This is reported by the newspaper “Kurier” (online Monday evening). The yellow box is equipped with a touchscreen, bank card reader and two small cooling compartments with taps. Payment and age verification are carried out using the pilgrims’ ATM cards. The technology-savvy Franciscan Father Thomas Lackner had the idea for the “Messwein-Gasstation”. According to the manufacturer, it is the first of its kind in the world, he told the newspaper.
The four wines in the machine come from regional winegrowers who meet the criteria for altar wine: naturalness without additives and approval by the diocese for church use. “Consecrated”, i.e. converted to the blood of Christ according to the Catholic view, as in the celebration of the Eucharist, is of course not the wine of the Eucharist. The tastings from the service wine filling station are only good Burgenland wine as used in the celebration of the service.
According to his own statement, the priest does not just want to earn money for the basilica with the gas station. He sees the machine as part of a strategy to get more people into church. Lackner: “Such an attraction can motivate people to visit this place. That can be the first step in overcoming the threshold of faith.” The pilgrimage church in Frauenkirchen is not only a popular pilgrimage destination, but also a stop for cyclists, sometimes hundreds a day.
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