Markt Schwaben - Religion

Religion

In Markt Schwaben stand a Catholic church and an Evangelical Lutheran church. Moreover, the League of Free Evangelical Communities in Germany is also present, and there is a Turkish mosque.

In 1315 there was a Romanesque church in Schwaben built out of brick. In 1474 a small Gothic church was consecrated. It was already known as Saint Margaret's at that time. In 1671, building work was begun on the new Pfarrkirche St. Margaret (Saint Margaret’s Parish Church) 20 metres southeast of its forerunner. The work took ten years. The first set of bells consisted of three new (in 1684) ones and one other taken from the old church (1585). In 1704, the Rosenkranzbruderschaft – the "Rosary Brotherhood", a lay Dominican order – endowed the Marienaltar ("Mary's Altar"). In 1718 the Jungfrauenaltar ("Virgins' Altar", with Saints Agatha, Barbara and Catharine), the Josefialtar ("Joseph's Altar") and the Antoniusaltar ("Anthony's Altar") were built. The brewer Trappentreu had the high altar installed in 1723 with a new top and tabernacle, all richly gilt. In 1862 the church was renovated, at which time the original high altarpiece was removed. Its whereabouts remain unknown to this day. In 1873 a new organ was built. The country couple Hundseder endowed a complete new set of bronze bells in 1911, poured at the bellworks in Erding with the "Salve Regina" motif in the arrangement d' - fis' - a' - h'. While the church managed to keep its bells in the First World War, in 1942 they were seized and melted down for war requirements. In 1948 the parish church received a substitute set of bells poured from steel in Bochum, with the same tonal arrangement as the old ones, which is still in use today. In 1975 came yet another, quite extravagant, restoration, whereby the church's south side, facing Erdinger Straße, had to be deeply underpinned owing to the vibration from traffic. In the mid-1990s, the church tower was threatening to tear away from the nave. A woodworm infestation was successfully dealt with in 1999. Currently, yet another expensive restoration is looming as the stuccoed vault is showing threatening cracks apparently caused by vibration from bellringing.

On 22 May 1955, the Evangelical Philippuskirche with its vicarage was consecrated. It lies in the town's northeast. In 1962, the parish vicariate became a parish in its own right. In 1967, the church got an organ. In 1976, another community centre was added to the church. In 2005 the church was renovated.