Many have come at this late hour to say goodbye to the building as a church – seniors, young people, members of the Indian community who have found a home there for 50 years, but also parents with their children. People have also gathered in front of the church door. They want to take one last look inside the building as soon as the fair is over and are stunned. Some remember personal moments. “My daughter was baptized and started school here. But even putting faith aside, what remains is ancient history and a structure whose size and beauty should not be undervalued,” says Michael Palomo, who worries the empty church could be the victim of vandalism.
He’s not the only one worried in that direction. The mood in the community is depressed, but not combative. The church members firmly trust that their Lord will also find a solution acceptable to them in this situation. A banner is attached above the church portal that reads: “We stay”. Despite all the signs pointing to a different ending, this remains everyone’s greatest wish.
Even Pastor Joachim Schwarzmüller is not yet convinced that the last word should have been spoken. He refers to the statement by Bishop Helmut Jeder, who pledged his support to the community during his visit during the Corona period and was impressed by the lively community life and the beautiful premises. For almost 21 years, St. Johann Baptist was more than just a second home for the Krefeld pastor, as he says. That night he has to carry his personal belongings, as well as the utensils needed for mass, to the vicarage, where the devotions are to be celebrated temporarily in small groups. A painful step accompanied by song and candlelight.
“But in the end it’s just stones and it doesn’t end the world, even if it hurts. I trust the bishop and hope for a happy ending,” says the pastor, distancing himself from “conspiracy theories” that can also be heard that night and in which the assumption is made that the congregation was “thrown out”. is a long-planned project. “We will take the challenge in the spirit of Jesus and blame no one,” he says.
Francesco Tolli is deeply saddened. He’s homeless, but up until now he felt like he had a home anyway. He regularly attended mass in St. Johann Baptist, took part in feeding the poor, but also took part in community life. “I came to faith here. Here you can feel the presence of the Lord,” he says, emphasizing how important this “spiritual support” is for people without a permanent home. In addition, good care also plays an important role. Women in the community prepare over 100 meals each Sunday, which are then distributed to the homeless.
Eucharistic adoration was celebrated daily in the more than 120-year-old church. There were also people from all over the region, including Moers and Voerde, as parishioner Theresa Panus remembers. She has been active in the community since 2005, now she does not know how to continue. “A tent has been ordered, which is to be erected for three months at great expense. But it doesn’t have any toilets and its furnishings aren’t really designed for celebrating a trade fair,” she says. She looks towards the altar. The vault in which the consecrated hosts were housed is open there. They have already been taken to the vicarage. “The bishop has promised to support us. I counted on that. Then we found out a few days ago that we had to get out. All of our attempts to save the church at our own expense were rejected by Aachen,” she regrets.
On request, a diocese spokeswoman explained the process that ultimately led to the closure order at the beginning of June: “The owner of the church is the parish of Maria Frieden Krefeld. The parishes are independent legal entities. So they decide whether to close a church or not. If, for example, the safety of visitors to a church is no longer guaranteed, a church board acts responsibly when it closes a church. The church council did this for the church of St. Johann Baptist. So it is not a forced closure, but the decision of a democratically elected body.”
At the weekend, as announced, the church locks were exchanged. Meanwhile, believers of St. Johann Baptist are planning further actions.
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