World Peace Church (Hiroshima)

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Memorial Cathedral for World Peace in Hiroshima

The World Peace Church ( Japanese 世界 平和 記念 聖堂 , Sekai Heiwa Kinen Seidō ) of Hiroshima was built in memory of the victims of war and the atomic bomb in connection with the desire for world peace. Hiroshima gained worldwide fame as the target of the first military use of nuclear weapons on August 6, 1945. The church received the patronage of the Assumption of Mary . After the war , Father Enomiya-Lassalle , who survived the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, was able to win the support of the Pope and many other people from all over the world for the construction of a church, which was named "Memorial Cathedral for World Peace" .

The construction of the church began on August 6, 1950. It was completed four years later on August 6, 1954. The church was designed by the architect Murano Tōgo (1891-1984). The memorial cathedral and the Peace Memorial Museum were the first post-war buildings to be declared an important cultural asset of Japan in 2006.

history

At 8:15 a.m. on August 6, 1945, the feast of the Transfiguration , the atomic bomb, nicknamed Little Boy , was dropped from a B-29 bomber and detonated 580 meters above Hiroshima to maximize its destructive effect . Hiroshima was completely destroyed and by 1946 a total of 90,000 to 166,000 people died from the drop, including the long-term consequences. Despite Japan's war crimes against other countries, it remains controversial whether the use of nuclear weapons was necessary at the end of the war. Japan capitulated nine days later, on the religious feast of the Assumption. The Second World War officially ended with that.

Father Hugo Enomiya-Lassalle , was a German Jesuit - missionary in Japan . As one of the survivors of the atomic bomb, he felt called to build a church as a prayer for peace and he presented his plan to Pope Pius XII. in front. He traveled around the world and asked for donations and realized his plan for the construction of the World Peace Church. Construction began on August 6, 1950, the 5th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb, and was completed exactly four years later with the consecration . The Apostolic Vicariate of Hiroshima, founded in 1923, was elevated to the Diocese of Hiroshima in 1959 . Pope John Paul II visited the cathedral in 1981. Today the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is better known as the World Peace Memorial Cathedral.

description

The World Peace Memorial in Hiroshima was built from the rubble of the Noborichō Parish Church, which was destroyed by the atomic bomb on August 6, 1945. The cathedral is located between Hiroshima Peace Park and JR Hiroshima Train Station . The volumetric treatment of the design was influenced by Auguste Perret , while the inclusion of a circular dome over the church and small cylindrical chapels on either side of the main volume are echoes of Byzantine architecture .

The subsequent concrete frame with interior cladding is reminiscent of traditional Japanese architecture , such as the shapes of the windows that penetrate the tower. The brick fillers in this case were made of the earth with ashes from the buildings destroyed by the atomic bomb, that their rough surfaces cast shadows over the facade. The church is based on a classic basilica . The nave is divided into seven bays . The transition from the nave to the apse is through a round triumphal arch . The three-door entrance is on the west side. Architect Kenji Imai designed the sculptures above the main door. The church is dominated by a high prism-shaped tower that stands free like a campanile .

Today the church houses a large number of works of art by contemporary German artists, especially from the Rhineland. It also contains a large number of everyday items and furnishings that were donated by German personalities and companies at the time. Since 1960 the church is no longer subordinate to the Jesuit order, but is the seat of the Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Hiroshima .

Works of art in the church

Utensils and furnishings in the church

The stained glass windows were made in the Schlierbach Abbey glassworks and inserted in the upper storey in Hiroshima .

Web links

Commons : Weltfriedenskirche  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ hiroshima-navi.or.jp, Memorial Cathedral for World Peace
  2. ↑ Aftermath of Hiroshima: Cathedral of Love, by Gabriel Chow, August 7, 2015 (English)
  3. ↑ archeyes.com, World Peace Monument Togo Murano Cathedral from March 26, 2016 (English)
  4. ↑ Peace Bell for Hiroshima (British Pathé 1952)
  5. ↑ josef-mikl.com, Church of Peace Hiroshima Japan 1959–60 execution

Coordinates: 34 ° 23 ′ 44.2 "  N , 132 ° 28 ′ 4.1"  E