona) built the organ . It is a mechanical instrument with 16 registers , divided into two manuals including a pedal . During the revision of the organ in 2000 by Orgelbau Goll , the Schalmei 8 'in the main work was replaced by the Dulcian 8'.
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- Coupling : II / I, I / P, II / P
- 1 free combination (rotary knob)
- Storage: Dulcian (HW), Mixtur (HW), Scharff (BW)
literature
- Episcopal Ordinariate Chur (ed.): Schematism of the Diocese of Chur. Chur 1980.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Episcopal Ordinariate Chur (ed.): Schematism of the Diocese of Chur. Pp. 191-192 and 260.
- ^ Archives of the parish of St. Martin Birmensdorf.
- ↑ Episcopal Ordinariate Chur (ed.): Schematism of the Diocese of Chur. Pp. 191-192.
- ^ Archives of the parish of St. Martin Birmensdorf.
- ^ Minutes of the parish meeting from the parish archive.
- ^ Archives of the parish of St. Martin Birmensdorf.
- ↑ Catholic Church in the Canton of Zurich (Ed.): Annual Report 2017. P. 82.
- ↑ Organ directory Switzerland-Liechtenstein, section Catholic Church St. Michael Uitikon-Waldegg ZH. Retrieved April 22, 2015.
Coordinates: 47 ° 21 '52.59 " N , 8 ° 27' 44.71" O ; CH1903: 677 335 / 246478