In 2023, Lübeck's oldest church celebrated its 850th birthday.
Incredible: so old and still so young and lively!
Happy birthday, dear Dom, what a beautiful birthday boy you are and how well you have held up! And anyway, how good that you exist and that we can find refuge under the great umbrella of your grace.
It's great to stand out here and admire you, in a very modestly Protestant way. To rave about your architectural beauty. Of the magnificent splendor of your art. And of the Hanseatic understatement of discreet simplicity - and the soothing coolness that characterizes you.
For centuries, you have been our refuge and stronghold, a source of light and a center of strength. Because you know the glory and the pain of history and so - layer by layer in history - you tell of the wounds of war and the miracles of salvation. And so you carry us through the ages with our troubled souls. You give us security on the inside and a sign on the outside. The towers, the battered ones, nevertheless and always point to the one who blesses and protects and preserves us.
And then we see the troubled souls of these days and the burdened soul of our country - and know that here is a place where we can gain strength. Clarity and a view. In your wonderful light, dear cathedral, there are not two places as beautiful as your interior!
Kirsten Fehrs, Bishop
...so many memories:
You can read two of our community letters about the birthday here (german):
Anyone who turns 850 years old is really celebrating a special birthday.
850 years is a period of time beyond human comprehension. To think that far back or that far into the future - how is that possible?
...from the CONTENTS:
- Grußworte der Bischöfin Kirsten Fehrs
- Programm der Festwoche
- Rückschau: Der Domchor wird 75 Jahre
- Interview mit Hartmut Rohmeyer