St. Ludger Church, Billerbeck

Bishop Liudger baptized at Billerbeck and founded the parish church of St. John the Baptist there before 800 . A chapel dedicated to the saint was built at the place of death or in its vicinity in the 11th century . Ludgerus was connected. Secondary patron was St. Nicholas of Myra . In the 15th century, this chapel was expanded in a Gothic style . Under Prince Bishop Christoph Bernhard von Galen (1650-1678), the tower was raised by one floor. Towards the end of the 19th century the building was demolished to make way for a new building.

Today's provost church was built in the years 1892–1898 on the foundations of the Romanesque Ludgeri Church and a funeral chapel erected around 1735 by master builder Wilhelm Rincklake (1851-1927). He designed the nave in the form of a basilica with a transept and the 100 m high pair of towers[1] from the Baumberger sandstone found in the nearby Baumberge mountains . The towers of the cathedral can be seen from afar.

The neo-Gothic Ludgerus Cathedral incorporated the site where Saint Ludgerus died. The place where the saint died in Billerbeck, along with his burial place in St. Ludgerus in Essen-Werden, is one of the focal points of Ludgerus worship to this day. Billerbeck thus has both historical and spiritual significance for the entire diocese. The city is one of the three "high places" of the diocese.

At the inauguration of the church, Bishop Hermann Jakob Dingelstad said that he "has every right to call this important church the Ludger Cathedral". Since that time, the provost's church has also been referred to as the cathedral, although it is not a cathedral or bishop's seat.

Like the architect, the sculptors, carpenters and glass painters involved in the construction were inspired by medieval models and developed their approaches further; In this way they created a uniform ensemble from the body of the building to the furnishings.

With its striking silhouette and (compared to the size of the town) considerable dimensions, the Ludgerus Cathedral is the landmark of the city of Billerbeck that can be seen from afar.

The main portal is flanked by two figures: on the right St. Abbot Gregory of Utrecht, the teacher of Liudgers in Utrecht, on the left St. Nicholas, who was the patron saint of the earlier church on this site. A crucifixion group rises above a six-panel window in the gable . In the gable niche is a figure of Saint Liudger.

It is dedicated to the Virgin Mary . Above the portal is a relief of the "Annunciation". On the sides of the portal there are two sandstone figures of great Marian devotees: on the right St. Bernard of Clairvaux and left St. Herman Joseph von Steinfeld . These are copies. The two heavily weathered originals are currently being kept in the Sandstone Museum in Havixbeck, protected from further deterioration . In the cross gable, Mary is depicted with the baby Jesus, surrounded by two angels.

At the end of the 100th anniversary of the cathedral, a memorial stone was erected on the south side of the cathedral at the end of 1998, which was designed by the painter and sculptor Mechthild Ammann from Billerbeck. Two highly polished stainless steel plates are embedded at eye level in this stone made of Baumberger sandstone, the material from which the cathedral was also built. Etched into the metal surfaces are sketches and scenes, texts and symbols that deal with the prehistory and with the construction of the cathedral itself.

The central nave, aisle and transept arms are covered by ribbed vaults . The central nave measures 22.5 meters from the floor to the keystone of the vault. The side aisles are 10 meters high. The ridge height of the roof is 34 meters. In the crossing bay, the vault is increased to an eight-part form. The room holds 4000 people.

The 15 meter high, three-part chancel window contains the theme of the work of salvation, beginning with the expulsion of the first people after the Fall. They show numerous stations from the Old and New Testaments . The two lower scenes of each window are taken from the Old Testament and typologically refer to the two upper New Testament scenes. In the only non-biblical image, St. Liudger is shown celebrating Holy Mass one last time the day before his deathcelebrates. In the middle of all biblical images it is expressed that the celebration of Holy Mass keeps the whole work of God's redemption present to the church and to all people, which culminates in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

The entire window cycle was made by the glass painting workshop Anton von der Forst from Münster. The cartons for this came from Rafael Grünnes from Ried, Upper Austria.[2]

It is dedicated to the Blessed Mother. If the winged altar is open, you can see a statue of the Mother of God in the middle and angels to the left and right of her. On the wings of the altar are six paintings of saints: (right) Dominic, Heriburg of Nottuln, Bernard of Clairvaux; (left) Joachim, Anna, Simeon. – With the altar closed, there is a painting of the Annunciation of the Lord, with Liudger on the left and John on the right. The three windows of the choir illustrate scenes from the life of the Blessed Mother.

He is under the patronage of St. Joseph, who can be seen with the baby Jesus with the altar open. To his right and left are paintings and reliefs related to the life of Joseph.

The image of the closed altar refers to the elevation of Joseph to the patron saint of the Church by Pope Pius IX. on December 8, 1870; next to (right) Saints Francis de Sales, Alfonso de Liguori and Blessed Hermann-Joseph; (left) Teresa, Bridget and Blessed Mary of the Angels. The three windows show further scenes from the life of the saint.

Both side altars were designed by the architect Wilhelm Rincklake . The statues and reliefs were provided by the sculptor August Schmiemann (Münster). Decorative painter Hermann Schwarte (Oelde) carried out the polychroming. The paintings of both altars, as well as the high altar, were made by the history painter Carl Bertling (Dresden).[3]