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Presented in December 2018, an address on the repurposing of decommissioned churches examined how disused ecclesiastical buildings across the Rhineland serve interfaith and intercultural purposes. Albert Gerhards, a scholar at the University of Bonn, argued that church cultural heritage belongs not exclusively to Christian communities but carries broader significance for collective cultural engagement.
Models of Repurposing in the Rhineland
Gerhards cited several examples of closed churches transformed into shared cultural spaces. The Kunst Station Sankt Peter in Cologne and the Dialogarum Krezung St. Helena cultural centre in Bonn demonstrate this trend. The St. Helena centre operates within a decommissioned but not yet deconsecrated church building under parish ownership, where liturgical furnishings and sacred objects—including a stone altar and holy water font—remain alongside activities that bring together participants from diverse cultural and religious backgrounds.
Conditions and Cautions for Dialogue
Gerhards emphasized that successful interfaith dialogue requires a secure foundation in faith and mutual respect. He warned against encounters that are unnecessarily provocative or offensive to others’ sensibilities. A prerequisite for such initiatives, he argued, is the Christian community’s awareness of its own heritage. From this foundation, he stated, the Church must reconsider its self-understanding and learn from other religions and cultures by stepping beyond the sanctuary and sanctuary grounds to view its patrimony with fresh perspective.
The conversion of Hamburg’s Al-Nour Mosque—formerly the Lutheran Kapernaum Kirche, sold to the Islamic community in 2012—exemplified this approach. The transformation involved modest external architectural changes, and crucially, the two communities engaged in dialogue throughout the conversion process.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Dialogarum Krezung St. Helena centre?
It is a cultural centre located in a decommissioned but not yet deconsecrated church in Bonn under parish ownership, where people from different cultural and religious backgrounds meet, with original liturgical furnishings and sacred objects such as the stone altar and holy water font still present in the space.
What happened to the Kapernaum Kirche in Hamburg?
The former Lutheran church was sold to the Islamic community in 2012 and converted into the Al-Nour Mosque, with the two communities engaging in dialogue throughout the transformation process.
What conditions does Gerhards identify as necessary for interfaith dialogue?
A secure foundation in faith, mutual respect, and the Christian community’s awareness of its own heritage are essential, while encounters should avoid being unnecessarily provocative or offensive to others’ sensibilities.