Bouldering instead of praying: churches find new roles

There are astir 44,000 to 45,000 religion buildings successful Germany – depending connected which ineffable spaces are included. Many of these buildings signifier the quality of villages, neighbourhoods and landscapes. But the question of however they tin beryllium preserved is being asked ever much often arsenic congregations shrink and costs rise.

The parish religion of St Andrew successful the Sanderau territory of Würzburg is besides facing specified a transformation. From the extracurricular it stands similar a soundless witnesser to post‑war modernism. Inside, however, the religion interior is to instrumentality connected a caller function: wherever services were held for decades, radical volition successful aboriginal beryllium climbing connected bouldering walls.

The church, consecrated successful 1968 by Bishop Josef Stangl, is to beryllium profaned, successful different words deconsecrated nether canon law. The Diocese of Würzburg and the operators of the “Rock Inn” bouldering centre announced this publicly (source successful German) successful April 2026. Climbing walls, a yoga room, a café and a children’s country are planned. The sports installation is owed to unfastened successful summertime 2027. St Andrew could past go Bavaria’s archetypal “climbing church”.

“We simply can’t negociate immoderate more”

For decades, St Andrew was a venue for spiritual celebrations and a abstraction for assemblage events. But the burdens became excessively great. Father Tobias Fuchs, who looks aft St Andrew unneurotic with the neighbouring parish of St Adalbero, speaks of precocious attraction costs and a deficiency of staff. “For example, for a agelong clip we had a antheral who worked voluntarily arsenic caretaker, but helium precocious had to halt for reasons of age,” says Fuchs. In the end, helium says, it was wide to everyone: “We simply can’t negociate immoderate more.”

In February 2026 the gathering was listed arsenic a historical monument, ruling retired demolition. For galore members of the parish this astatine slightest means that the striking operation volition beryllium preserved, adjacent if it is enactment to a caller use.

When churches are fixed “E” status

St Andrew is not an isolated case. The Diocese of Würzburg has reviewed its spot portfolio and internally marked astir 80 churches with the codification “E”. This denotes churches that are to beryllium fixed a caller usage successful the agelong term. Financial manager and Ordinariatsrat Gerald Düchs stresses that an idiosyncratic solution is sought for each religion and that the parishes are involved. The symptom for the assemblage is to beryllium kept arsenic debased arsenic possible.

The diocese already has acquisition with repurposed churches: successful the 1970s, religion buildings successful Erbshausen were converted into flats, successful Mespelbrunn into a parish centre and successful Hausen adjacent Aschaffenburg into an artist’s studio. In Würzburg itself, the historical Spitäle contiguous serves arsenic an creation assemblage and the Neubaukirche of the Old University arsenic a banqueting hall.

Pressure is besides increasing nationwide. Since the twelvemonth 2000, liturgical usage has been wholly discontinued successful 611 Catholic churches, the property bureau of the German Bishops’ Conference said successful effect to an enquiry. Only 201 of them were sold retired of religion ownership. Many different buildings remained successful the hands of the Church and are utilized otherwise contiguous – for illustration for societal facilities, care, lodging oregon archives.

What is allowed – and what is not

The Church cannot determine arbitrarily which follow‑on uses are possible. The Diocese of Würzburg requires a conception that is compatible with Christian values. Markus Hauck from the Episcopal Ordinariate of Würzburg explains connected petition that cultic usage by non‑Christian spiritual communities is excluded – “out of information for the spiritual feelings of Catholic believers”.

This enactment follows the guidelines of the German Bishops’ Conference. As aboriginal arsenic 2003 it stated that demolition should lone ever beryllium a past resort. Conversions should, arsenic acold arsenic possible, beryllium reversible truthful that aboriginal generations could successful mentation usage the spaces for religion purposes again. At the aforesaid time, the dignity of the spot sets limits: liturgical signs and objects whitethorn not beryllium taken implicit decoratively into commercialized concepts.

For the Church of St Andrew successful Würzburg, designer Roland Breuning of the Archicult bureau is truthful readying a restrained intervention. The bouldering walls are to basal connected an inserted gallery. “Overall, the purpose is to dainty the existing rooms arsenic mildly arsenic imaginable and to plan immoderate caller structures truthful that they tin beryllium removed,” the designer explained successful the property merchandise issued successful April.

From the exertion to the last Mass

Before anyone tin commencement climbing, the religion indispensable beryllium officially profaned, that is, deconsecrated. Bishop Franz Jung volition question proposal connected this successful the Council of Priests and the General Episcopal Council; the diocesan creation committee volition besides contented an opinion. The bishop tin past bid the profanation.

It is carried retired astatine the extremity of a last solemn Mass by a subordinate of the cathedral chapter. “This Mass ends with the clearing of the religion interior and the presumption of the profanation certificate,” Hauck explains. If each those progressive springiness their consent, this measurement could inactive instrumentality spot successful summertime 2026.

For the parish, this farewell is much than conscionable an administrative act. The German Bishops’ Conference provides for its ain liturgical rite for this. It is intended to explicit gratitude and nonstop the regard towards the future.

Post‑war churches nether peculiar pressure

St Andrew belongs to a radical of buildings that is presently particularly astatine risk: churches dating from betwixt 1950 and the aboriginal 1970s.

In a contribution (source successful German) to the diary “Aus Politik und Zeitgeschichte”, creation historiographer Prof Stefanie Lieb interprets the repurposing of religion buildings arsenic a profound structural transformation. Conservationists presumption churches arsenic portion of the townscape and the built community. Theologians look much from the inside, from their liturgical function. When a parish moves out, the abstraction loses its halfway from a religion perspective. This hostility underlies galore debates astir caller uses.

Other examples amusement that caller uses tin win successful a respectful way. The erstwhile religion of St Ursula successful Hürth adjacent Cologne, designed by Gottfried Böhm, was converted into an creation assemblage successful 2010. Aachen’s Church of the Redeemer was rebuilt successful 2016 arsenic a columbarium – a spot for urn graves that inactive has a quiet, spiritual atmosphere.

A question for nine arsenic a whole

Not everyone views commercialized follow‑on uses positively. Olaf Zimmermann, managing manager of the German Cultural Council, said successful an interrogation with the Protestant Press Service successful January 2025: “Churches are communal goods.” Many radical consciousness attached to these buildings, adjacent if they stopped going to religion agelong ago. Churches are landmarks – and their aboriginal is truthful not conscionable an interior religion matter.

The Protestant Church is besides looking intensively astatine this issue. At the 31st Protestant Church Architecture Day successful Berlin successful 2024, the aboriginal of religion buildings took centre stage. Klaus‑Martin Bresgott from the Cultural Office of the Council of the Evangelical Church successful Germany (EKD) recommended involving respective partners astatine an aboriginal stage: congregations, municipalities, practice authorities and imaginable caller operators. Church congregations, helium said, indispensable larn to stock responsibility.

Art historiographer Stefanie Lieb besides argues for a broader perspective. The repurposing of churches is simply a structural alteration comparable to the translation of erstwhile concern sites successful the Ruhr region. What utilized to beryllium seen arsenic a load is present often valued arsenic taste heritage. The preservation of religion buildings truthful requires not lone ecclesiastical but besides societal support.

Climbing nether the pyramid

Andreas Schmitt, co‑managing manager of Rock Inn and an designer himself, sees the caller usage arsenic fitting the quality of the place. “A religion is simply a spot that brings a assemblage together. We besides spot ourselves arsenic an instauration that brings radical together. In that respect, this caller usage is simply a precise bully fit.” The “Inn” successful the institution sanction stands for hospitality.

Father Fuchs calls it a changeable of luck: “We are grateful that a bully solution for preserving the religion and parish centre was recovered truthful quickly.” The presbytery volition stay successful the hands of the parish, and a pastoral idiosyncratic connected tract is to coordinate aboriginal enactment with children and young people. So the parish is not losing everything – it is passing a abstraction on.

Fewer religion members

The lawsuit of St Andrew indispensable besides beryllium seen against the backdrop of declining rank numbers. At the extremity of 2025, 43.8% of the colonisation inactive belonged to the Catholic oregon Protestant Church. According to provisional figures (source successful German) from the German Bishops’ Conference, the Catholic Church had 19,219,601 members, portion the Evangelical Church (source successful German) had astir 17.4 million. The numbers leaving stay high: astir 307,000 radical near the Catholic Church successful 2025, and astir 350,000 near the Evangelical Church.

For galore parishes this has factual consequences. Fewer members mean little income, less unit and little country for manoeuvre erstwhile it comes to maintaining ample buildings. What happens to these buildings besides shows which places a nine wants to sphere successful bid to support a consciousness of assemblage successful different ways.