The Lutheran Church of the Redeemer (; ; ) is an Lutheran-Protestant church in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is the property of the Protestant Jerusalem Foundation, one of the three foundations of the Protestant Church in Germany (EKD) in the Holy Land. Built between 1893 and 1898 by the architect Paul Ferdinand Groth following the designs of Friedrich Adler, the Church of the Redeemer currently houses Lutheran congregations that worship in Arabic, German, Danish, and English. The Church, together with the adjoining provost building, is the seat of the Provost of the German Protestant Ministries in the Holy Land ("Evangelisch in Jerusalem"). It also serves as the headquarters of the Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land since this Arabic-speaking (Palestinian) church became independent from the German provost in 1979.Ronecker, Karl-Heinz, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer Jerusalem, Verlag Schnell+Steiner, Regensburg 1997, p. 2
Built on land given to King William I of Prussia (after 1870 Kaiser Wilhelm I) on the occasion of the latter's participation at the inauguration of the Suez Canal in 1869 by Sultan Abdülhamid of the Ottoman Empire, the church was constructed from 1892 to 1898. The location had been the site of the old church of St. Mary Minor.Adrian J. Boas, Jerusalem in the Time of the Crusaders, (Routledge, 2001), p.125. In 1898 Kaiser Wilhelm II made a trip to Jerusalem to personally dedicate the new church.Marian Kent, Great Powers and the End of the Ottoman Empire, (Routledge, 1996) p.112. For the dedication of the church the Kaiser entered the city on horseback through two specially made ceremonial arches, one a gift of the Ottoman Empire. The church was dedicated on Reformation Day, 1898. At the dedication Wilhelm said:
The Redeemer Church was closed for services from the end of May 1940 until 1950, when the Palestinian Lutheran congregation resumed services, and later the Protestant congregation of German language followed.Dem Erlöser der Welt zur Ehre: Festschrift zum hundertjährigen Jubiläum der Einweihung der evangelischen Erlöserkirche in Jerusalem, Karl-Heinz Ronecker (ed.) on behalf of the 'Jerusalem-Stiftung' and 'Jerusalemsverein', Leipzig: Evangelische Verlags-Anstalt, 1998, p. 247. .
In the gardens of the Lutheran-Protestant Church of the Redeemer is a plaque marking the location of the first hospital of the crusader Order of the Knights of St. John, and the church contains a chapel dedicated to Saint John the Baptist.Abraham Ezra Millgram, Jerusalem Curiosities, (Jewish Publication Society, 1990) p.30. Directly adjacent to the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre that marks the traditional site where Jesus was crucified.
Pastors and provosts
The church ordained the first Palestinian female pastor in the Holy Land, Sally Azar, on 22 January 2023. Azar will head the English-speaking congregation in the church and be one of five ordained female leaders in the Middle East.
Notable pastors and provosts include:Gottfried Mehnert, Der Englisch-Deutsche Zionsfriedhof in Jerusalem und die Deutsche Evangelische Gemeinde Jerusalem. Ein Beitrag zur Ökumenischen Kirchengeschichte Jerusalems, (= , Beihefte; vol. XV), Leiden: Brill, 1971, p. 51.August Strobel, Deine Mauern stehen vor mir allezeit. Bauten und Denkmäler der deutschen Siedlungs- und Forschungsgeschichte im Heiligen Land, Gießen: Brunnen, 1998, (Biblische Archäologie und Zeitgeschichte; vol. 7), pp. 86seq. .
1921 Gustaf Dalman 1921–1922 Albrecht Alt 1985–1991 Johannes Friedrich
Place of Christian pilgrimage For Christians of the Lutheran-Protestant faith, the Church of the Redeemer is a place of Christian pilgrimage. After visiting various holy sites in Jerusalem, Lutheran-Protestants visit the Church of the Redeemer to receive the sacrament of confession and partake in the offering of the Mass. The Church of the Redeemer plays an important role in Holy Week processions, including journeying on the Via Dolorosa, with pilgrims participating in them.
See also Palestinian Christians
References Notes
Citations
External links Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem Lutheran Church of the Redeemer