Lutheran Church of Budavár is the oldest

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

church of Buda. It was built in 1895 at in the 1st District of

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

. The first church for the Lutherans of Buda was built by Maria Dorothea, third wife of Palatine Joseph, in 1846, at :hu:Dísz tér. The site was taken over by the Ministry of Defence, so a new church was built near Vienna Gate.

Background

The building was designed by Mór Kallina and it was consecrated in 1895 by Sámuel Sárkány, bishop of the Lutheran diocese of Bánya. It has

eclectic Eclectic may refer to: Music * ''Eclectic'' (Eric Johnson and Mike Stern album), 2014 * ''Eclectic'' (Big Country album), 1996 * Eclectic Method, name of an audio-visual remix act * Eclecticism in music, the conscious use of styles alien to th ...

neobaroque style with a neobaroque façade. Its entrance is surrounded by two Corinthian order-like columns with shoulders. It has a tall, slim square tower whose steeple is again neobaroque in style. There is a double loft over the entrance. Most of the church was destroyed by a bomb detonation during the

Siege of Budapest The Siege of Budapest or Battle of Budapest was the 50-day-long encirclement by Soviet and Romanian forces of the Hungarian capital of Budapest, near the end of World War II. Part of the broader Budapest Offensive, the siege began when Budape ...

in 1945. Only the outer walls escaped destruction. The altar, the benches and the organ were all lost. Plans for reconstruction were made by Lóránt Friedrich and Jr Gyula Bretz. The new church was sanctified by Lajos Ordas bishop on

Palm Sunday Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Palm Sunday marks the first day of Hol ...

, 1948. While the exterior retained its neobaroque flavour in a simplified form, the interior became much austere. There is a huge cross behind the wooden altar table and a mosaic window over it admitting some light within. There is a red marble chrzcielnica at the altar and a bronze tablet about vicar Gábor Sztehlo. This church today is the centre of liturgical life for the Lutheran Diocese of Budavár. There are several services every Sunday and on holidays. Flats and offices for the vicars, rooms for the congregation and the centre for the German-speaking Lutheran Diocese of Budavár adjoin the church. Since 1952, it has also been the centre of the Northern Lutheran See. Several bishops were ordained here. The tower and the paved area in front of the church were renovated in 2008. Pulpit The church has no pulpit because the original one was destroyed in 1945 together with all the other pieces of furniture. This pulpit was a precious relic from the first church on Dísz tér because its upper part was transferred here from the demolished building. The plans of Mór Kallina, dated 1894, show a monumental altar-pulpit in line with the Central-European Lutheran tradition. These interior plans were only partially executed and the pulpit was built instead as a separate structure on the left side of the apse. The access was from the sacristy through a steep stairway. The hexagonal wooden balcony was supported by a huge hexagonal pillar. The surface imitated marble veneer with gilt decorations. The relief on the middle panel depicted ''The Sower'' as a Hungarian peasant among trees and fields. The other four panels were decorated with Christian symbols including the scriptures, cross, torches, and a laurel wreath. On the underside of the abat-voix there was the Eye of Providence between rays of light. The hexagonal canopy was crowned with the Tablets of Stone set on silvery clouds and framed with gilt palm and laurel branches.Győry Aranka: Evangélikus templomművészet Budapesten, Budapesti evangélikus egyházak, 1935, pp. 39-40.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lutheran Church of Budavar Buda Castle Churches in Budapest 19th-century churches in Hungary Eclectic architecture Churches completed in 1895