St. Nikolaus (Rotenberg)
| St. Nicholas, Rotenberg | |
|---|---|
_2.jpg) St. Nikolaus Rotenberg, south-east view with bell tower, 2007 (before external renovation) |
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| Data | |
| place |
Rotenberg (Rauenberg) , Baden-Wuerttemberg |
| Construction year | before 1548 / 1805-1806 |
| height | 8 m |
| Floor space | 260 m² |
| Coordinates | 49 ° 15 '30.4 " N , 8 ° 42' 53.6" E |
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The church of St. Nikolaus in Rotenberg was built between 1805 and 1806 for the most part in its current form, facing northeast and is the parish church of the Roman Catholic parish . The parish in the Archdiocese of Freiburg , in the dean's office in Wiesloch, is part of the Letzenberg pastoral care unit .
The history of the church and the parish
Pastor Schaeffer
The Catholic rectory in Rotenberg has a local history rarity in the records of Pastor Georg Christoph Schaeffer from 1772, which are handwritten and are called the "black book" because of the black leather cover. The pastor reports on the city and Rotenberg Castle, the parish church, the church assets, the parish and the school service on over 200 pages.
Schaeffer was born in Fulda in 1722 , became pastor of Rotenberg in 1762 and died there on October 22, 1777, where he was buried three days later in the churchyard. His tombstone can still be found on the outer wall of the church tower today, he bears the inscription "Hic iacet PRD Christophorus Schaeffer Parochus in Rotenberg mortus est the 27th September Anno 1777" (Here the most venerable Mr. Chr. Schr. Pastor rests in R. He died on September 27, 1777), the wrong date is still inexplicable today.
15th to 17th centuries
Pastor Schaeffer describes in his "black book" the former town and parish church (the predecessor of today's) as an ancient church with an old tower in which two bells with inscriptions from 1494 and 1596 were located. There were three altars in the church, namely the high altar , a Mary and a Joseph altar. An ancient chapel , the St. Anna Chapel , was attached to the church .
Schaeffer derives the age of the church and chapel from the year 1535, which was indicated on a tombstone in the chapel. With absolute certainty, the church with the tower at that time was already fully built in 1548, as these buildings can be clearly seen on a land plaque, which shows the wilderness border between the Electoral Palatinate and the Speyer Monastery. Schaeffer then also describes “rarities and beautiful antiquities” in the church and chapel in the most precise manner.
18th century
Pastor Schaeffer differentiates between the choir and the nave when it comes to the construction load . The big tithe had to build the choir and tower, eleven-twelfth of the Speyer rulership. The church had to build the nave itself. The church patron was (and is to this day) the holy bishop St. Nicholas ; The patron saint of the castle and town is St. Michael the Archangel .
Schaeffer lists the following church holidays in his reports:
New Year's Day , Holy Three Kings Day , Assumption of Mary, Annunciation , Easter Monday , Ascension Day , Whit Monday , Corpus Christi Day , St. John's Day , St. Peter and Paul Day, Mary's Birth , All Saints' Day , Mary's Conception, St. Nicolai Patron 's Day , Holy Christmas Day , St. Stephen's Day, Archangel Michaels City Patron Day.
He also names five days of sacrifice:
Easter , Pentecost , Assumption of Mary, Kirchweih and Christmas Day. The church fair used to be at St. Gallus , but in Schaeffer's time it was already at St. Martin .
Schaeffer also reports on processions and parades around the church on all festive days, on White Sunday the first communications, if any, were picked up by the town hall in a procession and led into the church. In the course of the year, eight processions were carried out outside of town: On May 1st to Waghäusel , which can be traced back to a promise made by the citizens of 1746 and to avert great evil that had happened to the town due to storms and floods; a corridor procession followed on the second Sunday after Easter; the third went to Mühlhausen on St. Mark's Day , where the Rotenberg pastor held a mass , then it went back to Rotenberg, where the Mühlhausen pastor held a mass, which was celebrated together with the parishes from Mühlhausen and Rauenberg; The fourth procession to Malsch took place on Monday during Holy Week ; the fifth on Tuesday to Dielheim and the sixth on Wednesday to Mühlhausen; The seventh went to Waghäusel on Whit Monday together with the parishes of Mühlhausen, Dielheim and Balzfeld ; Finally, the eighth led out to the church on All Souls Day.
Schaeffer also reports on capital, taxes, income and tasks "from the Saint of Rotenberg and from the St. Anna Chapel", as well as on the pastor's income. This is followed by a list of Rotenberg family and field names.
In the church, Rotenberg was under the diocese of Worms , then Bishop Emmerich Joseph Freiherr von Breidenbach, and secular rule was due to the bishopric of Speyer, bishop at that time was Damian August Philipp Karl von Limburg-Stirum .
19th century
At the place of the current parish church was the old St. Nicholas church from the 15th century with a St. Anna chapel. These were to be renovated in 1803, but the electoral church commission found that it was in disrepair.
The construction of a new church began in 1805 under Pastor Hofacker. Initially, the nave, choir and sacristy were planned. Most of the tower on the south side comes from the old church. The work of building the church was awarded to the few craftsmen, who were:
Master mason Lutz (Dielheim), master locksmith Strechfuß ( Odenheim ) and Sumpel ( Bruchsal ), as well as carpenter Pfeiffer ( red ).
The church was built up to the roof truss, when the masonry got cracks, whereupon the structure was demolished again and rebuilt on a grate made from wooden trunks. At that time the community consisted of 122 souls, including 32 citizens. When the church was built, the congregation had to purchase an organ, pulpit and side altars.
In 1812 repairs, framing work and coordination between the high altar and the side altars were carried out, the work was carried out by the sculptor Sachs (Bruchsal), who completed the work in July 1813 and received 350 guilders for it .
In September 1813 the church was built and the confessionals repaired. In 1823 a new church clock was purchased. The watchmaker Stiefel (Heidelberg) received the order for this and received 400 guilders.
In 1841 the poor condition of the parsonage was discovered, whereupon the construction of a new house began in 1856, which cost around 10,240 guilders.
According to the report of the Archbishop's Building Office in Karlsruhe dated October 9, 1873, the paintings on the side altars were uncomfortably artless and not befitting of the holy place. For the new oil paintings, the depictions of St. Archangel Michaels and St. Anna elected with Mary and the baby Jesus. The new pictures were painted by the painter Weber ( Freiburg im Breisgau ), the old pictures were given to the Rauenberg pastor Honikel for a payment of nine guilders.
In 1877 the organ was repaired and rebuilt by organ builder Dürr ( Hardheim ) according to plans by organ inspector Steinbrenner ( Walldürn ), the costs amounted to 2,227 marks.
According to records from 1885, the sacristy was expanded and the construction costs were around 800 marks. This enlarged sacristy room from 1885 corresponds to the group room of the altar servers today .
In September 1889 a new bell was purchased. The church was renovated in 1895 under Pastor Isemann, who was both pastor and dean of Mühlhausen . At this time the reinforcing pillars on the gable of the church were also built.
20th century
The two ceiling paintings were not painted until 1903. The depiction of the birth of Jesus in the choir was financed by the parish, the painting of the Assumption of Mary on the ceiling of the nave was approved by the Archbishop's Building Authority in Freiburg im Breisgau and a new tabernacle was installed on the high altar .
A protocol dated May 1, 1904 appears remarkable:
“Shooting on Corpus Christi and St. Michael's is limited to nine shots each on the evening before and in the morning of the festival. A contract is to be signed with the police officer regarding the shooting ... and to keep order in his official clothes during the procession. In addition, he should be commissioned to open the church door on Sundays and public holidays after the service. As a reward for these achievements, he should receive 10 marks annually. "
In September 1909, electrical lighting was installed in the church, the rectory did not follow until 1920. In September 1911, the Jung company ( Strasbourg ) installed the current pipe heating system in the church, costing 3,338 Reichsmarks .
In 1913 the parish church got a new organ. The builder was the company Voit und Sons ( Durlach ), the acquisition costs were 6,320 Reichsmarks.
In 1920 the tower received two new bells, as the previous ones were confiscated due to the war in 1917 and had to be delivered. The bells were donated by Mayor Eugen Menges and his wife Emma, née Spieß, and the bill amounted to 18,010 DM. Pastor Emil Matthias Menges gave the festive sermon for the consecration of the bells.
Interior renovation began in 1942 under Pastor Julius Berberich and completed in 1946 under Pastor Stephan Frickhofen. Besides the painting work carried out by the Hemberger brothers ( Odenheim ), the rest of the work was done at great sacrifice and with the help of the entire parish during the war.
During the Second World War , the church bells were picked up for the second time. In 1949, however, three new white bronze bells were purchased for an existing one for 4,309 DM.
In 1957 a kindergarten was built in the utility building between the sacristy and the rectory. The costs were borne by the political community and the state of Baden-Württemberg .
In 1959 the bell ringing was electrified.
In 1968 the pews were renewed under Pastor Sautner, this was connected with the catching of the masonry under the church. This was mainly due to the sinking of the groundwater level, since the introduction of the sewage and sewage system in 1905, because the wooden grate on which the foundation of the church from 1805 was built was rotten and rotten. The community members are very supportive of the extensive costs that this unavoidable construction measure entailed.
In 1970 the kindergarten was renovated and heated.
In 1979, when Pastor Melzer was in office, construction began on a new sacristy, which is located south of the choir, between the bell tower and the old sacristy. In the same breath a new electrical system was installed by August Greulich, an interior renovation was carried out by the church painter Fuchs ( Horrenberg ) (1983) and an exterior renovation was carried out by the plasterer company Rinhofer (Rotenberg) (1985). On March 22nd, 1981, the new sacristy was consecrated by Pastor Martin Bandle. Pure new construction costs approx. 30,000 DM.
In 1986 the parish received today's organ, which was supplied by master organ builder Karl Göckel ( Rettigheim ). The purchase price was 119,023 DM, of which the Rauenberg city administration made a donation of 30,000 DM. The organ consecration took place on the 4th Sunday in Advent 1986 by Dean Berthold Enz (Wiesloch) as part of a church music devotion.
In 1992, during Pastor Drescher's term of office, a new, modern and larger kindergarten, "Noah's Ark", was built, in which the parish has a 30% stake. The new building on Weinbergstrasse resulted in the closure of the old kindergarten in Keltergasse a year later.
21st century
In 2000, under Pastor Maiba, the renovation work in the old kindergarten was completed to a parish and parish center St. Michael. The well-equipped rooms are primarily used by the various church groups, but can also be rented for all kinds of events.
A church renovation followed in spring 2003, in which, in addition to extensive painting work in the interior and the renewal of the pews, especially the redesign of the choir, and the installation of a fully automatic hot air heater, which largely replaced the old pipe heating from 1911, the focus.
In November 2012 two new bells were cast in Passau. These were consecrated in March 2013, and the new three-part bronze bell has been ringing from the tower since Easter. The old three white bronze bells from 1949 can now be found in front of the bell tower. A tower renovation inside the bell tower was carried out in autumn 2012. The entire church was renovated in spring 2013.
The pastors of Rotenberg
The pastors of Mühlhausen and Rotenberg
The parish of Rotenberg once belonged to Mühlhausen, only between 1704 and 1747 it was separated from Mühlhausen and became independent. Until then, the common pastor lived in the Mühlhausen rectory.
Pastor Schaeffer lists the following predecessors in his "black book":
- around 1540 Quirinus butcher
- around 1670 Sylvester Georgie (a Dominican)
- around 1686 Maurus Schiesel (a Benedictine)
- around 1704 Damian Hertzog (during his tenure the parishes were separated)
The pastors of Rotenberg
Between the 1740s and 1979 Rotenberg was a completely independent parish for around 230 years, with its own pastor.
Schaeffer first listed his predecessors, his successors continued his book and entered themselves:
| Term of office | Surname | Life dates | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| around 1747 | Andreas Bauman | ||
| 1751-1762 | Michael Primer | ||
| 1762-1777 | Georg Christoph Schaeffer | * 1722 Fulda, † 1777 Rotenberg | Beginning of the record in the Black Book |
| 1777-1793 | Georgius Antonius Schae (oe) Newald | ||
| 1793-1809 | Michael Weinsbach | * Bruchsal | |
| 1809-1836 | Conradus Hofacker | * 1767 Bruchsal, † 1836 Rotenberg | |
| 1837-1857 | Franz Valentin Müller | * 1798 Muldau, † 1857 Rotenberg | |
| 1857-1863 | Josef Weimer | During the construction of the new rectory, he lived in Rauenberg, as long as responsibility for both parishes until 1858 | |
| 1863-1868 | Christoph Michael Hönninger | * 1808 Tauberbischofsheim, † 1868 Rotenberg | |
| 1870-1898 | Lorenz Berberich | * 1814 Heinstadt, † 1898 Rotenberg | |
| 1895-1899 | Josef Isemann | substitute, pastor of Mühlhausen and dean | |
| 1899-1920 | Theodor Herold | * 1846, † 1928 | |
| 1920-1940 | Peter Kailbach | * 1864 Gommersdorf, † 1949 Bad Mergentheim | |
| 1940-1944 | Julius Berberich | * 1878 Hardheim | |
| 1946-1960 | Stefan Frickhofen | * 1882 Petersackerhof, † 1969 Oberwesel | |
| 1960-1979 | Fritz Sautner | * 1921 Karlsruhe, † 2014 Bruchsal |
The pastors of the pastoral care units
Since February 1979 the parishes of St. Nikolaus Rotenberg and St. Peter and Paul Rauenberg have had a common pastor based in Rauenberg. 2003-2014 there was the pastoral care unit Rauenberg, to which Malschenberg belonged. The pastoral care unit or parish of Letzenberg has existed since 2015 and now includes the towns of Malsch , Malschenberg , Mühlhausen with Tairnbach , Rauenberg , Rettigheim and Rotenberg.
| Term of office | Surname | Life dates | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979-1980 | Reinmud Melzer | * 1937 | New construction of the sacristy |
| 1980-1988 | Martin Bantle | * 1950 | Construction of the organ |
| 1988-1998 | Wolfgang Drescher | New construction of the kindergarten "Noah's Ark" | |
| 1998-2011 | Harald Mathias Maiba | * 1963 Billigheim-Allfeld | Conversion of the old kindergarten into the parish and parish center “St. Michael" |
| since 2011 | Joachim Viedt | * 1964 Hann. Münden | |
| since 2012 | Thomas Stolle | * 1960 Karlsruhe |
Equipment of the church
inner space
The interior of the church was modeled on the baroque .
Through the large high altar , the two side altars, the altar , the ambo , the baptismal font , the Easter candle, the communion benches (today without function), the confessional , the pulpit (today without function), the organ and the four pillars under the gallery, which are all clad with red and white marble and a lot of gold, the result is a unique overall picture.
Another special feature are the two large ceiling paintings, a representation of the holy night can be seen in the choir, and the Assumption of Mary in the main nave .
The two gravestones set into the wall in the choir, to the right and left of the high altar, are also a rarity. The right one can be assigned to a Wyprecht von Helmstat who died in 1536, and until his death he owned a third of Rauenberg's. Why the tombstone was set into the wall and where it was located for the 170 years between Wyprecht's death and the rebuilding of the church is unclear.
The church holds a total of 280 people.
High altar
The high altar, about 4 meters wide, 7 meters high and 3 meters deep, is coated with red and white marble and gold.
It consists of the large altar with the gold engraving "IHS", above the tabernacle , framed by six candlesticks. Above in the middle of the entire high altar there is an oil painting "Jesus on the cross". Separated by marble columns, the life-size figure of St. Catherine is to the left of the oil painting, and on the right is the life-size St. Nicholas (church patron). There is a huge silver Sacred Heart of Jesus above the oil painting. God the Father and the Holy Spirit are enthroned above (in the form of a white dove), surrounded by two angels in golden robes, with a silver censer and golden torches.
organ
The organ , which was delivered in 1986 by the Karl Göckel company ( Rettigheim ), is the first Göckel organ in what is now the Letzenberg pastoral care unit. The structure, which once cost 119,023 DM , comprises twelve registers (806 pipes ) on two manuals and pedal . The playing and register actions are mechanical.
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- Coupling: II / I, I / P, II / P
The case of the previous organ from 1913 was rebuilt. The color scheme was arranged by church painter Fuchs ( Horrenberg ); Disposition and advice: R. Walter (Karlsruhe).
Bells
Previous bells
In 1920 the tower received two new bells, as the previous ones were confiscated due to the war in 1917 and had to be delivered (one bell from 1889 could be kept). The bells were donated by Mayor Eugen Menges and his wife Emma, née Spieß. The two bells were cast by the Grüninger company (Villingen). The church bells were picked up for the second time in World War II. In 1949, three new white bronze bells could be purchased in addition to the one still existing bell from 1889. Due to the experience of losing the bells twice during the war within 25 years, the decision was made to use white bronze bells made from a cheaper aluminum alloy. This extremely soft metal showed a lot of wear and tear, there was practically no reverberation and a very dry, muffled sound. In 1959 this bell ringing was electrified.
| No. | Surname | Casting year | foundry | Diameter (mm) |
Weight (kg) |
metal | Nominal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marienbell | 1949 | Grüninger (Villingen) | 970 | 400 | White bronze | g sharp ′ |
| 2 | Michael's Bell | 1949 | Grüninger (Villingen) | 820 | 250 | White bronze | H' |
| 3 | Nicholas bell | 1949 | Grüninger (Villingen) | 710 | 200 | White bronze | cis ″ |
| 4th | Laurentius bell | 1889 | Hamm (Frankenthal) | 550 | 100 | bronze | it" |
In 2011, the archbishop's bell inspector prohibited ringing the white bronze bells due to the threat of breaking apart due to the very poor internal condition of the bells.
Current bell
In November 2012, two new bells were cast in Passau, which were financed entirely from donations. These were consecrated in March 2013, and since Easter of the same year the new three-part bronze bell has been ringing from the tower:
| No. | Surname | Casting year | foundry | Diameter (mm) |
Weight (kg) |
metal | Nominal |
inscription |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nicholas bell | 2012 | Perner (Passau) | 894 | 433 | bronze | b ′ +8 | St. Nicholas please for us |
| 2 | Michael's Bell | 2012 | Perner (Passau) | 760 | 270 | bronze | des ″ +14 | St. Michael protect us |
| 3 | Laurentius bell | 1889 | Hamm (Frankenthal) | 550 | 100 | bronze | it ″ +6 |
The Laurentius bell was cleaned and overhauled in the foundry's factory in Passau. The three bells from 1949 were placed in front of the bell tower and can still be made to ring by striking.
Church associations and groups
- KFD - Catholic women's community Rotenberg (since 1906)
- Church choir St. Cäcilia Rotenberg (since 1945)
- Altar boys St. Nikolaus Rotenberg
- Parish council of the pastoral care unit Letzenberg
Preses of these associations and groups are the heads of the Letzenberg pastoral care unit .
Church buildings
- Parish church of St. Nicholas with sacristy
- Rectory
- Kindergarten Noah's Ark
- Parish center St. Michael
Web links
Sources and literature
- 1338–1988, 650 years of the city of Rotenberg; City of Rauenberg; Odenwälder printing works (Buchen-Walldürn)
- The “Black Book” by Rotenberg, in Kraichgau, contributions to landscape and local research, volume 10 from 1987 p. 175; Henschel
- Most of the representations are based on log books and invoices from the parish of St. Nikolaus zu Rotenberg
Individual evidence
- ↑ Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung from March 20, 2013: Rotenberg welcomed his bells ( Memento from April 29, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
- ↑ On the organ of the St. Nicholas Church ( Memento from May 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive )